Dr. Sophia Kochalski

As a social scientist (PhD at the University of Liverpool, UK, 2017) with an interdisciplinary background in European and fisheries studies, Dr. Sophia Kochalski seeks a better understanding of complex social-ecological systems to contribute to the conservation and sustainable and equitable use of our aquatic resources. To achieve this, she combines quantitative and qualitative research methods focusing on (i) EU fisheries policy, (ii) the transformation and adaptation of small-scale fisheries, (iii) resource use conflicts, and (iv) human-environment relationships. She has research experience in marine, coastal, and freshwater systems in Europe and South America and has collaborated closely with various stakeholders in commercial and recreational fisheries. Among other activities, she conducted research on public perception and the management of migratory fish at the Leibniz Institute for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) in Berlin, worked as a fisheries advisor for the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in Eschborn, and led two EU-funded projects social transformations in the fisheries sector (“SocialShift”) and on marine-themed street art (“From Sea to Street”) at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) in Spain. Among her career highlights are spending 6 weeks on a research vessel off the coast of Greenland and the opportunity to learn from small-scale fishers in Germany, the UK, Spain, Norway, and Peru.

She has been working at CeOS since April 2024 in the BMBF project Humboldt Tipping II.

Publication

Kochalski, S., Kluger, L.C., Damonte G.H., & Espinosa Anaya, N. (2024). Striving together: The struggle of artisanal raft fishing in Peru for recognition. In: Kerezi, V., & Chuenpagdee, R. (Eds.) Blue Justice For Small-Scale Fisheries: A Global Scan, Volume 3. TBTI Global Publication Series, St. John's, NL, Canada. Available at: https://tbtiglobal.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Chuenpagdee_Blue-Justice_V3-complete-2.pdf

Kochalski, S. (2024) Book Review “Fishing Europe’s Troubled Waters-Fifty Years of Fisheries Policy” by David Symes, Abingdon, Oxon & New York, Routledge, 2023, 188 pp.,£ 29.99 (paperback), ISBN: 9781032424705. Society & Natural Resources 37(2), 305-306. https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2023.2253527

Kriegl, M., Kochalski, S., Straka, T. M., Gorris, P., Schlüter, A., & Kluger, L. C. (2024). Our Blue Planet: Connecting Humans and the Ocean. The Ocean, Volume 4, 32. https://doi.org/10.3389/frym.2023.1076771

Mendoza, J. N., Hanazaki, N., Prūse, B., Martini, A., Bittner, M. V., Kochalski, S., Macusi, E., Ciriaco, A., Mattalia, G., & Sõukand, R. (2023). Ethnobotanical contributions to global fishing communities: a review. Journal of ethnobiology and ethnomedicine, 19(1), 57. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-023-00630-3

Partelow, S., Schlüter, A., Ban, N. C., Batterbury, S., Bavinck, M., Bennett, N. J., Bleischwith, R., Blythe, J., Bogusz, T., Breckwoldt, A., Conner, J.E., Glaser, M., Govan, H., Gruby, R., Hatje, V., Hornidge, A.-K., Hovelsrud, G. K., Kittinger, J. N., Kluger, L. C., Kochalski, S., Mawyer, A., McKinley, E., Olsen, J., Pittman, J., Riechers, M., Riekhof, M.C., Schwerdtner Manez, K., Shellock, R. J., Siriwardane-de Zoysa, R., Steins, N. A., Van Assche, K., & Villasante, S. (2023). Five social science intervention areas for ocean sustainability initiatives. npj Ocean Sustainability, 2(1), 24. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44183-023-00032-8

Straka, T. M., Drijhout, M., Kochalski, S., von Ruschkowski, E., & Gruenewald, C. (2023). Die menschliche Perspektive im Naturschutz und Wildtiermanagement: eine Einführung in die ‘Human Dimensions of Wildlife’. In: Voigt, C.C. (Ed.) Evidenzbasiertes Wildtiermanagement. Springer Spektrum. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-65745-4_11

Golebie, E. J., van Riper, E. J., Arlinghaus, R., Gaddy, M., Jang, S., Kochalski, S., Lu, Y., Olden, J. D., Stedman, R., & Suske, C. (2022) Words matter: a systematic review of communication in non-native aquatic species literature. Neobiota 74, 1-28. https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.74.79942

Kochalski, S., Riepe, C., & Arlinghaus, R. (2022). Perceived socio-cultural ecosystem services provided by wild Atlantic salmon populations in four European countries. Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management 25(3), 12-20. https://doi.org/10.14321/aehm.025.03.12

Kochalski, S., & Breckwoldt, A. (2022) The role of small-scale fisheries and communities in ocean governance. In: Theme Session N – The role of small-scale fisheries and communities in ocean governance. ICES Annual Science Conference 2022, Dublin, Ireland. Available at: https://ices-library.figshare.com/articles/conference_contribution/Theme_Session_N_-_The_role_of_small-scale_fisheries_and_communities_in_ocean_governance/21557742

Kriegl, M., Kluger, L. C., Gorris, P., & Kochalski, S. (2022) Coastal livelihood resilience to abrupt environmental change: The role of social capital in a Peruvian bay” Regional Environmental Change 22(3), 103. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-022-01959-3

Mendoza, J. N., Pruse, B., Mattalia, G., Kochalski, S., Ciricao, A., & Sõukand, R. (2022). Fishers’ perspectives: the drivers behind the decline of fish catch in Laguna Lake, Philippines. Maritime Studies 21(4), 569-585. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40152-022-00287-w

Kriegl, M., Kluger, L. C., Holzkämper, E., Nagel, B., Kochalski, S., & Gorris, P. (2021) How important are social networks in times of environmental crises? Easy_social_sciences, 66, 11-20. https://doi.org/10.15464/easy.2021.002

Mendoza, J. N., Mattalia, G., Pruse, B., Kochalski, S., Ciricao, A., Pieroni, A., & Sõukand, R. (2021). Wild fish are a blessing”: changes in fishing practices and folk fish cuisine around Laguna Lake, Northern Philippines. Journal of Ethnic Foods, 8(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s42779-021-00106-3

Riepe, C., Liebe, U., Fujitani, M., Kochalski, S., Aas, Ø., & Arlinghaus, R. (2021). Values, Beliefs, Norms, and Conservation-Oriented Behaviors toward Native Fish Biodiversity in Rivers: Evidence from Four European Countries. Society & Natural Resources, 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2021.1890865

Kluger, L. C ., Gorris, P., Kochalski, S., Mueller, M. S., & Romagnoni, G. (2020). Studying human–nature relationships through a network lens: A systematic review. People and Nature, 2(4), 1100-1116. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10136

Simanova, A., Pruse, B., Kalle, R., Kochalski, S., Prakofjewa, J., Mežaka, I., Pieroni, A., Krūzkopa, A., Holsta, I., & Sõukand, R. (2020). Medicinal plant use at the beginning of the 21st century among the religious minority in Latgale Region, Latvia. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 20, 1-31. https://dx.doi.org/10.32859/era.20.21.1-31

Harrison, H. L., Kochalski, S., Arlinghaus, R., & Aas, Ø. (2019) ‘Do you care about the river?’ A critical discourse analysis and lessons for management of social conflict over Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) conservation in the case of voluntary stocking in Wales. People and Nature, 1(4), 507-523. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10049

Kluger, L. C., Kochalski, S., Aguirre-Velarde, A., Vivar, I., & Wolff, M. (2019). Coping with abrupt environmental change: the impact of the coastal El Niño 2017 on artisanal fisheries and mariculture in North Peru. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 76(4), 1122-1130. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsy171

Kochalski, S., Riepe, C., Fujitani, M., Aas, Ø., & Arlinghaus, R. (2019). Public perception of river fish biodiversity in four European countries. Conservation Biology, 33(1), 164-175. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.13180

Kochalski, S. (2019) Providing the link from science to management: Overview of how humans, management institutions, and social ecological systems respond and adapt (or not) to environmental change. In: Thorstad, E. B., et al. (eds.) Managing the Atlantic Salmon in a Rapidly Changing Environment – Management Challenges and Possible Responses. Report of the NASCO Symposium for the International Year of the Salmon. June 3-4 2019, Tromsø, Norway. Available at: https://nasco.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/NASCO-IYS-Conference-Lower-Res.pdf

Riepe, C., Meyerhoff, J., Fujitani, M., Aas, Ø., Radinger, J., Kochalski, S., & Arlinghaus, R. (2019) Managing river fish biodiversity generates substantial economic benefits in four European countries. Environmental management, 63(6), 759-776. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-019-01160-z

Harrison, H. L., Kochalski, S., Arlinghaus, R., & Aas, Ø. (2018) “Nature’s Little Helpers”: A benefits approach to voluntary cultivation of hatchery fish to support wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) populations in Norway, Wales and Germany. Fisheries Research, 204, 348-360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2018.02.022

Kochalski, S. (2017). Sustainability and conflict in small-scale fisheries. Thesis (PhD). The University of Liverpool (United Kingdom). Available at: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/3008169/1/200934143_Mar2017.pdf

Kluger, L., Kochalski, S., Müller, M., Gorris, P., & Romagnoni, G. (2015) Towards a holistic analysis of social-ecological systems in the marine realm. In: Proceedings of Youmares 6: A journey into the blue, Sept. 14-16 2015, Bremen, Germany. http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.4780.6165

Kochalski, S., Caswell, B., & Frid, C. (2014) Assessing the sustainability of small-scale fisheries. In: Kerezi, V. and Ivany, I. (eds.) Proceedings of the 2nd World Small-Scale Fisheries Congress. Sept. 21-26, 2014, Merida, Mexico. ISBN: 978-0-88901-461-9. Available at: https://2wsfc.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/2wsfc_congress-proceedings1.pdf

Kochalski, S., Romagnoni, G., & Schendel, C. (2013) The ecosystem approach and beyond: Mult-disciplinary science for sustainability in fisheries. In: Wiedling, J., & Einsporn, M. (eds.) Proceedings of Youmares 4: Multiscale approaches to marine sciences. Sept. 11-13 2013, Oldenburg, Germany.