Reading gear type off a single satellite image is harder than it looks. A purse seiner and a trawler can look almost identical from orbit, until you watch how they move. Getting this right is what turns "a boat is here" into "here's what it's doing." Give it a shot 👇

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 2mo ago

🛰️ Can you identify these fishing methods from satellite imagery? Captured by Planet satellites and analyzed by Global Fishing Watch, these images reveal activity at sea that often goes unseen. Vote below 👇 Then test your satellite knowledge: https://bit.ly/3SbQD43

This is one of the rare cases where tracking precedes regulation. A few dozen ships, prospecting international waters most people couldn't find on a map. Watching where they go now — before commercial extraction starts — gives the ISA treaty debate something concrete to work with.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 4mo ago

The deep sea might be out of sight, but it should not be out of mind. 🌊 Deep-Sea Mining Watch maps current and historical vessel movements linked to mineral exploration worldwide. Powered by Global Fishing Watch technology. 🛰️⚓️ Explore the portal: https://bit.ly/4pg00v3

Ghana calling for real-time High Seas MPA monitoring using GFW — and positioning as a regional maritime domain awareness hub. This is exactly right. The BBNJ treaty is only as good as the tools and capacity countries have to enforce it.

The map is the gateway drug. People come for the pretty visualization, then realize they can actually see which vessels are fishing in their country's waters. That's when it gets interesting — and when governments start calling us.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 5mo ago

Bringing the ocean into view. The Global Fishing Watch map is tracking activity across the ocean using AIS and VMS data—helping make what’s happening at sea easier to see. Explore what we’ve been working on: https://bit.ly/4viyrF6

We've been thinking about packaging our ocean monitoring tools as a managed service for countries and MPAs — platform, training, recurring analysis. Working name: "Marine Manager Pro." From Paper Parks to Lasting Protection. Is that something people actually need? And who would pay for it?

The hard part starts now. Countries that committed to protecting the high seas need actual tools to do it — vessel tracking, activity monitoring, reporting that works at scale. That's what we've been building. Curious to see who steps up first.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 5mo ago

As #BBNJPrepCom3 wraps, the focus is clear: implementation. Global Fishing Watch uses satellites, open data and AI to make activity at sea visible and enforceable, helping countries turn commitments into real protections. Read the full statement by @ceo.globalfishingwatch.org https://bit.ly/4m9F9sU

We built GFW to track fishing vessels. Turns out the same tools work just as well on deep-sea mining research ships — and the data raises some questions about how much time those vessels actually spend where they say they are.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 5mo ago

A new investigation from @mongabay.com and @cnn.com uses Global Fishing Watch tools and Deep Sea Mining Watch to track deep-sea mining research vessels over five years. The analysis shows limited time in mining zones, and activity elsewhere across the ocean. https://bit.ly/3NOJ3ut

A vessel that turns off its AIS to avoid detection is usually still running its lights. VIIRS picks those up. We've been working toward this kind of sensor fusion for a while — it gets a lot harder to simply disappear.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 5mo ago

Skylight's advanced #VIIRS night lights model is now integrated into the Global Fishing Watch platform, delivering near real-time nighttime vessel detections. Powered by NOAA/NASA satellites and advanced filtering for clearer signals after dark. https://bit.ly/4tk9KGn Global Fishing Watch 🤝 Skylight

New report commissioned by PLOS finds GDP would be ~2% lower under closed research systems. The key finding: open science isn't just transparency — it's an economic multiplier when you build infrastructure that enables reuse at scale.

This was a really fun conversation with Eva van Heukelom. We talked about how vessel tracking went from being a niche data project to something that's reshaping how governments manage their oceans. If you want the short version: transparency works, but only when governments actually use the data.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 5mo ago

How can AI and technology support better ocean governance? Our co-founder and chief innovation officer @paulwoods.io joined the Natural Justice Podcast to discuss vessel tracking, transparency at sea and the future of ocean monitoring. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUJX8X7dtjI

Great experience meeting up with Grace Ekpu and the BBC Tech Now team in London for this. Cian Luck did a fantastic live demo of the map. Segment starts at 14:20.

Global Fishing Watch@globalfishingwatch.org · 5mo ago

We’re featured on BBC Tech Now 🎥 Much of what happens at sea goes unseen. We’re working to change that — using satellite data + machine learning to track fishing activity and reveal vessels that go “dark.” ⏱️ Starts 14:20 Watch: https://bbc.in/4srag5g

One patrol vessel in the Chagos MPA was 9× better at catching illegal fishing boats than the other. Neither one deterred illegal fishing. I just came across this excellent new paper in ICES Journal of Marine Science with a compelling finding about how deterrence actually works.

The deep ocean is Earth’s last frontier — vast, unmapped, and home to species we haven’t yet discovered. Our latest In Conversation explores why transparency matters as deep-sea exploration expands, and how the updated Deep-Sea Mining Watch sheds light on activity offshore. 👉 https://bit.ly/44demEe

Friends, the Society for Conservation Biology - Marine Program is looking for a Science Officer. As the most recent science officer, I am happy to chat with you about the role if you're considering running!

Can AI be more than just a one-way ticket towards a dystopian future? At Global Fishing Watch, we’re proving it can be a force for good. 🌊 👉 The question isn’t whether AI will shape the future. It’s whether we’ll use it to protect our planet. 🌍 #UNGA80 #ClimateWeekNYC #AIforGood buff.ly/KXXLhdb

AI Can Help Save the Ocean — If We Let It

Artificial intelligence is already transforming ocean governance. Now it’s time for governments to use it.

globalfishingwatch.org

Congratulations to my good friend @johnamos.bsky.social on being named to the 2025 Forbes Sustainability Leaders list www.forbes.com/sites/elisab...

Forbes Sustainability Leaders 2025: Sustainability Across Sectors

Forbes Sustainability Leaders List highlights global leaders combating the climate crisis across a range of sectors. See who made the list.

forbes.com

Brazil is using our Marine Manager platform to help oversee its coastline — turning complex ocean data into clear, actionable insights that can inform policy, guide energy decisions and protect marine areas. Read more 👉 globalfishingwatch.org/article/braz... #OpenData #OceanTransparency #Brazil

#NewPaper in @aaas.org finds that domestic fishing vessels account for the majority of port visits around the world. Comprehensive inspections at port for both foreign and domestic fishing fleets are a key deterrent for #illegalfishing. https://stanford.io/45LXlB2

🔍 Next up for our Ask Global Fishing Watch series: Optical satellite imagery Geospatial data scientist Zihan Wei explains how we use Sentinel-2 for broad offshore coverage and Planet imagery for near-shore activity, including small-scale fishing often missed. 🌊 👉 https://bit.ly/4mL9Q79

Vietnam is forging its own EV path. 🚗⚡In just 2 years, it leapt from 3% to over 50% EV share. Homegrown VinFast—once laughed off—is now #1, #2, and #3. Backed by tax breaks, 150k chargers, and national pride, this isn’t catch-up. It’s a regional S-curve explosion—and there’s plenty more to come. #EV

VinFast: A Stunning Comeback

Winning At Home And In Southeast Asia

newsletter.dunneinsights.com

Nice piece in Stanford Social Innovation Review by discussing the work that Global Forest Watch (the "other GFW") and Global Fishing Watch are doing to find ways for industry to more directly support our open data work that helps industry to meet their ESG commitments ssir.org/articles/ent...

Who Should Pay for ESG Infrastructure? (SSIR)

Foundations and nonprofits built the tools that companies now use for ESG reporting, brand credibility, and risk management. Is there a funding model for maintaining these tools so they remain credibl...

ssir.org

Why do some say marine protected areas are just “paper parks”? And are industrial fishers actually staying out of these no-fishing zones? New in @science.org: We used AI + satellite radar to find out. doi.org/10.1126/scie... #ScienceResearch #OceanConservation #OceanTransparency #30x30 #Fisheries

Batteries are now so cheap that solar power no longer sleeps. ☀️🔋 2024 marked the inflection point: storage doubled, solar soared, and fossil electricity flatlined. This isn't just a tech milestone—it's a civilisational shift. From fossil dusk to solar dawn. The sun can now power the night! #SolarEra

Batteries are so cheap now, solar power doesn’t sleep

Batteries are now cheap enough to make 24/7 solar power affordable, unlocking round-the-clock clean energy in the world’s sunniest cities.

electrek.co

How do you protect one of the ocean’s most biodiverse corridors? 🌊 Fisheries analyst Joe Fader shares how @globalfishingwatch.org is helping CMAR countries boost enforcement through data and collaboration. 🔗 Read more: globalfishingwatch.org/article/stre... #CMAR #OceanTransparency #MPAs

We are #NowHiring a Video Producer 🎬 The role will cover all of EJF’s campaigns to gather the evidence and visual materials that underpin and support our campaigns and advocacy work. Find out more and apply here: ejfoundation.org/jobs/video-p...

Video Producer

You will be working with the Film Unit and Campaigns teams and should have experience working on campaigns, factual programming or investigative…

ejfoundation.org

🚨 Final call: applications for Global Fishing Watch’s Open Ocean Research Grants close June 17 (end of day, anywhere in the world). Up to $20,000 for research into ocean transparency + governance. 🌐 Open globally — see priority geographies: 🔗 bit.ly/open-ocean-r...

Today at #UNOC3 , Global Fishing Watch partner @donabertarelli.bsky.social delivered a powerful call to rethink our relationship with the ocean, from one of extraction to one of reciprocity and regeneration. We thank her for the ongoing support in our mission to unveil human activities at sea.

@skytruth.org any chance we can see other trends like this based on long time series analysis of SAR-detected oil slicks?

Rob Ralston@policyrelevant.bsky.social · last yr.

incredibly cool paper that uses geolocated data of oil spills to show how fossil fuel companies exploited the regulatory uncertainty of Brexit to increase pollution

We spent a couple of hours watching a pair of beaver in a pond on the grounds of the Himalayan Institute in north eastern PA, apparently involved in a grueling grudge match with the grounds keepers over the appropriate height for the dam that blocks the outlet to their pond.

🚢 75% of industrial fishing vessels aren’t publicly tracked. In this @pbs.org film, @globalfishwatchceo.bsky.social joins voices from Brazil and @bloombergdotorg.bsky.social on how transparency can reshape ocean governance. 🎥 Watch here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPU3... #OceanTransparency

Tracking the Tide: Unveiling the Hidden World of Vessel Activity

YouTube video by Global Fishing Watch

youtube.com