Dalhousie University and the International Ocean Institute (Nova Scotia, Canada), the Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES), and the Caribbean Law Institute Centre (CLIC) at the University of the West Indies (UWI) in Barbados acquired funding from the Nippon Foundation in 2008-2009 for a project entitled Strengthening Principled Ocean Governance Networks (PROGOVNET): Transferring Lessons from the Caribbean to the Wider Ocean Governance Community. One of the aims of PROGOVNET was to contribute to the work being undertaken by the UNDP, UNESCO-IOCARIBE project Sustainable Management of the Shared Living Marine Resources of the Caribbean Large Marine Ecosystem (CLME) and Adjacent Regions (CLME Project). An objective of the CLME Project is to promote ecosystem-based management and an ecosystem approach to fisheries (EBM/EAF) in the Wider Caribbean. This PROGOVNET symposium on marine EBM/EAF in the Caribbean was developed to provide needed guidance to the CLME Project by bringing together regional experts to develop a vision and a way ahead for EBM/EAF. The aim of the symposium is to produce a body of background work on EBM/EAF in various Caribbean situations, and to synthesise these ideas under strategic headings that could provide guidance to the CLME Project and other stakeholders in marine resource use with an interest in moving in this direction. The symposium was held at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados on December 10-12, 2008.

Thanks are due to the Nippon Foundation, the main supporter of the symposium (through PROGOVNET). Contributions from the Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences at the UWI at Cave Hill were also valuable. The efforts of Ms. Bertha Simons, symposium coordinator, and the staff of CERMES at the UWI contributed greatly to the success of the meeting. The four facilitators who led the parallel processes of the symposium made it possible for participants to share their ideas in an engaging and interesting environment. Ultimately, however, the quality of this initiative is due to all those who gave their time to take part by presenting their ideas and participating freely in the group work. Responsibilities for any errors or omissions in this publication fall squarely on us, the editors.