WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • JUNE 2018 15 program are too short to provide all the knowledge and experiences that are need to work as an aquaculturist. Also, it is one thing to ensure quality to potential buyers through farm certification, but it is also extremely important to make sure that there are certified professionals who understand what aquaculture is really about. There is a need to establish the basic criteria that have to be met before someone calls him/herself an aquaculturists. Certified aquaculturists would be people who understand the basic principles governing aquaculture, so that they can apply these principles to different situations (species, locations, climate etc.). The professional certification of aquaculturist is therefore crucial for the aquaculture profession. From the World Bank’s prospective, we would like to have some assurance that the people we are talking to know what they are talking about, because aquaculture is a very risky business and it could be worse if people who are working in it do not know exactly what they are doing. I have seen a number of times where people are not just incompetent as aquaculturists, but they are charlatans who make people and banks lose a lot of money and discredit aquaculture as a profession. Again, I think it is a great idea because there has not been any consistent long term international push towards the professionalization of aquaculturists. Rodrigue Yossa: What would be the steps towards the professionalization of aquaculturists? Randall Brummett: There are already a lot of training materials out there, so I would not suggest to reinvent the wheel. The next step would be to establish an organization that will engage with aquaculturists, aquaculture producers, environmentalists and universities to spread professionalism and sustainability in aquaculture through the Certification of Aquaculture Professionals. With this organization in place, environmentalists will save a lot of time and investors/bankers will save lot of money. Rodrigue Yossa: What would you have done differently if you had to restart your career in aquaculture? Randall Brummett: I did not plan my career. I got great advice from people. I read a lot, published as many ideas as I could, and was very lucky to be at the right place at the right time. I would probably go fishing more if I had to restart my career from the beginning. Rodrigue Yossa: What advice would you give to young aquaculturists? Randall Brummett: Stay in the profession even if it is for free; don’t give up aquaculture if it is what you really like to do. Engage with other people working in aquaculture. There is no easy path, no short cuts, but if you read, read, write, write, write, save money to go to meetings, talk with people, you will probably succeed. Be flexible, do not hesitate to take any kind of aquaculture job when you are building your career. Editor’s Note – Dr. Yossa, WorldFish, Penang, Malaysia, can be reached at r.yossa@cgiar.org U.S. AQUACULTURE SOCIETY Sponsored Publications Request for Proposals The USAS is seeking proposals for publications, including books, conference proceedings, fact sheets, pictorials, hatchery or production manuals, data compilations, and other materials that are important to U.S. aquaculture development and that will be of benefit to USAS members. Individuals wishing to have a project considered for funding by the USAS should prepare a proposal — guidelines are available on the website www.was.org. • CONDITIONS FOR PUBLICATION: The USAS Board of Directors will rate proposals and select projects for publication. The successful applicant will serve as co-author; however, depending on contribution to the publication, the applicant may not necessarily serve as chief or sole author. The USAS will cover general publication and distribution costs for one or more projects up to $5,000 each year. However, special consideration will be given to worthwhile projects that exceed this limit. No compensation will be provided to the authors for their time spent in writing the publication. The publication will be property of the USAS and will be sold through the WAS bookstore. • CONTACT: Dr. Eric Peatman • PHONE: 334-844-9319 • EMAIL: peatmer@auburn.edu
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