Public perceptions and social license (or lack thereof) play an important role in marine aquaculture development, particularly in developed countries like the U.S. and Canada. While there is a growing consensus that responsible marine aquaculture can and should play a bigger role in a sustainable food portfolio that is more resilient to the changing climate, sector growth and expansion in the U.S. is negligible. This is in part due to the fact that public perceptions (real and perceived) have not kept pace with the state of the science. Further complicating matters is the fact that research into perceptions and social license for marine aquaculture in developed countries is relatively new, but efforts to address public perceptions and garner social license for the development of specific projects are currently underway. This panel will discuss the challenges and opportunities to bridge scientific theory and application specific to addressing public perceptions and garnering social license for responsible marine aquaculture development in the U.S. and Canada.
Panelists TBD