256
K. Frangoudes et al.
represented a guarantee for the compulsory validation of annual plans by regional
fi sheries authorities. The use of empirical and scienti fi c knowledge positively
impacted on resource management and on the development of extensive aquaculture. Restocking also contributed to enhancing the natural system. The evolution
of the social, institutional, and natural systems had an impact on women’s economic independence; resulting in a relatively high income bearing in mind the
number of hours they worked each month. Recently, some mariscadoras’ groups
have taken on other economic activities related to their main tasks. For instance,
some have become guides to the shore ecosystem: during the tourist season they
organize visits to the shoreline, informing tourists about the marine ecosystem
and their work. These are the positive aspects of female empowerment and its
impact on resource governance.
Financial security has been a source of uncertainty for mariscadoras’ associations. In some cases, funding may depend on the af fi nity between cofradías or
mariscadoras’ groups and the ruling political party in the region. As individuals,
mariscadoras have increased their economic independence, but they have yet to
increase their independence as a group. They remain vulnerable to political power,
which can build or destroy collective movements devoid of strong roots in civil
society.
Within 15 years, the image of mariscadoras has undergone a considerable change
in regional society thanks to their capacity to organize themselves and to manage
shell fi sh resources. They were able to transform their informal activity into a profession that gives them access to their own social bene fi ts. Their image, recast in the
media, has also changed in their own eyes. The understanding of image here re fl ects
its use in governance literature: images can be understood as judgments and assumptions on fundamental matters, such as the relation between society and nature or the
role of government (Kooiman et al. 2005a ) . They are relevant because people tend
to act on their images of how the world works or should work. Frequently, “it is the
assumption of how the system should be that determines what are perceived as the
problems” (Jentoft et al. 2010 , 1315). This consequently shapes the approach to
solutions. In the wake of all of the measures that were introduced, mariscadoras
understand the world and their role in the community in a different way. Their
understanding of their capacity for managing the activity and the resources has
changed dramatically. Nowadays, that capacity is threatened by pervasive poaching
practices that have arisen as a direct result of the economic crisis and jeopardize the
entire management system. As mentioned before, the dif fi cult entry into the permex
system, under the control of the regional government, may have had some consequences in this area.
The differences in governability between the early 1990s and the present day
are striking. A system of resource use originally characterized by open access
has been transformed into a licensing system largely co-managed by mariscadoras’ associations and cofradías , with the support of regional government. The
contrast in the capacity to respond to the most urgent concerns since this
K. Frangoudes et al.
represented a guarantee for the compulsory validation of annual plans by regional
fi sheries authorities. The use of empirical and scienti fi c knowledge positively
impacted on resource management and on the development of extensive aquaculture. Restocking also contributed to enhancing the natural system. The evolution
of the social, institutional, and natural systems had an impact on women’s economic independence; resulting in a relatively high income bearing in mind the
number of hours they worked each month. Recently, some mariscadoras’ groups
have taken on other economic activities related to their main tasks. For instance,
some have become guides to the shore ecosystem: during the tourist season they
organize visits to the shoreline, informing tourists about the marine ecosystem
and their work. These are the positive aspects of female empowerment and its
impact on resource governance.
Financial security has been a source of uncertainty for mariscadoras’ associations. In some cases, funding may depend on the af fi nity between cofradías or
mariscadoras’ groups and the ruling political party in the region. As individuals,
mariscadoras have increased their economic independence, but they have yet to
increase their independence as a group. They remain vulnerable to political power,
which can build or destroy collective movements devoid of strong roots in civil
society.
Within 15 years, the image of mariscadoras has undergone a considerable change
in regional society thanks to their capacity to organize themselves and to manage
shell fi sh resources. They were able to transform their informal activity into a profession that gives them access to their own social bene fi ts. Their image, recast in the
media, has also changed in their own eyes. The understanding of image here re fl ects
its use in governance literature: images can be understood as judgments and assumptions on fundamental matters, such as the relation between society and nature or the
role of government (Kooiman et al. 2005a ) . They are relevant because people tend
to act on their images of how the world works or should work. Frequently, “it is the
assumption of how the system should be that determines what are perceived as the
problems” (Jentoft et al. 2010 , 1315). This consequently shapes the approach to
solutions. In the wake of all of the measures that were introduced, mariscadoras
understand the world and their role in the community in a different way. Their
understanding of their capacity for managing the activity and the resources has
changed dramatically. Nowadays, that capacity is threatened by pervasive poaching
practices that have arisen as a direct result of the economic crisis and jeopardize the
entire management system. As mentioned before, the dif fi cult entry into the permex
system, under the control of the regional government, may have had some consequences in this area.
The differences in governability between the early 1990s and the present day
are striking. A system of resource use originally characterized by open access
has been transformed into a licensing system largely co-managed by mariscadoras’ associations and cofradías , with the support of regional government. The
contrast in the capacity to respond to the most urgent concerns since this