MP & MSE 101 – eLearning course launches with FAO!

October 9, 2025

AuthorShana Miller
Project Director, International Fisheries Conservation

The www.HarvestStrategies.org team is thrilled to announce the launch of a new course series: “Management Procedures for Sustainable Tuna Fisheries,” developed in partnership with the FAO eLearning Academy. There are five educational modules that cover topics related to management procedures (MPs), from setting the vision for the future of the fishery with management objectives, to testing candidate MPs using management strategy evaluation (MSE), to implementation using the MP feedback loop.

The five courses include:

1. Introduction: Provides a general overview of the MP approach and its key elements, with a particular focus on the operational component of the MP – the harvest control rule (HCR).
2. Setting the Vision: Covers management objectives, including reference points, as well as performance indicators for use in MSE to quantify the ability of candidate MPs to achieve the agreed objectives.
3. Management Strategy Evaluation: Covers the MP development process using MSE, including the technical components (operating models, conditioning, tuning, etc.) and the interpretation of MSE results by managers and stakeholders.
4. Training Adventure: An animated, interactive game where users can apply their learning from the prior three courses, going through exercises to set management objectives, test candidate MPs, and select a final MP for adoption.
5. Lessons Learned: Covers general recommendations about MP development and implementation, and presents the MPs adopted by the regional fisheries management organizations dedicated to tunas (tRFMOs) as of July 2025, with commentary about the challenges and strengths of each of the processes.

Together, the courses amount to approximately 6.5 hours of learning. Once completed, users can take a final test to earn an FAO eLearning Academy digital certification badge, which can lead to expanded employment opportunities, among other benefits.

The course is designed for a wide range of learners, including fishery managers, fishery scientists, industry professionals, environmental stakeholders, and others. It’s relevant to both tuna and general RFMOs, as well as domestic fisheries. The open-source, free-to-use content can also be used by colleges and universities for academic training. All that is needed is an FAO eLearning Academy log-in (Click here to register for free!).

While the series is currently available only in English, Spanish and French versions will be launching within the next few months.  For learners eager to apply their new knowledge to an MP development process close to home, we are pleased to offer a limited number of follow-up, customized, live sessions, tailored to the audience’s interests, either online or in-person. Please email info@harveststrategies.org to learn more!

This course has been many years in the making, and we would like to give a tremendous thank you to our project sponsors and partners, most notably the Common Oceans Tuna Fisheries Project, which is funded by GEF and implemented by FAO. The Pew Charitable Trusts and International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) also helped with content development and review. We are also indebted to our Project Advisory Committee and a focus group of esteemed fisheries managers, scientists, and industry representatives whose review and input greatly improved the materials.

Please visit the FAO eLearning Academy to take one – or ideally, all! – of the courses to deepen your understanding of management procedures and strengthen your ability to engage meaningfully in the development and adoption process. It will help to ensure your priorities are reflected in the process, and you might even have a little fun along the way!

Stay tuned for an announcement about our next quarterly webinar, which FAO will host as the official launch of the course!