WWW.WA S .ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • SEP TEMBER 2022 55 recorded virtual tours of six successful farms from six Great Lakes states (Fig. 1); therefore, we highlighted two farms per day during the three-day event. We define a successful farm as one that has been in business for more than five years, is the sole source of income for the farmer and continues to make a profit (Engle 2012, Webster et al. 2008). We invited farms with a variety of system types, species and markets to show the diversity of farming success in the region (Table 1). In preparation for the August/September 2021 event, the events team coordinated production of a 15–30-minute farm tour video at each farm during summer 2021. The farm tour videos take the viewer on a tour of the farmwith the farm owner and GLAC interviewers. Our GLADs 2021 live event was hosted over Zoom and began with airing the farm tour video. This was followed by a live interviewwith the farmer and a moderated question and answer session between the audience and the farmer. The live session was not recorded so that farmers would feel more comfortable sharing potentially sensitive information about their business and answer audience questions honestly and candidly. GLADs 2021 had national and international reach, with over 223 registered attendees from 31 US states and 15 countries. The farm tour videos are available on the GLAC website1 and received over 1,550 views during the three months following the event. The Characteristics of Successful Farms in the Great Lakes Region GLADs 2021 offered a unique and valuable opportunity for farmers to open their businesses to other farmers and the public to share their experience and expertise despite the restriction to a virtual event. Although the farms differed by species, system type, and state, some common themes emerged from both tours and the ensuing discussions. These common themes included: 1) farming is a way of life, 2) starting small and growing gradually works well, 3) creativity is a required skill, 4) fish mortality is inevitable, 5) water quality is important, 6) backup systems are critical and 7) maintaining adaptability moving forward is imperative. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to provide a challenging atmosphere for many, including those providing in-person educational programs and outreach. This article describes how the Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative (GLAC)1 incorporated feedback from our first event, Great Lakes Aquaculture Day (GLAD) 2020 (Jescovitch et al. 2021), and aquaculture industry advisory groups to design and deliver our second event, Great Lakes Aquaculture Days (GLADs) in 2021. GLADs 2021 featured six recorded farm tours combined with live farmer interviews to highlight common themes across successful aquaculture businesses of a variety of types in the Great Lakes region. The Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative Formed in 2019 with funding through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Sea Grant Advanced Aquaculture Collaborative Program, GLAC is a three-year project that seeks to foster coordination among the Great Lakes states to support relevant, science-based aquaculture research, education, and outreach. As one of NOAA’s “Aquaculture Hubs2,” GLAC’s ultimate goal is to support aquaculture production in the Great Lakes region that is environmentally responsible, competitive and sustainable. The collaborative’s members consist of industry advisors, researchers and Great Lakes Sea Grant extension educators in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, NewYork, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. One of the unique aspects of GLAC is the development of industry advisory groups in each Great Lakes state to provide regional guidance and feedback on topics for educational webinars and annual events, GLADs. 2021 Great Lakes Aquaculture Days In planning for GLADs 2021, the GLAC annual events committee relied on feedback from state advisory groups and evaluations fromGLAD 2020. This resulted in the theme of GLADs 2021: what are the components of a successful farm in the Great Lakes region? Restrictions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the delivery of an in-person event; consequently, GLADs 2021 was a free, three-day virtual event. Our event featured preLearning from the Best: Virtual Fish Farm Tours with the Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative Lauren N. Jescovitch, Emma Forbes, Elliot Nelson, Titus Seilheimer and Amy J. Schrank ( C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 5 6 ) FIGURE 1. Locations of the farms that participated in the virtual tours and interviews during GLADs 2021. Participating farms represented six of the eight states in the Great Lakes region.
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