Training News August 2003

A free e-mail news service provided by AquaTT on European Education & Training in Aquaculture

Please submit any relevant information for dissemination in the newsletter to news@aquatt.ie

INTRODUCTION TO TRAINING NEWS

EDUCATION

- AquaTT and Aqualex Multimedia Consortium (AMC) attendance at AquaNor 2003 a success

- New Seafood Safety and Traceabilty Organisation Founded 

- Increased cooperation needed to end fragmentation of Europe's marine research infrastructure, says report

COLLABORATION

- Aqualex Multimedia Consortium (AMC) seeking partners for eLearning Initiative

- AquaReg Launced during AquaNor 2003 in Trondheim, Norway

ANNOUNCEMENTS

- Association of Scottish Shellfish Growers Annual Conference, Oban, Scotland, 18-19^th September 2003

- Symposium on recent advances in food analysis, Prague, Czech Republic, 5-7^th November 2003

  OTHER

- Farming fish for the future, sustainably - FAO Sub-Committee on Aquaculture wraps up in Norway
- Post your Student placement and Msc/ PhD vacancies on WWW.PISCESTTJOBS.COM

- Wanted – Photos of the lifecycles of several species for new educational posters

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EDUCATION

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AquaTT and Aqualex Multimedia Consortium (AMC) attendance at AquaNor 2003 a success

AquaTT and AMC attendance at AquaNor 2003 (12^th-15^th August) resulted in the gathering of a wealth of information and provided a platform on which to disseminate information on European Education and Training initiatives.

Attendance at the event for both organisations was partially supported by travel grants from the NDP-Marine RTDI Measure through the Networking/Technology Transfer Scheme (www.marine.ie, www.ndp.ie). As part of this scheme, both organisations hope and are in a position to disseminate relevant information gathered at AquaNor 2003 to the Irish Marine Community. 

Highlights of activities enhanced via participation in AquaNor 2003:

Collaboration – Contacts made with organizations looking to collaborate with Irish organisations on European Projects.

Education Database -- Additional course content gathered for www.piscestt.com.

PISCES TT Jobs – Increased student awareness of www.piscesttjobs.com, where employers can find employees specifically interested in pursuing aquaculture work.

Please contact AquaTT at aquatt@aquatt.ie or AMC at erin@aquatt.ie for more information on developments from AquaNor 2003.

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New Seafood Safety and Traceabilty Organisation Founded

The not for profit European Seafood Safety and Traceability Organisation (ESSTO) was set up by the consortia members of the EU transnational fisheries project www.euseafood.com. The aims of this new organisation are:

The promotion of safely produced food made from fish, shellfish and aquatic plants by:

(i) promoting traceability and transparency in the seafood production process from point of catch/farming through processing to the point of end sale.
(ii) promoting and developing consumer awareness of fish, shellfish and aquatic plants as a safe, healthy and nutritious food.
(iii) developing teaching materials, courses, traceability methods and products for education and public knowledge purposes.
(iv) promoting and providing education and training for the fishing, fish processing, fish selling, aquatic sciences and related industries.
(v) Disseminating as widely as possible the knowledge gained in the development of the above objects by conferences, workshops as well as through publication in print and electronic formats, (offline and online).

Membership is open to all including organisations, companies, individuals and students in the fishing, aquaculture and fish processing industries. Competent authorities, Government departments, agencies, and educational bodies would also benefit from membership as would non EU companies, competent authorities and government bodies having an interest in exporting seafood into Europe.

John Coleman, Chairman of the new organisation and coordinator of the www.euseafood.com project said at the organisations first meeting, "Our initial reasons for setting up ESSTO were to provide a vehicle for the future and sustainable development of the website www.euseafood.com and to act as a forum and network to pull together the different organisations and strands in Seafood Safety and Traceability Research & Development. Also we realised that the skills, knowledge and experience of the members could be harnessed to help in projects to bring non EU countries and companies up to EU sanitary and quality standards. Whilst it is very early days for the new organisation the company are planning to have an ESSTO website up and running during September, to expand the website www.euseafood.com over the coming months and are planning a Conference on Traceability in the Aquaculture and Fisheries sector to coincide with the Aquaculture 2004 and Fishing 2004 to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, in May 2004. The organisation will also be going on a membership drive in Europeand are particularly interested in hearing from people who are interested in being Country coordinators."

Further information on the organisation is available from:

Secretariat
European Seafood Safety and Traceability Organisation
Station House, Shankill, Co. Dublin, Ireland
Tel: +353-12823688 Fax: +353 - 12826311
E-mail: enquiries@essto.org
Web: www.essto.org

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Increased cooperation needed to end fragmentation of Europe's marine research infrastructure, says report

A report published by the European strategy forum for research infrastructure has suggested that new forms of cooperation need to be found in order to solder the highly fragmented marine research area in Europe.

The report reviews current cooperation types and practices and makes recommendations as how to create new opportunities for the shared use of the existing marine research infrastructure in Europe.

One recommendation made by the report refers to increasing cooperation, particularly between national funding agencies in order to provide a better basis for carrying out research in Europe. “Ninety-five per cent of research funding still comes from national sources, and only five per cent from the EU, which is why we should consider how we could increase cooperation within national research funding,” explained Kaisa Konen, chair of the ad hoc working group that compiled the report.

”Marine research in particular was highlighted as a field that is highly fragmented and where the maintenance of the infrastructure accounts for as much as half of the research funds,'” he added.

Indeed the report reveals the level of fragmentation and notes that while some Member States show scientific excellence in marine research, they may not have the best research facilities or possibilities of supporting this research financially. “These areas do not always meet, and we would like change this. Marine research is global research, and Europe's competitiveness should be supported,” noted Dr Konen.

Dr Konen believes that the report's recommendations can be seen within the context of the European Research Area (ERA) and its goal to increase Europe's competitiveness in research by creating a so-called internal research market, where the mobility of researchers and research funding would be unrestricted, and the research infrastructure would be utilised as efficiently as possible.

In this vein, the report proposes that research teams in different Member States should have access to each others' resources in the future, for example through joint use of marine vessels and laboratory facilities, which often remain unused for a significant part of the year. “Through common agreements they could be utilised much more efficiently than at present,” said Dr Konen.

The report also suggests that, when acquiring new research equipment, the acquisitions could be selected so that they would complement the existing European research facilities.

Data Source Provider: The Academyof Finland
Document Reference: Based on information from the academyof Finland
Contact Person: To read the report in full, please visit http://www.aka.fi/modules/upndown/download_file.asp?Id=32549ABE30384E3DAF3D27292E95E940

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COLLABORATION

AqualexMultimedia Consortium (AMC) seeking partners for eLearning Initiative

The Directorate General for Education and Culture of the European Commission has launched a Call for Proposals for “Preparatory and Innovative Actions 2003/b – eLearning” (DG EAC/61/03)

As the deadline for the submission of proposals is 22^nd September 2003, AMC is actively seeking partners from the 15 Member States, Iceland, Liechtensteinor Norway. 

The envisioned project aims to bring together a cluster of projects addressing e-learning in the fisheries and aquaculture sector.  This project can add value to ongoing projects and will promote dialogue between actors.  AMC are hoping to use this call to collaborate with other organizations and build upon some of their previous e-learning initiatives (available on www.aqualex.org) including:

AqualexGlossary – A multilingual glossary of over 3500 aquaculture terms in 7 languages (English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Greek and Norwegian)

ONEDIN – Open and Distance Learning modules in aquaculture and marine sciences available in four languages

ORION – a 'Virtual' Marine Environment Department which can deliver Open and Distance Learning (ODL) courses in a variety of languages

The Calls were published on the 19th of July in the Official Journal and can be consulted through the e-learning portal (www.elearningeuropa.info).

AMC is eager to discuss potential collaboration with relevant partners interested in developing e-Learning initiatives for the Fisheries and Aquaculture industry. For more information please contact Erin McVeigh, AMC project officer, erin@aquatt.ie or telephone +353 1 874 7088.

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AquaRegLaunced during AquaNor 2003 in Trondheim, Norway
AquaReg is an iniatitive under the EU Interreg IIIC programme. AquaReg is a co-operation between the regions of Galiciain Spain, Border, Midland, and Western (BMW) in Ireland, and Trøndelag in Norway. AquaNor 2003 was the setting for a signing of a memorandum of understanding on the project and was the official launch in Norway. This will be followed up by official launches in Spainand Ireland. The overall objective of AquaReg is to provide opportunities and design strategies for sustainable development of peripheral coastal communities by promotion of inter regional co-operation in aquaculture and fisheries.

The AquaReg programme has been drawn up after consultation with regional partnerships

Galicia:
Ministry of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs, represented by the CETMAR Foundation, the Galician Fish Farmers Association.

BMW:
The Marine Institute, Irish Farmers Association (Fish Section), The National Universityof Ireland, Galway, GalwayMayo Instituteof Technology, GalwayCounty Council.

Trøndelag:
Nord-and Sor-Trondelag CMs, the Fish Farmers Association, the Fishermen's Association, the Seafood Assosciation, SINTEF NTNU, Nord-Trondelag University College, VESO Vet. Cent., Dir. of Fisheries, Upper sec. schools in Froya, Val and Ytre Namdal, The Norwegian Ind. and Reg. Dev. Fund (SND).

Goals
AquaReg has three goals:

l.) To contribute to a coherent and sustainable development in aquaculture and fisheries in the regions.
2.) To promote innovative actions and business development in the relevant marine industries.
3.) To increase employment in the marine sector.

Strategies
The interregional partnership has outlined three strategies for achieving the objectives of AquaReg:

AquaLink: Linking aquaculture/fisheries business and research.
AquaEd: Education and training.
AquaPlan: Coastal zone planning and management.

Further information from
Mr. Alan Drumm
C/0 AquaReg BMW
Ph 353 (0)98 42316
Mo: 353 087 6294177
Fax: 353 (0)98 42340
e-mail: alan.drumm@marine.ie
Website: www.marine.ie

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

ASSOCIATION OF SCOTTISH SHELLFISH GROWERS ANNUAL CONFERENCE, Oban, Scotland, 18-19^th September 2003

"Safe Shellfish - Improving the Environment, Protecting the Consumer, Growing the Industry"

This year's Conference focuses on issues which are central to maintaining a prosperous and successful molluscan cultivation sector. Top of the agenda is the production of 'safe shellfish', and the delivery of a product that offers an enjoyable culinary experience to the consumer, without fear of stomach upsets or other negative effects.

To achieve this objective requires appropriate monitoring and management of anthropogenic inputs and algal blooms/biotoxin events in the cultivation environment, efficient depuration techniques where needed, and appropriate risk assessment criteria for end product standards - in other words, co-operation between growers, regulators and legislators.

To discuss these issues, and to present the perspective from a number of different countries, the ASSG has assembled a distinguished platform of speakers.

For more information please contact, DouglasMcLeod@aol.com

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Symposium on recent advances in food analysis, Prague, Czech Republic, 5-7^th November 2003

The first international symposium on recent advances in food analysis will take place from 5 to 7 November in Prague, Czech Republic.

The event is organised by the International Association of Environmental Analytical Chemistry, and will gather leading scientists to present the latest advances and applications in food analysis through plenary sessions and keynote lectures.

The scientific program will cover all analytical aspects related to the following topics:
- Residues and contaminants (pesticides, dioxins, flame retardants, veterinary drugs, toxic elements);
- Food processing and packaging contaminants (acrylamide, 3-MCPD, plasticisers);
- Natural toxins (phytotoxins, marine toxins, mycotoxins);
- GM food and substantial equivalence;
- Authenticity and fraud;
- Novel foods, nutraceuticals, products from organic farming;
- General food analysis (proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins, flavour components, minerals);
- QA/QC, method performance characteristics and legislation issues in food analysis laboratories;
- Exposure assessment (surveillance, monitoring, total diet studies)
 
Data Source Provider: Technology centre AS CR

Contact Person: For further information, please consult the following web address; http://www.iaeac.ch/foodportal.htm

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OTHER

Farming fish for the future, sustainability - FAO Sub-Committee on Aquaculture wraps up in Norway

Countries from around the world have resolved to cooperate more closely in order to develop a better framework for the sustainable development of the world's aquaculture sector, FAO said. The agreement comes following the second session of the FAO Sub-Committee on aquaculture, held 7-11 August in Trondheim, Norway. During the five day working meeting, representatives from FAO member countries wrestled with a wide range of issues, including the environmental impacts of shrimp-farming, the use of antibiotics by aquaculture, the introduction of non-native fish species into new regions, harmonization of trade standards, and the need for better monitoring of product safety.

In its final report, the Sub-Committee made a series of recommendations for action by FAO as well as by the individual countries that make up the Organization's membership. The report will be available on the FAO Fisheries Department website in all official Organization languages in September. "The work that has been outlined for action by FAO, or for action by the member countries themselves, really represents a global agenda for aquaculture," observed Serge Garcia, director of FAO's Fishery Resources Division. To help promote national policies conducive to responsible fish farming, FAO will develop detailed guidelines for the responsible management of fish farms aimed at both improving the quality of the fish farmed there and at reducing their negative environmental impacts. A reference compendium of aquaculture related legislation already on the books in different countries will also be produced.

Responding to developing countries' comments that they are often unable to keep up with changing safety standards governing fish imports, FAO will work to improve information sharing between importing and exporting nations and, via the international Codex Alimentarius Commission, to develop international standards for the safety of fish products. The Organization will also evaluate various labeling systems being used to certify aquaculture products as safe and environmentally friendly, with a view to encouraging worldwide adoption of a single set of science-based standards. Countries attending the event also agreed to work with FAO to improve and enhance the collection of world data about aquaculture. This year the Organization will convene a meeting of experts from around the world to draw up a blueprint for doing so.

Fish for the world's hungry

The role of aquaculture in meeting food and nutrition needs, especially in the developing world, was another area of priority action for FAO. "Perceptions about aquaculture often focus on the large-scale, industrial side of the sector, which is often about export products" said Rohana Subasinghe, an FAO Senior Fisheries Officer and secretary of the Sub-Committee. "We heard a strong voice here from the developing countries, who see aquaculture also as a way to feed their hungry. That vision is crucial." According to Subasinghe, 90 percent of aquaculture today occurs in developing countries, and the sector currently produces over 36 percent of the world's food fish supply -- up from 7 percent in 1970. To boost the contribution that fish farming makes to world food security, FAO will organize technical consultations on small-scale rural aquaculture and possibly a major conference in Africaaimed at outlining a strategy for the development of aquaculture there.

Numerous other activities were flagged for FAO action in the Sub-Committee's final report as well, including:

·  Capacity building programs that will help governments strengthen efforts to monitor and improve the safety of aquaculture products.

·  Technical support to help countries conduct environmental impact studies of proposed aquaculture operations and better handle the introduction of non-native exotic fish species by fish farmers.

·  Studies on the emerging practice of tuna fattening and its environmental consequences.

·  A case-study based-analysis of the environmental and social impacts of different kinds of aquaculture operations for use in long-term planning by governments.

·  An in-depth report on aquaculture's future trajectory and the related policy issues that will need to be resolved. "It is FAO's job to help feed the world's hungry," Subasinghe said. "This body and the recommendations it produces sharpen our efforts, and help us move forward towards that goal."

Jiansan Jia, chief of FAO's Inland Waters and Aquaculture Service, noted that aquaculture's contribution to feeding the hungry will become increasingly important in years to come. Some projections suggest that captures by traditional wild fisheries will stagnate within the next 30 years, he said. "Aquaculture is really the only way to meet the gap between supply and growing world demand for fish to eat."

More information available from, George Kourous, FAO Information Officer, george.kourous@fao.org, (+39)0657053168

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Post your Student placement and MSc/ PhD vacancies on WWW.PISCESTTJOBS.COM

PISCES TT Jobs, an exciting and valuable free online service provided by AquaTT UETP Ltd. to employers and potential employees in aquaculture and related science sectors, was launched on 20th May, on the web at www.piscesttjobs.com. Using a secure and innovative site format, employers and job searchers can post job vacancies and CVs, respectively, thus facilitating human resource development in the industry.

"PISCES TT Jobs is a resource to connect employers with qualified candidates specifically interested in pursuing work in aquaculture or related sciences," said David Murphy, AquaTT Manager.

Upon registration, companies can post and instantaneously edit job vacancies, including permanent, temporary, MSc/PhD and student placement positions. Companies will only receive CVs of those applicants who are qualified for the position requirements. To ensure privacy and lessen the hassle of unsolicited calls and queries, company/organisation contact details will not be published online.

Prospective employees can use the online registration facility to obtain a username and password, post and edit their employee profile, upload a CV and apply online for positions.  

If you are interesting in posting a job vacancy or registering for the service, please contact erin@aquatt.ie.   

AquaTT, the European Network for Education and Training, is providing the site as an additional service to compliment their flagship project, PISCES TT, found on the web at www.piscestt.com and host to a comprehensive education database, occupational profiles, virtual tours, a discussion forum, and marine sciences activities for children.

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Wanted – Photos of the lifecycles of several species
AquaTT is seeking some good quality photos for a series of educational posters being produced as part of the PISCES project. The Life Cycle Posters will graphically represent the various stages of the wild life cycle of the species depicted. These will either be graphics or a series of linked photographs. This will be the dominant feature of the poster. Each stage of the life cycle will be linked to its stage in commercial aquaculture. Text will be kept to a minimum. Theposters will be simple enough for the public and 2nd level school use and technical enough for 3rd level and professional use. The poster will also contain a graph on production, a map on production areas and some references / contact points for further information.

If a picture or graphic you provide is used in the final poster you will receive 30 complimentary copies of the final poster. (All contributors must sign a disclaimer stating that they own the copyright of all pictures and they licence AquaTT to use the photos free of charge for use only in the lifecycle poster)

Posters to be developed include;

- Life Cycle of the Salmon

- Local Area Management Systems

- Managing Fish Farm Waste

- Life Cycle of the Perch (or Carp)

- Flatfish Aquaculture

- Life Cycle of the Seahorse

- Life Cycle of Seabream/Seabass

- Life Cycle of the Mussel

- Life Cycle of the Oyster

- Cages, Nets and Mooring Systems in Aquaculture

- Aquaculture and Tourism

- Equipment used in Shellfish Farms

- Marine Recirculation

If you have any questions or queries please do not hesitate to get in touch with David Murphy, General Manager AquaTT  e-mail: david@aquatt.ie or John Coleman, Director, AquaTT , Chief Executive, La Tene Maps Tel: +353 1 2847914 or 2823688, Fax: +353 1 2826311

e-mail: johncoleman@latene.com

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Introduction

The European Education Area is developing at a rapid pace. In the coming years education systems throughout Europewill have to adapt to the new structure, curriculum and accreditation of courses.

AquaTT through its extensive network has realised that essential information on upcoming changes is not being effectively disseminated to all parties. Thus, AquaTT is producing this free news service “TRAINING NEWS” specifically for the Aquaculture industry. The newsletter is intended to keep you informed of developments in Education & Training and related areas. Support material will be available on the new European Education Forum website www.piscestt.com . All old Training News will be archived on the piscestt site.

The main target audience for this newsletter is teachers, trainers and students in the aquaculture area but will also be of interest to policy makers, companies and associations.

AquaTT welcomes any feedback regarding content, presentation and user-friendliness of the newsletter. Please forward this mail to any colleagues that may be interested. Please submit any relevant information for dissemination in the newsletter. 

DISCLAIMER: AquaTT provides this newsletter as a free service to interested parties.  Most of the information is provided by AquaTT.  Where it is not, the source of the news is provided in the text of the news brief or else AquaTT attributes the news to the coordinating body as the "Data Source Provider".  In no way does this newsletter, by promoting events not coordinated by AquaTT, intend to wrongly or inappropriately claim projects, news, etc. as its own nor is it responsible for incorrect information provided from other sources.  “Training News” is a promotional tool and forum for both AquaTT and other organisations.

If you have received this e-mail in error or would like to unsubscribe please reply to mail with “UNSUBSCRIBE TRAINING NEWS” in the subject heading.

AquaTT

P.O.Box8989

Dublin2

Ireland

e-mail: aquatt@aquatt.ie

Web: www.aquatt.ie , www.piscestt.com

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