Monthly Archives: November 2011

AwF chair-elect Barry A. Costa-Pierce elected as AAAS Fellow

The Council of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) announced on November 10, 2011, that Professor Barry A. Costa-Pierce, director of Rhode Island Sea Grant and professor of fisheries & aquaculture at the University of Rhode Island, has been elected as an AAAS Fellow. Dr. Costa-Pierce is also the chair-elect of Aquaculture without Frontiers (AwF).

Each year the Council elects Fellows whose “efforts on behalf of the advancement of science or its applications are scientifically or socially distinguished.” In the award letter, AAAS states that Costa-Pierce is being honored for “distinguished contributions to global aquaculture and its sustainability and for leadership in marine research, education, and outreach as director of two NOAA-Sea Grant college programs.”

“As a scientist, my first concern has always been how science works to directly benefit people, whether advancing commercial aquaculture to be more sustainable, or helping feed the world’s poor. As a Sea Grant director, my focus has been how new Sea Grant partnerships and institutions can make a real change in the state, in demonstrating credible impacts on the livelihoods of coastal peoples, and increasing stewardship of ocean resources for future generations. Election by the Council as an AAAS Fellow is extremely meaningful to me in recognizing these efforts,” Costa-Pierce says. 

Aquaculture has potential to cut poverty, combat food insecurity – UN report

More than 50 per cent of the world’s food fish will come from aquaculture, making it a crucial method to reduce poverty and combat food insecurity, said a United Nations report released today, while calling for governments to step up their efforts to support this practice.

Aquaculture, which involves cultivating fresh water and saltwater populations of fish under controlled conditions as opposed to catching fish in the wild, is the world’s fastest growing source of animal protein, growing by more than 60 per cent between 2000 and 2008, from 32.4 million tons to 52.5 million tons, according to the report.

“With stagnating global capture fishery production and an increasing population, aquaculture is perceived as having the greatest potential to produce more fish in the future to meet the growing demand for safe and quality aquatic food,” said the report, World Aquaculture in 2010.

The report, released by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), states aquaculture has played an important role in reducing poverty in many parts of the world. However, it says it has not grown evenly throughout the planet.