Here you can find stories based on the transcripts of fieldwork in 2024 and 2025 in Western Visayas Region 6. Sentences, words, concepts and expressions from interview transcripts with all types of fishers and buyers/traders were used to create composite characters so participants remain anonymous. These stories reflect their experiences of patronage in their coastal economy- I wrote these stories so their perspectives of this relationship (patron-client) are shared.

Sukianay (as patronage is known in the Philippines) goes well beyond the blue. Patrons’ finance flows frequently to schooling, nutritional security and healthcare- ultimately intertwining various areas of social life into marine ecosystem dynamics through repayment. Rather than dismissing patron-client relations as an obstacle to sustainability (which is frequently done at various levels), recognizing them as an adaptive yet contested institution provides a more contextualized approach to blue market governance. Here I try to provide some rich details on the contested relationship which doesn’t easily fit into reports or papers.

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