WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • DECEMBER 2017 5 U.S. Aquaculture Society Greetings from the USAS. I hope that everyone is having a productive fall and big plans for a festive holiday season. All involved with the USAS Board and planning committee are hard at work getting ready for the Aquaculture America meeting in Las Vegas, February 19-22, 2018. We hope that you are planning to attend and present your latest work. In addition to the regular meeting, we are planning to have two professional development workshops. The Advanced Aquaponics workshop will be held on February 18 and the Statistics in Aquaculture Workshop will be held on February 19. You can register for these workshops separately or with your AA19 registration on the WAS web site (was.org). In an effort to enhance the theme of the meeting — Shaping the Future: Telling Our Story — we have recruited a professional storyteller as one of our plenary speakers. Texas newspaper columnist Dave Lieber says “stories change the world.” He has been an awardwinning newspaperman for more than 40 years. Now he writes an investigative column for Texas’ top newspaper, The Dallas Morning News. Dave will show us wonderful ways to tell the amazing story of aquaculture. As one of America’s top storytelling experts, Dave will show how to ditch PowerPoint and kill the slides because the power of our own stories, told correctly, can make our movement exceptional. When Dave is done, participants will be able to use his easy techniques right away. After Dave’s plenary session keynote, you will have the option of attending an Aquaculture Storytelling Workshop with Dave to practice your stories. There is a growing consensus that our story is going unheard in Washington, DC. The folks that are regulating aquaculture need more education on what our issues are and how their actions affect the future of our industry. Some of our longtime members have suggested that USAS work with other producer groups to bring our story to DC in the form of a meeting or symposium. If you are interested in working on such an effort, please let us know. We need a unified voice and to turn up the volume to rise above the noise being produced by aquaculture detractors. In addition to Mr. Lieber, we have another exceptional plenary speaker to help us envision the big picture of aquaculture. Dr. Jerry Schubel has served as president and CEO of the Aquarium of the Pacific since 2002. At the Aquarium of the Pacific, Dr. Schubel created the Aquatic Forum. This forum brings together scientists, policymakers, and stakeholders to explore ways of dealing with important, complex and often controversial environmental issues including offshore aquaculture, sustainable seafood and climate change. Dr. Shubel notes, “The aquaculture story needs to be a chapter in the story of the future of food to feed a growing population. To date it has been only a footnote.” He will describe the role the ocean, and particularly mariculture, must play in the future. As this is my last column as USAS President, I want to take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to the Board of Directors and all members. It has been a great pleasure to serve USAS and to work with such a great team of folks. I know that the Society is in good hands with incoming president Dave Straus, whose organizational skills, great attitude and enthusiasm will continue to move the Society forward. We want you to know that YOU are what makes the Society great. Your participation in helping run the Society, serving on committees, judging abstracts, moderating sessions and providing updates on your scientific work is what makes the Society tick. I encourage all of you to get involved at some level to help advance the Society. Perhaps the simplest way to participate is to vote for the incoming officers and board members. I look forward to seeing you in Las Vegas. — David Cline, President CHAPTER REPORTS at the forefront of global aquaculture leadership. I am also thankful for the global network that WAS has become and look forward to that network spreading into new areas. During my recent visit to China on university business, I learned to appreciate the vastness of my President, continued from page 2 aquaculture colleagues there and look forward to greater engagement by them and the rest of my global colleagues and friends. Our 50th anniversary is around the corner in 2019. We have such a vibrant past and so much room to grow. — Bill Daniels, President NEW BOOK IN THE WAS ONLINE STORE Aquaculture: Will it rise to its potential to feed the world? By George S. Lockwood. Aquaculture is the most environmentally sustainable means to feed the population boom that threatens the planet. Will government allow it to do this critically important job? Paperback 199 pages. ISBN: 9781366393340
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