Advancements in the fishing industry have led to devastating consequences, not just for sea life being hunted to extinction, but for communities around the world who depend on the ocean’s bounty to survive. CHANGE MAKERS brings together scientists, fishermen, activists and more to chronicle how our relationship with sea life turned from one of harvesting resources to engaging in exploitative and dangerous practices. It highlights how the fishing industry has left vulnerable communities displaced and starving. It shows how people remain ignorant of the destruction of aquatic ecosystems through marketing manipulation. And it explains how subsidies provided to Big Fishing have allowed the industry to continue making a profit off what should be unprofitable, unsustainable practices. But most importantly, CHANGE MAKERS educates the viewer on an exciting opportunity to set these wrongs right through a historic agreement by The World Trade Organization that would curb these subsidies, protect the environment, and create an incentive to alter the current state of the fishing industry. If 109 nations can come together and sign the agreement in 2024, we could begin to undo the damage industrial fishing has been causing for over a century. However, at the moment, not enough countries have signed, leaving our future in a precarious position, balancing between the continuation of environmental catastrophe or the implementation of healing progress. To achieve success, we cannot just depend on the change makers featured in the film. Everyone needs to embrace their ability to be a change maker and call on their representatives to push through the agreement. Together, we can rewrite the pattern of history and make a better future. CHANGE MAKERS is more than a film. It is a plea for help. It is a call to action.
