2025 Barry M. Fitzpatrick Conservation Award – Rick Gaffney

For nearly 50 years, Rick Gaffney has been a driving force in marine conservation, advocating for the protection of some of the world’s most ecologically significant waters, both in Hawaii, where he was born and raised, and across the Pacific. As the federally appointed recreational fishing representative on the Northwest Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve Advisory Council, he played an important role in the development, management and expansion of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the largest fully protected conservation area in the United States. Gaffney has worked tirelessly to ensure these waters remain safeguarded, including meeting regularly with U.S. government officials to advocate for the addition of National Marine Sanctuary status to assure lasting protections. Since 2014, he has also worked to designate the Pacific Heritage Islands Marine National Monument as a National Marine Sanctuary, aiming to assure long-term protection for little-known but ecologically important U.S. islands. Beyond policy, Gaffney has been involved in the creation of four Marine Life Conservation Districts in Hawaii and helped manage Midway Atoll’s sportfishing program, where his clients set several IGFA World Records, including the first successful live release of a giant trevally IGFA World Record. He has also assisted with the IGFA Great Marlin Race in his home waters in Kona, Hawaii, collaborating with Dr. Barbara Block’s lab at Stanford University. His steadfast commitment has helped secure the future of vital marine ecosystems and the sportfishing community that relies on them. As a lifelong angler, IGFA Representative, and the first to land an IGFA World Record giant trevally on fly, Gaffney has spent nearly seven decades fishing the Pacific from Alaska to Australia and remains committed to conserving oceans worldwide.