More than 120 people gave onlookers at the Fiji premier cultural festival a surprise thrill, breaking out into dance to “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees as part of an off-beat effort to launch the Fiji 4FJ campaign.
The campaign aims to decrease fishing pressure on key grouper species from July through October, which is the time of year Grouper reproduce in Fiji. The ultimate goal is to ensure that the fishery can continue to support communities and commerce in Fiji for the long-term.
Visit the website and the social networks to learn more and to pledge your support for the 4FJ Movement!
- www.4fj.org.fj
- www.facebook.com/4fjmovement
- www.twitter.com/4fjmovement
- www.instagram.com/4fjmovement
Fiji 4FJ Basics
The Fiji 4FJ campaign is a movement to protect our way of life in Fiji. Protecting Groupers locally known as Kawakawa and Donu during spawning period is not about fish but protecting our way of life.
Kawakawa and donu, commonly called grouper in English, are an important source of protein and income for Fiji’s communities. These fish are also commercially valuable to our urban centers and visitor industry, and deeply ingrained in our culture.
However, as Fiji’s population has grown and the demand for both food and income has grown, these fish are declining across Fiji.
But there is some good news: There is something easy everyone can do right ow to help this fish recover. If we don’t harvest these fish when they’re reproducing, and let them release millions of eggs instead each year, the fish populations can begin to rebound.
Fiji 4FJ (short for For Fiji) is asking people from all walks of life to take a simple pledge: “I will not eat, buy or sell kawakawa and donu from June through September.” These are the peak months that these vulnerable fish reproduce. And if you avoid them June to September, there will be more fish to eat the rest of the year.
