Reaching Beyond Institutional Boundaries in Fisheries Management: the Case of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas

Abstract

Regional fisheries management organizations adopt binding measures for the conservation of fishing resources and distribute fishing opportunities among member states. However, fish are not contained by legal borders and, often, these organizations must reach beyond their membership to effectively pursue their mandates, eroding the institutional boundaries that separate them from the outside world. This article considers the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (iccat) and investigates the variety of public and private actors with whom this organization interacts and that are affected by its activities, which shape tuna markets. Far from being an exception, iccat’s wide net of interactions is representative of the interconnectedness that is required of international organizations today for achieving their aims and of the far-reaching effects of their actions. These findings challenge some of the traditional tenets of international institutional law and call for broadening the focus of the field.