Mainstreaming sustainable seafood from Qingdao, China （Part 1）

China is the world’s largest producer of seafood. According to “The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA)” published by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), China accounts for a massive 36% (approximately 80 million tons) of the world’s total seafood production (combining fisheries and aquaculture) of 223.2 million tons in 2022, easily surpassing second-place India (8%). China is also active in seafood exports, becoming the world’s largest exporter in 2002.Promoting sustainable seafood is unthinkable without China.

It is in this China that Wang Songlin has founded the environmental NGO Qingdao Marine Conservation Society (QMCS), and has been involved in marine conservation and the promotion of sustainable seafood for 20 years, both in practice and research.

In Part 1, we learn about his experience with various international NGOs and how he established QMCS, which was the first Chinese NGO for seafood sustainability and marine ecosystem conservation in northern China, and how he has been working on its initiatives.

Wang Songlin
Wang Songlin has 20 years of experience in research and practical work in marine conservation and sustainable seafood initiatives in China. He has built his career at The Nature Conservancy (TNC), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF China and WWF International), Paulson Institute, and Ocean Outcomes. In 2017, he established the Qingdao Marine Conservation Society (QMCS) and has served as its president since then. He studied marine ecology at the Ocean University of China and later obtained a master’s degree in environmental management from the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies.

Studies in the U.S. opened future pathways

— Did you decide to major in the marine field at an early stage? 

I was born and raised in Qingdao, living only a few kilometers from the coast. I liked both marine and terrestrial flora and fauna, and since the Ocean University of China, one of the country’s top universities, was nearby, it was a natural choice for me to study there. I majored in marine ecology, and in graduate school, I specialized in coastal ecosystem governance.

— After completing graduate school in China, what led you to further study in the U.S.?

The West was very attractive to young Chinese people, and I thought the U.S. was advanced in the fields of fisheries management and biodiversity conservation. In 2003, I boarded an airplane for the first time in my life and headed to New York. I was 25 years old at that time.

— Was studying abroad not unusual for Chinese students at that time?

Thanks to the Reform and Opening-up policy, the number of international students was increasing. At that time, the U.S. and China were in a honeymoon period both politically and economically, and exchanges among young students were active. I am one of tens of thousands of Chinese students who benefited during that period. Several of my classmates also studied in the U.S., the United Kingdom, and other countries.

— How was your two-year study experience in the U.S.? 

I majored in environmental management at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. By the time I went to study abroad, I had realized I wasn’t suited to be an ecological researcher and decided to become an environmental conservation specialist instead. However, at that time, I didn’t know there would be opportunities to work at NGOs. I didn’t even know what an NGO was.

In May 2005, Wang Songlin (right) graduated from the Yale University School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, completing the master’s program. He is pictured with the then Dean James Gustaf Speth (Photo courtesy of Wang Songlin)

Thanks to my studies in the U.S., I was able to gain a wide range of knowledge, from international treaties on climate change and biodiversity to basic financial accounting and management methods for organizational operations.

Starting career at international NGO’s China office

— What was your first step after returning to China following your studies in the U.S.? 

When I returned to China in 2005, my first job was with The Nature Conservancy (TNC). At that time, the TNC’s China program was initiated in Yunnan Province, with the Beijing office just established in 2004. During the summer break of 2004, I was fortunate to serve as an intern at TNC’s Beijing office, helping to create a blueprint for marine conservation planning. I received a full-time job offer immediately after my studies, but the work location was in Yunnan Province — one of China’s terrestrial biodiversity hotspots.

— Yunnan is quite far from Beijing, isn’t it? 

Yes, it is. It was the only period in my life when I lived far away from the sea. As an assistant to the conservation director based in Yunnan, I learned about general management duties and community work in China. However, it was work related to land and inland water systems. The area is called the “Three Parallel Rivers Region,” which is now a World Heritage Site.

However, I didn’t feel comfortable there, and after a year, I felt like the sea was calling me. I think it was homesickness. Around that time, a significant change occurred thanks to Panasonic.

— Panasonic? Why Panasonic? 

At that time, WWF China didn’t have an independent marine program, but Panasonic provided funding to WWF Japan to launch the “Yellow Sea Ecoregion Planning Program” and later the “Yellow Sea Ecoregion Support Project.” Since the Yellow Sea, which is my hometown sea, was selected as the first priority area, I applied for that position and was fortunate to be hired. I stayed in that position at WWF for about eight years. The office was in Beijing, which is only 150 km from the Bohai Sea, and I was able to regularly travel to coastal areas and Qingdao.

After WWF, I worked at the Paulson Institute for nearly two years. Henry Paulson (Hank), who was the board chairman of TNC when I started my conservation career, is well known as the former chairman of Goldman Sachs and a former U.S. Treasury secretary. Both Hank and his wife Wendy are enthusiastic environmental conservation leaders. Under their leadership, we achieved remarkable results in significantly improving China’s coastal wetland conservation policies. We helped tackle the issue of massive, illegal and unregulated coastal reclamation that was damaging coastal wetlands, and successfully reversed the downward spiral trend. This benefited the livelihoods of many coastal communities and fishery resources, as well as millions of shorebirds and seabirds.

Then in late 2015, I made an important decision. I decided to leave Beijing and return to Qingdao with my family.

Return to Qingdao and establish an environmental NGO

— Why did you decide to return to your hometown? 

One reason was for my son. My wife and I were born and raised in Qingdao. The sea is the source of our happiness. The seaside, bays, and the vast Yellow Sea and East China Sea are all connected somewhere. When I was a child, the beaches were my paradise. I would go beachcombing (collecting interesting things like driftwood, shells, seaweed, and other items washed up on the shore) and observe fish and crabs. I wanted my son, too, to enjoy the beaches. And we decided to live near our parents so that our son could spend time with his grandparents.

Wang Songlin enjoys time with his son Hank on the beach in Qingdao.(Photo courtesy of Wang Songlin)

After returning, I realized that there were no NGOs focused on environmental conservation in Qingdao. This was despite it being an influential city as a seafood hub and an economic hub along the Yellow Sea, as well as a center for marine research in China.

— So you thought an NGO was needed, right? 

Yes. When I discussed it with childhood friends and groups of citizens, they said, “Let’s establish our own environmental conservation NGO.” Fortunately, the municipal government leaders and officials also understood the necessity. After about eight months of preparation, we received registration approval for the Qingdao Marine Conservation Society (QMCS).

— Is it difficult to establish an NGO in China? 

I think it has become a bit easier now, but we needed to prove our capacity to the authorities, and it was a kind of guideline that there should not be similar NGOs in the same region. In northern China, QMCS was the first NGO focusing on the nexus between fisheries/aquaculture and marine biodiversity. There are similar NGOs in southern China.

After returning to Qingdao, I worked for Ocean Outcomes (O2) for three years. O2 is a professional non-profit that provides specialized solutions for fisheries sustainability. I led the establishment of O2’s China program. Since 2018, O2 has discontinued its programs in China, Japan, and Korea by passing on its national programs in those countries to locally-based partners. I am super grateful for O2’s help to incubate QMCS. 

Red Swimming Crab Fishery Improvement Project and seahorses

— What initiatives has QMCS undertaken so far? 

Our first activity was to advance Fishery Improvement Projects (FIPs) in collaboration with O2. Our most long-term achievement has been continuing the FIP for the red swimming crab in Fujian Province, southern China.

With funding from the Crab Council of National Fisheries Institute (NFI) and Packard, O2 and QMCS were able to connect NFI and China Aquatic Products Processing and Marketing Alliance (CAPPMA), together with local seafood processors and fishing communities as a group. Besides fisheries sustainability, we are now also addressing issues of social equity in fisheries.

QMCS hosts a seminar bringing together diverse stakeholders as part of the FIP.(Photo courtesy of Wang Songlin)

Using a combination of bottom trawling and trap fishing, the fishery targets multiple species, including red swimming crabs. The red swimming crab is a smaller, distant relative of Japan’s blue swimming crab. Previously a low-value species, it has become sought after in the American market as a substitute for the Atlantic blue crab, and is a popular seafood at an affordable price for middle to low-income consumers.

Fujian Province has abundant crab resources. Processors purchase crabs from bottom trawlers and trap fishers, and hire local women to shell, extract the meat, and can it. Crab processing has provided thousands of jobs in China due to its long supply chain. However, the rapid growth of the processing industry has led to crabs being overfished. Although crabs are relatively resilient to fishing pressure, resource levels have shown a downward trend, with younger and smaller crabs increasing, which is why NFI stepped in seeking solutions.

Red swimming crabs are processed for canning. (Photo courtesy of Fang Lu)

Since 2018, through a project spanning nearly seven years, QMCS has conducted research on the crab life cycle and habitat needs, and based on scientific evidence, we have made recommendations to policymakers for improving fishery management. This has been well received. Although there is still a long way to go to change the actual management system, we are building the foundation. We were also able to discover habitats for the endangered seahorse.

— Seahorses? 

Seahorses are legally protected, so catching them is not permitted. However, bottom trawling indiscriminately catches all living creatures.

Through QMCS’s field surveys together with our research partners from Xiamen University, we discovered that the fishing grounds contain large seahorse habitats that were previously completely unknown. We are grateful to a timely three-year sponsorship from the Zhilan Foundation. As a next step, we plan to recommend to the government that these areas be designated as OECMs (*). We believe this will help protect seahorses while also contributing to the recovery of the crab population. 

(*) OECM stands for Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures. This term originated during the creation of Aichi Target 11 at the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10) held in Nagoya in 2010, and refers to places that are not protected areas but where effective conservation is taking place.

Those who caused the problem should solve it

For red swimming crabs, we are still in the process of encouraging changes among fishermen and policymakers. However, there is another project we are proud of: empowering the fishing community in the Bohai Sea.

QMCS is collaborating with Mr. Liu Cuibo, a fisherman in his 60s who has over 40 years of experience in the Bohai Sea. Mr. Liu is not only a veteran fisherman but also a writer who specializes on the life, traditions and culture of fishing communities. Mr. Liu has written many articles about the natural history of the Bohai Sea, the lives of Bohai fishers, what fishing gear has been used and is being used, and the environmental impacts.

In his articles, Mr. Liu confesses that the older generation of fishers he belongs to once destroyed oyster reefs by his village. Although he was not directly responsible, his fellow fishermen overharvested wild oysters using gear that destroyed important oyster reefs. The studious Mr. Liu gradually came to understand, by combining science and his own knowledge, that oyster reefs and seagrass habitats close by are important environments for fish and invertebrates, and he wanted to restore them.

So, we are working with Mr. Liu to conserve and restore oyster reefs led by the fishing communities to restore habitats that fishers once destroyed. We believe they themselves have the best solutions because they are thoroughly familiar with where the habitats were located and what the main threats from fishing practices are. And they can also influence other fishers.

Wang Songlin (right) and his colleague Li Yuqing discuss with fisherman and writer Liu Cuibo (second from left) using shells from seafood processing to restore oyster reefs.(Photo courtesy of Liu Lebin)

— So you’re involving the fishers themselves? 

Yes, as the Chinese proverb goes, “解铃还需系铃人,” which means “the person who caused the problem is the most suitable person to solve it.”

In the second part, Wang Songlin will share his vision of what is needed to mainstream sustainable seafood, as well as how he remains optimistic even in difficult times.

Interview and text by Chiho Iuchi
After working at the Japan Finance Corporation for Small and Medium Enterprise (currently the Japan Finance Corporation) and the English-language newspaper The Japan Times, Chiho Iuchi became a freelance writer in 2016. In 2024, she completed a master’s program in sustainability studies at the Graduate School of Public Policy and Management, Hosei University. She is a board member of the Japanese Association of Science & Technology Journalists. She writes articles mainly on culture and technology in both English and Japanese.