Fishermen's attitudes towards drone use for sustainable fishing in a coastal community in Kerala, India: An exploratory qualitative study

•Fishing is crucial for livelihoods and sustainable development.•However, unsustainable practices and environmental shocks limit this potential.•Drone technologies have been projected to aid sustainable fishing. However, research on fishing zones and fishermen attitudes is limited.•Coastal fishermen revealed positive attitudes toward drone use.•The success of drone technology in driving future sustainability among fisherfolk will depend on fisherfolk attitudes and regional suitability. Fishing is crucial to livelihoods and development. However, unsustainable practices and shocks threaten this potential, which is worsened by limited research on technologies such as drones to enhance sustainable fishing. Our study used an exploratory qualitative approach involving 48 fishermen in Alappad in Kerala. The findings revealed that fishermen use either unsustainable or traditional practices. Due to increasing familiarity with new technologies, fishermen have positive attitudes toward drone use. Using these narratives, we ideated the characteristics of feasible drone(s) for sustainable localized fishing. The success of drone adoption/use is dependent on fishermen's positive attitudes. [Display omitted]