World Aquacluture Magazine - September 2020

10 SEP TEMBER 2020 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WA S.ORG 2021 on Diversity in Aquaculture. If you would like to assist with or have suggestions for the Diversity Committee, please contact Dr. Saillant or myself. I’m sure many of you may be curious of the status of Aquaculture America 2021 in San Antonio Texas (February 21 - 24, 2021). At this time, planning is still underway and the meeting will be held as scheduled. In the meantime, I would encourage everyone to start thinking about sending in abstracts. For students, there is over $20,000 in award and registration reimbursements available for outstanding abstracts, presentations and posters. These awards would not be possible without our partners from other organizations and private industry. As a reminder, any non-student full member who submits their abstract by the Sept 30, 2020 deadline will be entered into a random drawing to win one of five complementary full conference registrations for AA2021. In addition to the student awards that will be given at AA2021, there are also several professional awards that will be presented. The descriptions of those awards are available on our website. Please send nominations for professional awards to Dr. Dennis McIntosh, USAS President-Elect. The election for USAS President-Elect, USAS Secretary/ Treasurer, and two Board of Director positions is right around the corner. Please consider serving your organization through one of these positions. Please contact USAS Immediate Past-President Angela Caporelli for more information about the duties associated with each position and to nominate yourself or someone else. As a reminder, USAS will help cover travel expenses for all board members to attend the annual in-person board meeting at Aquaculture America conferences. If you have any questions or concerns about USAS, do not hesitate to reach out to myself or any of the other BoardMembers. Until, next time, stay safe and keep being part of the resilient industry we knowwe are. —Matt Parker, President U.S. Aquaculture Society W ow! As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic is still upon us and many aquaculture producers in the US and around the world are still facing financial hardships. Here in the US, many restaurants have started to reopen with limited seating capacity. While this helps our industry, especially those whose products are primarily consumed in restaurants, we are still not back to the “normal” we are accustomed to. With any luck, people will continue to do their part to limit the spread of COVID-19 so everyone can get back to some semblance of how things were pre-COVID-19. I have faith in the resiliency of our industry and knowmany producers will weather the storm and come out on top. When you have the opportunity, support your local aquaculture producers and encourage others to do so as well. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, USAS has continued to offer educational webinars. So far this year, we have had webinars on aquaculture genetics, perceptions of marine aquaculture, aquaculture nutrition and aquatic weed control, among others. Videos of these webinars are available on the USAS YouTube Channel. Stay tuned for information on our upcoming webinars on seafood in the diet, effects of COVID-19 on the aquaculture industry, cash flow analysis for aquaculture and hatchery management. Here in the US, our country’s long history of racial injustice and inequality is being addressed through protests, national movements and in the media every day. I would like to assure all members of the USAS that we are supportive of these movements and equality in the field of aquaculture. In June, USAS sent a statement to all members on diversity. To reiterate that statement, USAS values all people and their ideas and contributions to the science of aquaculture no matter their religion, national origin, skin color, sexual orientation or gender identities. To further examine diversity in our organization and find areas where we may improve, I have formed a Diversity Committee as part of the USAS Board Committees. Dr. Eric Saillant leads this committee and is planning a special session at Aquaculture America C H A P T E R R E P O R T S