Hello Vincent, can you tell us what made you want to become president of an AAPPMA one morning?
It's the same engine that drives all volunteers. Volunteers like to put themselves at the service of others, to get things done, to create and animate. The choice to volunteer is often the choice to sacrifice time: work time, leisure time, but also time with family and friends. Being a volunteer in the leisure fishing industry means accepting many challenges. The challenge of the climate, the challenge of society, but also the challenge of uniting the different forms of fishing and anglers.
Before being president of an AAPPMA, you're first and foremost a fisherman?
My story is like so many others. I've been fishing all my life. Like many of us, I've been fishing since childhood. As a young adult, and to brag a little, I was one of the pioneers of modern carp fishing in the 80s and 90s. After many years traveling to carp fishing competitions in Romania, Spain and South Africa, and spending 150 nights a year at the water's edge, I saw carp anglers change, and I changed too. I felt like sleeping at home, but still wanted to catch carp. That's when I discovered stalking. At the time, there were just a few of us starting out on this adventure.
It was only natural that, in the 2010s, I should return to my first love, trout. But I won't be fly-fishing again. I discovered trout fishing with lures thanks to lessons from Guillaume Vernet. While river fishing, I met a group of friends on a forum. I can mention Alex, Mike, Jean-Pierre, Antonin and I'm forgetting a few. I apologize for them. It was they who first introduced me to the Gapeau, then to the AAPPMA La Truite du Gapeau, and to fishing associations in France. Mike, president of the AAPPMA before me, needed someone to take over. I put myself forward and the members entrusted me with the task of replacing him as president.
What does president of an AAPPMA mean to you?
For me, a Chairman must be the guarantor of the implementation of a policy decided by the Board of Directors and approved by the General Meeting. As well as being a driving force behind proposals, he or she must ensure the cohesion of teams and the balance of political choices. All anglers and all types of fishing have a place, and their place must be guaranteed. The President must be inventive and innovative. There are many challenges ahead, and we need to anticipate the future. I had to learn the ropes, and first of all I had to understand how fishing associations work. The staff of the Var fishing federation were very supportive in this. We are fortunate to have a federation that, under the impetus of its president, is strong, well organized and a force for proposals.
What is the role of an AAPPMA?
Recreational fishing is organized on an associative basis. The prerogatives of AAPPMAs and federations are important. They have two pillars: the development of fishing and the protection of the environment. State-approved, they have duties and rights. Whether it's water policing or environmental monitoring, they are on the front line. AAPPMAs are custodians of fishing leases. Without them, there would be no fishing. I also had to understand the ecological stakes and the possibilities for action offered by an AAPPMA in this field. For this, I'd like to thank my friend Ludo, who put his skills and example at the service of my learning and to whom I refer regularly. I also had to build relationships with local elected officials in my area to gain their support for our projects.
But the two essential points, in my opinion, are:
- Listen to and understand the needs of local anglers. Know what to develop, what to maintain and what to stop. Developing fishing can sometimes conflict with preserving the environment. Discussions and exchanges enable us to find the necessary balance.
- Leading a team of volunteers. Try to imagine the sacrifices made by a fisheries warden, an administrator or a board member. The question that haunts me is how to give them the recognition they deserve? To stand by them, listen to them and defend them. I'll never stop being proudly one of them.
Isn't recreational fishing in danger?
Fishing is an ancestral tradition, first and foremost a way of life, a hobby and a passion. For the past decade or so, fishing has been called into question by a minority of animal rights activists, but who have powerful access to the media. This questioning must make us question ourselves, and we must accept to evolve without denying ourselves, but above all we must defend ourselves. Defending ourselves means first and foremost consolidating and developing the fishing world. We must also put our disagreements and differences aside. And finally, we need to put an end to fratricidal battles between fishermen of all backgrounds. It's up to us to find what brings us together to share a common future.
We must also take our place in the biodiversity challenge. Let's be the first to get involved in the ecological challenges of the future, and not leave our place to punitive utopias that would deprive us of our way of life. Get closer to our fellow non-fishermen by communicating. Make ourselves known and accepted. The urban lifestyle has driven people away from fishing, but today, thanks to the media, we have the opportunity to make ourselves known and create a positive image of fishing. It's up to us to seize this opportunity. Our challenge is to first convince those around us, then those around them, but also to reach out to politicians and the media.
We'll take blows, we'll be attacked, but today I'm ready, ready to put up with it to leave my children a world where leisure fishing has its rightful place! AAPPMAs are not alone in this battle! They can count on their federations. In the Var, we have a strong federation, and it's in our interest to get as involved as possible.
Are you going to continue to be so committed to fishing?
It's with full knowledge of the situation and the difficulties that lie ahead that I'm more than ever keen to get back involved in the fishing association. If the members of the AAPPMA wish it, I will be present in the future on this magnificent territory that is the Gapeau watershed. It will also be very important to join forces with the Var fishing federation and contribute our skills. It's also at departmental level that the future of our AAPPMAs is at stake. I'll leave my daughters a clean world, with wetlands and flowing rivers, where recreational fishing will remain a way of life!
