Meeting people, getting feedback and exchanging ideas

During the past spring and summer CIRCNETS has participated in events to meet the regular folk, whether that be recreational fishers, school children or anyone interested in marine activities. Since EPR and fishing gear collections affect not only professional fishers and gear producers but also anyone who is interested in fishing, it is important to discuss these topics with various groups of people and hear what they have to say about it.

In May CIRCNETS participated in the Northern Finland Hunting and Fishing Expo (mentioned already briefly in the fourth Gull Bulletin). The biannual three-day event was organized between 16^th and 18^th of May in Oulu, open to anyone interested in these outdoor activities. CIRCNETS had a stand with information about the project and the gear collection in Finland. About 150 people visited the stand and some of them also answered a short questionnaire about their fishing habits. Most of the respondent’s fish either during the summertime or throughout the year, with rods being the most popular gear, followed by nets. A bit over half had not heard about the fishing gear collection previously but almost everyone thought it was a good idea. Some concerns were raised about the long distances to the collection points in Northern Finland and as a solution it was proposed to organize a travelling collection, for example once a summer, where it would be easy to take fishing gear as well as other waste fractions at the same time. All in all, the collection was positively received, and it was clear that fishers do want to take care of their environment.

CIRCNETS was also part of the West Coast Sea Week, a thematic week for the marine environment with activities for all ages, organized by Västra Götalandsregionen and Region Halland and held on the west coast of Sweden between 2^nd and 10^th of August. CIRCNETS was presented to the public in an exhibition showcasing the work at the Sotenäs Marine Recycling Center. In the exhibition, the challenges with marine waste, lost and abandoned and end-of-life fishing gear were presented. The attendees were also invited to take part in a survey about their fishing activities and what they know about the EPR.

In the last week of August, CIRCNETS took part in the Save the Bothnian Bay event, organized in Oulu by the Bothnian Arc Association. This event was part of the annual Baltic Sea Day (held this year on the 28^th of August), which celebrates the Baltic Sea and reminds people of its importance and encourages people to take actions to protect it. Save the Bothnian Bay brought together different organizations and communities presenting how their work is related to the Bothnian Bay. University of Oulu had its own stand at the event where CIRCNETS was also presented. The main audience of the event was school children and for them, team Oulu had created an interactive True or False game about ghost nets. With other activities, such as an interactive picture game and drone demonstrations, the university stand was very popular with the children. Ghost net was not a familiar term to many, so important educational objectives were achieved with the game.