Author Description

"You're a what?"... That's the type of response fisheries observers generally get when they tell people what they do for a living. These unsung heroes of natural resource management - operating as they do on the fringes of society, often far out on the open sea for months on end - are a little known professional group of people from the public perspective. This is precisely why, several years ago, the "Eyes on the Seas" book project was conceived. A group of like-minded professionals working in the fisheries management field had the visionary idea of bringing the profession more into the public gaze, via a creative initiative intended to showcase the lives of these extraordinary people. Woven together in eight chapters encompassing a wide range of topics from the "Duties and Roles" of a fisheries observer to "Sea Level Conservation" to "An Extraordinary Lifestyle", "Eyes on the Seas" is a collection of stories (true or otherwise), anecdotes, poetry, artwork and other creative works from 53 contributors around the world, which encapsulate the life of a fisheries observer. This collection is all-at-once funny, thought-provoking, surprising, shocking, at times deeply beautiful and unforgivingly poignant. What emerges from diving into this book is a rare and privileged glimpse into the hearts and minds of a group of the most unusual and highly motivated people.