What was your Young Fishing Fellowship project?
I worked with Catch 49 distributing Alaskan caught and processed seafood to community members of Fairbanks. As AMCC’s direct-market seafood distributer that is based on a Community Supported Fishery model, Catch 49 is a means of getting Alaskan seafood to Alaskan people. In Fairbanks, I have been distributing shares to the community for the past year. I will continue to do this indefinitely. Working with Catch 49 has allowed me to stay connected to the commercial fishing community while pursuing a career in the medical field.
What was your most meaningful takeaway from the fellowship?
Despite having a full-time winter job that is entirely unrelated to fisheries, I always seem to find myself pulled back to the water one way or another. While in school, I was invited to the British Columbia Young Fishermen’s Network Gathering in Victoria, Canada. Here I connected with fellows from our AK Network that continue to be friends and colleagues. Listening to the elder and youth perspectives of Canadian fishermen solidified the fact that people of the water are connected despite working and living in different ecosystems and government structures. We all share in an intrinsic connection and adoration for the ocean’s wealth.
What are you working on now?
The wintertime financial challenges inherent in seasonal commercial fishing convinced me to return to school to start a career in medicine. Today I am a paramedic and firefighter at the City of Fairbanks Fire Department and look forward to crafting a balance of fishing and medicine. As a side project, I am working on providing medical kits to fishermen that are catered to their boat size and specific needs.
Do you have advice to future Young Fishing Fellows?
Gaining connections and getting jobs doesn’t always happen in standard ways. Continue networking with those around you and pursue working relationships with people you don’t know. This community has a lot of opportunity to offer, and you never know where you will end up. Before my first season in Bristol Bay, my father reminded me to “keep an open mind and experience everything you can. People are different in Alaska; you never know where you’re going to end up.” My fellowship project took some unexpected turns that in the end got me working in a sector that I truly love being a part of.
You can apply to the 2020-2021 cohort of Young Fishing Fellows here. The application deadline is May 4th.
Madeline Jovanovich at work in Fairbanks
