Small-scale fisheries (SSFs) provide food security, livelihood, and employment to millions of people around the world. Whereas the urgency of securing sustainable SSFs is widely recognized, the governance characteristics that promote sustainability are poorly understood. This study evaluates the performance and governance of SSFs in 20 countries in the Americas and Europe, with the aim of finding the most likely paths to improve SSFs outcomes. Fisheries performance was assessed through ecological and socio-economic indicators derived from stakeholders’ perceptions. The relative importance of 15 governance attributes associated with the perceived performance was identified using random forest regression models. The perceived status of many SSFs analyzed here is of great concern. Trends in reported landings, landings per unit effort, and revenues have decreased between 3% and 10% on average in the last 5 years, and these declines were steeper in Latin American and southern European fisheries than in North American or northern European fisheries. Perceived social cohesion was also poor, as reflected by conflicts outweighing cooperation. Adaptability, communication, transparency, and the involvement of highly skilled fishers and community leaders were the most relevant factors associated with reversing the perceived declines in SSFs. Strengthening human capital should be a priority in the reform of SSFs, and the following actions are strongly recommended to support sustainable SSFs: 1) adopting flexible approaches in responding to changes; 2) fostering dialog by using diverse communication channels or involving neutral mediators; 3) identifying and training community leaders; and 4) empowering fishers to participate actively in governance.

小型渔业 (SSF) 为全世界数百万人提供粮食安全、生计和就业。尽管人们普遍认识到确保可持续小规模渔业的紧迫性，但人们对促进可持续性的治理特征知之甚少。本研究评估了美洲和欧洲 20 个国家小规模渔业的绩效和治理，旨在寻找最有可能改善小规模渔业成果的途径。渔业绩效通过从利益相关者的看法得出的生态和社会经济指标进行评估。使用随机森林回归模型确定了与感知性能相关的 15 个治理属性的相对重要性。这里分析的许多 SSF 的感知状态非常令人担忧。报告的着陆、每单位努力的着陆趋势、过去 5 年收入平均下降了 3% 到 10%，拉丁美洲和南欧渔业的下降幅度比北美或北欧渔业的下降幅度更大。正如冲突大于合作所反映的那样，人们感知到的社会凝聚力也很差。适应性、沟通、透明度以及高技能渔民和社区领导人的参与是与扭转 SSF 感知下降相关的最相关因素。加强人力资本应成为小规模渔业改革的优先事项，强烈建议采取以下行动支持可持续小规模渔业： 1) 采取灵活的方法应对变化；2) 通过使用不同的沟通渠道或让中立的调解人参与来促进对话；3) 识别和培训社区领袖；