Fishing, Farming, Ranching & Our Food Supply — Niaz Dorry

The Government Mechanic

Episode 8 focuses on small-scale fisheries and reveals similarities with family farming and traditional ranching. Our special guest is Niaz Dorry and we talk about fishing, farming, ranching and America’s food supply system. Niaz Dorry has been a community organizer for over 35 years. Now she is both the Director of the North American Marine Alliance (NAMA) and the Director of the National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC). These two organizations together are the largest voice for grassroots communities of fishermen, farmers and ranchers -- what they call the first set of hands that touch our food. The two organizations began a shared-leadership model in 2018, cementing the connections between land and sea, between a land-based food system and a sea-based food system. The episode starts with Dorry describing 2024 life for America’s fishers and family-owned, small-scaled fisheries. Then Dr. Kahn asks about NAMA’s article that begins: “In a big win for oceans, a federal court struck down the decisions of the US Army Corps of Engineers that approved permits for industrial fish farming in federal waters.” The episode concludes with Dorry’s conclusions about what people can do differently tomorrow to support our family fishers, farmers and ranchers.

For more information:

North American Marine Alliance (NAMA) https://www.namanet.org

National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC) https://www.nffc.net