Page 228 - 《水产学报》2025年第8期

何妤如 水产学报, 2025, 49(8): 089319

Key words: Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs); Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdic-
tion (BBNJ); scalar politics; international fisheries governance
Corresponding author: HE Yuru. E-mail: yrhe@shou.edu.cn
Funding projects: 2024 Project on Dynamic Monitoring and Assessment of Global Key Fisheries Resources (D-8025-24-
5001)

Regional fisheries management organizations ture of external architecture and facilitate system-
(RFMOs) serve as critical mechanisms bridging atic cognition, becoming an important socio-political
fisheries governance at global, regional, subre- strategic tool. The globalization of capital has tran-
[1]
gional and national levels , prompting a scalar turn scended conventional national and power boundar-
toward more dynamic and flexible governance of ies, rescaling political processes and power struc-
shared fish stocks to address multi-layered interac- tures across different spaces. Scalar politics there-
tions. Pressured by international ocean dynamics fore emerges as an arena of power struggles inher-
and climate change, the scalar politics approach that ent to such reconfigurations, which involves multi-
[4]
integrates human geography and political ecology tiered decision-making and strategic maneuvering .
offers a novel perspective for identifying the man- In modern societies, the presence of cross-
agement of transboundary and highly migratory fish scalar political conflicts renders scale itself a poten-
stocks as an environmental scale struggle. The eco- tial solution, where multiple stakeholders attempt to
scalar framework thus provides a cognitive and construct and strategically manage scales to maxim-
practical tool to deconstruct power relations in the ize their spatial benefits. This process is pillared on
spatial production of fisheries while maximizing the
scaling, rescaling, and scale expression within polit-
common ground for stakeholder cooperation. [5]
ical struggles and power dynamics . The first step

is to set a scale regarding the size of physical space,
1 SCALING OF INTERNATIONAL
the hierarchy of organizational space, and the scope
FISHERIES GOVERNANCE
of expression space. Second, scale reconfiguration

is then implemented through scale jumping (upscal-
1.1 Scalar-politics as a yardstick
ing), scale bending (downscaling), and rescaling
Scale is a conceptual yardstick that delineates
(systemic redefinition), each modifying the origin-
spatio-temporal dimensions while assessing hiera-
ally established scalar framework. Within these
rchical differentiations across physical and social
contested dynamics, stronger actors typically lever-
landscapes. It includes both absolute space and spe-
age scale as an institutional stabilizer to preserve
[2]
cific social relations embedded within it . “Scaling”
favorable arrangements and mitigate conflicts,
denotes the dynamic process of expressing power
whereas weaker actors try to expand the scale to
relations and organizational hierarchies within geo-
create a more level playing field or to bring in new
graphical contexts according to evolving scalar [6]
[3]
frameworks . Viewed from spatial production, factors that can change the power dynamics . The
scale is no longer a static or naturally predeter- third step leads to power reconstruction. Through
mined geographical construct, but a dynamic spa- dynamic negotiations that balance power legitim-
tial power, which is continuously shaped and acy and relative strength, specific power processes
reshaped through socio-ecological interactions and and structures undergo transformation, ultimately
flows. producing a new scale. Fig. 1 shows scaled inter-
Functionally, scale helps simplify the struc- vention in a management scenario.

https://www.china-fishery.cn 中国水产学会主办 sponsored by China Society of Fisheries
2