Jiri Nozicka, Part 1
Voices of the Bay
In The Capturing the Voices of the Bay Education Program, students take responsibility for their own learning experience as they research, plan, and conduct personal interviews, first with each other and then with citizens of the community, to capture the rich stories, traditions, and knowledge that define Monterey’s fishing legacy. This place-based learning experience allows students the opportunity to deeply explore the historic, economic, environmental, and cultural dimensions of their particular “place” in the world and, perhaps more importantly, how all these dimensions inter-connect through the lives of those who live and work in the region.
Though he comes from the ocean-less land of the Czech Republic, Jiri Nozicka has developed a masterful understanding of fishing and its benefits. He explains that fishing as an industry does more than just put fresh fish in the hungry mouths of tourists every day, but provides a multitude of jobs at various levels within the fish to table process. Even those who work 9-5 jobs in processing plants or transporting the fish rely upon those who catch the actual product for their livelihood, an important symbiotic relationship that Jiri brings to light. The immense financial risk involved in fishing is brought to bear as well as Mr. Nozicka describes the monetary expenses that go into even a single fishing trip including thousands of dollars for fuel. This combined with the constant threat of losing fishing gear (tens of thousands of dollars) or having technical problems with the boat (hundreds of thousands of dollars) provides a sobering insight into the fiscal danger of the fishing career.
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