AQUA 2012: Securing our future

The AQUA events are co-organised by EAS and WAS every six years. The event comprises an international scientific conference, an international trade exhibition, workshops for aquaculture producers, forums organised by students and by the European Commission Directorate General for research and many other satellite workshops and meetings.

The previous AQUA events each attracted more than 2000 participants from over 50 countries, showing the global importance of aquaculture and specifically this event.

The theme “Securing our Future” has several aspects. It has obvious implication in global and regional food security and aquaculture trade, placing aquaculture products in the global fisheries market. It also refers to economic and environmental sustainability and the image of aquaculture activities. Our future is what we make of it now – how we alleviate poverty; how we manage our future resource needs and especially how we educate, train and manage knowledge for the next generation of aquaculture researchers, producers and other stakeholders.

AQUA 2012 Programme co-chairs Marco Saroglia, José Polanco and Zdenek Adamek have put together a vast programme of more than 50 technical sessions that will be open for abstract submission. Major pillars of the technical programme include Environment, Biodiversity and Climate Change; Aquaculture Certification; Aquaculture and Human Health; Production Systems; Feedstuffs, Feeds and Feed additives; Molluscs & other Invertebrates; Marine Shrimp; General Finfish Culture; Freshwater Fish Culture; Marine Fish Culture; Seaweeds; Ornamentals; Aquaculture Economics; Animal Welfare, Health and Diseases; Breeding and Genetics and other specialised topics. The programme therefore covers many aspects of the global aquaculture value chain for contribution by authors from all over the world.