SmartFish Begins a New Chapter

“The baton is passed on, but the purpose remains the same”.

After ten years at the helm of SmartFish, Cecilia Blasco passes the leadership of the organization to Ulises Méndez. This transition honors what has been built and opens the way for a new chapter.

Throughout these years, Cecilia guided SmartFish with a clear and thoughtful perspective on the challenges and opportunities facing small-scale fisheries. Under her leadership, the organization has grown, strengthened partnerships, and worked alongside fishing cooperatives, businesses, and other organizations to develop alternatives that make fisheries more sustainable and resilient.

Today, Ulises takes on the role of Executive Director, committed to building on what has been achieved while also fostering new ideas and exploring new paths for SmartFish.

This transition offers an opportunity to look ahead without losing sight of what we have learned along the way. Because an organization also grows when it recognizes what has been essential to its journey and dares to imagine what comes next.

We extend our deepest gratitude to Cecilia for ten years of leadership, dedication, and trust in the power of collective action. We welcome Ulises as he takes on this new responsibility and wish him a journey filled with learning, collaboration, and new achievements.

SmartFish continues to move forward, with new questions, new challenges, and the same conviction: working alongside communities, businesses, and partner organizations to build solutions that enable fisheries to create greater value, strengthen well-being, and secure a brighter future.