World Aquaculture September 2018

WWW.WA S.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • SEP TEMBER 2018 11 T he following special sessions, among others, are planned for Aquaculture 2019, the triennial conference of WAS in NewOrleans, Louisiana from 7-11 March 2019. Potential contributors are urged to submit abstracts online through the WAS website as soon as possible. AquaTools: Smart Siting and Environmental Management - Tools for a Growing Aquaculture Industry (NAA Special Session) We live in a time when the need to manage aquaculture sustainably meets unprecedented technological capabilities. Good spatial planning, site selection, and farm design are critical to minimizing environmental impacts and ensuring business success. Environmental monitoring is often required to ensure environmental compliance, but similar approaches can also be used by farmers to improve production yield. We invite farmers, scientists, and policymakers to present on new innovations in this field. We particularly welcome topics that provide a cross-sectional perspective on the intersection of environmental management and smart business management. Example topics could include, but are not limited to: • Spatial planning and siting tools to informmanagement and business decisions for new aquaculture operations, • New or innovative applications of environmental monitoring technologies for aquaculture (e.g. sensors and drones), • Use of “big data” or remote sensing to inform aquaculture business and management, • Integrated farmmanagement and environmental monitoring approaches. As an NAA Special Session, abstracts are welcome but not required for this session. Scientific and non-scientific talks are welcome, but presentations should be easily understood by a general audience. Session organizers are James Morris, NOAANational Ocean Service; Robert Jones, The Nature Conservancy. Contact TiffanyWaters (tiffany.waters@tnc.org ) for more information. Planning Strategically for Marketing and Financial Success (NAA Special Session) Sound business and marketing plans are crucial elements for success in both existing and start-up aquaculture businesses. Periodic evaluation of financial statements, reviewing and revising the business plan, and making small improvements each year are part of the recipe for success. We would like to invite you to share with us your experiences, knowledge, and tips for achieving marketing and financial success in aquaculture. Example topics could include, but are not limited to: • Developing a business plan • Identifying your target: “commodity” and/or “niche” markets • Adapting to changing market trends • Tools and software to help you stay on top of your finances • What to do when nothing goes according to plan As an NAA Special Session, abstracts are welcome but not required for this session. Scientific and non-scientific talks are Special Sessions Planned for Aquaculture 2019 in New Orleans welcome, but presentations should be easily understood by a general audience. Session organizers are Ganesh Karunakaran (gkk27@ msstate.edu) and Jonathan van Senten ( jvansenten@vt.edu ). Interactions Between Aquatic Animals and Contaminants of Emerging Concern Microplastics, nanomaterials, and other contaminants of emerging concern (CEC) have received increased attention over the past decade because of their potential to produce deleterious effects on life stages of aquatic animals ranging from eggs to adults, and to transfer anthropogenic materials through the food chain. This special session will bring together a broad range of scientists whose research focuses on the ingestion, accumulation, trophic transfer, and impacts of emerging contaminants on commercially important aquatic species. Session co-chairs are EvanWard, University of Connecticut (evan.ward@uconn.edu) , Aswani Volety, University of North Carolina –Wilmington (voletya@uncw.edu ), and John Scarpa, Texas A&MUniversity – Corpus Christi (john.scarpa@tamucc.edu ). Taurine Taurine has garnered much interest in aquaculture research for the past two decades. We now knowmore about its requirement in several species, its biosynthetic pathway(s), and some functional use. Yet there are still many unanswered questions about that do-it-all beta amino acid. We welcome abstracts pertaining to biosynthetic pathway regulation across species, life stages and environments; impacts on other sulfur metabolism pathways; interactions with other nutrients; practical consequences on requirements, feed formulations, and feed management. The session organizer is Guillaume Salze (gsalze@auburn.edu) . Planning Initiatives to Grow Aquaculture This session will provide an opportunity to share information on targeted state, regional, or national planning efforts to grow aquaculture. We want to hear from industry, government, non-profits, extension, and other groups leading the charge to create or expand aquaculture opportunities in your region. Contact Tessa Getchis (tessa.getchis@uconn.edu ) or BethWalton (beth@oystersouth.com) for more information. Aquaculture Education, Extension and Outreach This session will provide an opportunity for presenters to showcase aquaculture education, extension, and outreach programs. Designed to be inclusive in scope, program updates, STEM, demonstration projects, innovative technology use, communication, and program evaluation techniques from around the world may be presented. Aquaculture awareness and the transfer of credible aquaculture information to stakeholders, regulators and the public remains one of the most important issues facing a growing industry. Session organizers are Kathryn Mitchell, Anoushka Concepcion, Kenneth Thompson and Forrest Wynne ( fwynne@uky.edu) . ( C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 2 0 )