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GLOBALSEAWEED PROTECT: conserve, improve, innovate, manage and empower for a resilient seaweed aquaculture industry
DEPARTMENT FOR SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
The global seaweed industry is the fastest growing aquaculture sector contributing half of global marine production. Southeast Asia, notably Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia, is the largest producer of red seaweeds that produce carrageenan, a hydrocolloid used in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, worth c. US$14.7 billion and supporting over 1 million livelihoods there. Seaweeds, a low trophic crop, are of huge benefit to Southeast Asia, and unlike finfish/shrimp aquaculture, contribute to enhancing biodiversity. Demand for carrageenan is surging, but seaweed production systems in this region are massively challenged by the lack of genetic diversity, making them vulnerable to pests and diseases. This is compounded by climate change, which is also devastating wild seaweeds and habitats, the source of new cultivars on which the seaweed industry depends. These challenges threatening crop health, the wider environment and the livelihoods of the communities that rely on this industry for income. GLOBALSEAWEED-PROTECT aims to achieve a productive seaweed industry in Southeast Asia by taking a One Health approach. This will ensure that production systems are resilient to climate change, crops are healthy by preventing the introduction and spread of pests and disease, wild seaweed biodiversity and the wider environment are protected and enhanced, improving the long-term livelihoods of farmers and their communities, and providing a model for the rest of the world. The objectives, developed with our partners in Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, are to build capability and capacity in and between countries in i) research innovation, ii) development of resilient crops, (iii) implementation of biosecurity management strategies and tool kits for improving seaweed health, and (iv) engagement with local communities, researchers, governments, industry and NGOs through ‘Sharing Best Practice’ workshops. These objective will be realised through four Work Packages: WP1: Sustain resilient and viable seaweed production systems. WP2: Improve resilience of cultivars to climate change and pest and diseases. WP3: Adapt and build seaweed aquaculture systems that reduce losses of production due to disease, while also improving the health of the commercial crop and the wider aquatic environment. WP4: Empower local solutions to ensure viable and resilient seaweed production systems. The outcomes of new methodologies and knowledge generated from developing climate-resilient seaweed cultivars and how these temperature-resilient cultivars adapt to climate change will have far-reaching applications and benefits for seaweed farming throughout Southeast Asia and beyond. Understanding wild and farmed biodiversity and how seaweed farming and help seaweed-habitat restoration and the wider environment will strengthen production systems and, therefore, be of value to seaweed farmers. Implementing a Global Seaweed Protection Strategy will optimise seaweed health, the ecosystems supporting them, communities reliant on these crops and of value to policy makers. Introducing a Progressive Management Pathway for Improving Aquaculture Biosecurity (PMP/AB), trialling innovative early warning pests and diseases detection methodologies, and working with local communities to achieve a more reliable economy through e.g., crop diversification, will also improve production system health and thus livelihoods. This project will also contribute to the UK Government’s International Development Strategy to re-energise the UN Sustainable Development Goals, notably No Poverty, No Hunger, Gender Equality, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Reduced Inequality, Climate Action, and Life Below Water. Through our collaborations and further development of research networks our proposal will, therefore, have a legacy of cooperation well beyond the lifetime of the funding.
AQUASoS: an integrative scalable interdisciplinary approach for climate resilient sustainable SE Asian aquaculture
DEPARTMENT FOR SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Rivers, seas, and deltas are particularly vulnerable to rising water temperatures, salinization, pollution, and changes in sediment flow due to natural and anthropogenic environmental change. These changes disrupt ecosystems, reduce biodiversity, and threaten food and water security, disproportionately impacting developing nations. We have chosen the Mekong Delta (MKD) in Vietnam to develop our framework approach due to its relevance to the wider SE Asia region aquaculture development for a number of reasons including; 1) scale with more than 80% of national production @ 5 million tonnes, growing at 3.3% pa and a value over $8.9billion, 2) multi-species production and 3) complex one health landscape driving anti-microbial resistance (AMR). Adding to the complexity of developing sustainable aquatic food systems in the MKD is the increasing burden of infectious diseases. Indeed, infectious diseases in Asian and global aquaculture are a major continuous threat to sustainable production representing a ‘wicked problem’. Ongoing research at the University of Stirling coupling pioneering Earth observation technology into a Digital Observatory at the river-to-sea systems scale will be harnessed to build the Aqua System of Systems (AquaSoS). AquaSoS will be designed to address the above ‘wicked problem’. Our inter-disciplinary approach will brings together digital information on the component parts of this complex system to understand the current and projected interactions and influences. We will deliver suite of products and solutions for developing sustainable aquaculture that truly embeds consideration for natural resources (and protection thereof) and the peoples who's lives depend on aquaculture. This will provide a framework to tackle this ‘wicked problem’ across the SE Asia region and indeed globally. A critical component of our approach is the integration of both existing data and future data generation from multiple sources (metagenomics, biodiversity indices, in-situ sensors, satellite etc) into a scalable data formats into a one-stop-shop of information (SoS) accessible to stake holders including, policy and decision makers, scientists and industry to resolve the conflicts between environmental responsibilities and sustainable aquaculture practise and development. AquaSOS brings together a world-leading researcher consortium incorporating critical elements of Earth observation, biodiversity understanding, and one health approaches directly linked to cutting edge health biotechnologies. This is further supported by a network of international experts, with emphasis upon the SE Asian region that is global aquaculture’s powerhouse of production. AquaSoS team members furthermore actively engage with many relevant industry, government and policy bodies, both nationally and internationally, and with public engagement fora, that will provide effective conduits for ensuring the science and solutions developed are communicated effectively and widely to support knowledge sharing and action. Our consortium will use this project to further build upon a ‘SE Asia Woman in Science Research Network’ that promotes and recognises leading women scientists and takes their leadership to build capacity and legacy by providing research collaboration opportunities and career advancement.
Working towards Adaptive and Versatile Environmental Sustainability in mollusc aquaculture (WAVES)
DEPARTMENT FOR SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Mollusc aquaculture produces 20 million tonnes (USD 29.8 billion) live biomass annually, supporting both marginal farming communities and export trade. Asia hosts >95% of activity with bivalves dominating production, primarily oysters, mussels, and benthic clams. These non-fed species offer a ‘low-carbon’ solution to high-quality nutritional security and confer environmental benefits for biodiversity and seawater nutrient status. Molluscs are inexpensive, nutritionally rich and sector expansion can enhance food security in Southeast Asia. Nevertheless, mollusc output as a proportion of aquatic animal aquaculture declined to 20.3% from 30.2% since 2000, with producers facing challenges from climate change and disease, concerns over algal toxins, food safety and reliable access to high-quality seed, and other societal, cultural and commercial pressures. Questions remain as to whether mollusc culture can develop and grow into a sustainable industry, in the face of bottlenecks to seed supply, changes in production and nutritional value resulting from climate change, and commercial pressures from other aquatic food producers. At grow out, diseases and climate impacts present major issues, with a more complete understanding of environmental tolerance of crop species necessary to map the suitability of existing and potential future farm locations. Meanwhile, hatchery technology offers promise for enhancing reliability of supply and providing a platform for future resilience by enabling initiatives such as selective breeding. The WAVES consortium aims to develop capacity in diversified mollusc aquaculture to create system resilience and to promote the sustainability and growth of this sector. To achieve our ambition, four key objectives have been co-developed that place engagement with farming communities and stakeholders at its heart: i) conduct systems mapping of current mollusc production in Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia (clams, mussels and oysters) as models of wider Asia to provide deep understanding for activities, livelihoods and climate change threats; ii) create a systems dynamic model and develop a scenario tool to forecast plausible futures for mollusc aquaculture; iii) generate data to support species diversification for climate resilience, to promote hatchery development for reliable supply of high-quality seed, and to produce safe and nutritious food; iv) iterate and disseminate findings to develop context-sensitive roadmaps for future sustainable expansion of resilient mollusc aquaculture. Our consortium entrains multinational expertise in bivalve aquaculture and physiology, with specialists in microbiology, nutrition, food safety, systems-thinking, climate forecasting, sustainable socioeconomic development, environmental justice and multilevel governance, to genuinely implement systems-scale understanding in forecasting plausible futures for mollusc aquaculture. Beneficiaries include coastal communities where operations are located and people whose livelihoods rely on mollusc farming that are threatened by climate change effects. Development and expansion of mollusc farming, through improved productivity and enhanced natural resource use, will contribute to regional food and nutritional security. Core to our vision is enhancing regional capability and capacity for systems approaches, which will be achieved through collaboration, training and mentorship. The WAVES Consortium seeks to enable the equitable transition of mollusc aquaculture to sustainable systems resilient to the challenges posed by climate change, ensuring optimised use of the natural environment, and with increased output enhancing local food security and nutritional benefit. The project will provide a contextually-relevant fulcrum to stimulate further investment and create a UK-Asia alliance of researchers leading developments in mollusc farming and contributing to UN SDGs 2, 3, 6, 8, 12, 13, 14 and 17.
Early intervention systems for sustainable aquaculture health in Viet Nam and Thailand
DEPARTMENT FOR SCIENCE, INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Early prediction, detection and management of changes in the health of aquaculture are important entry points to increasing production through reduced disease and mortality, resulting in greater resilience and sustainability. This in turn can facilitate food security and poverty reduction across SE Asia where aquaculture makes a significant GDP contribution. Rapid identification of changes in pathogen load, water quality, animal behaviour and feeding can be used as early warnings of adverse health outcomes, with these parameters also influenced by wider climatic fluctuations. However, the level of technologies available for monitoring is highly variable across SE Asian aquaculture systems, with existing methods often focusing on factors in isolation, rather than applying a holistic approach. Additionally, accessibility of monitoring tools to end-users, particularly in poorer regions, can be limited if systems are technologically complex or require significant financial investment. The aim of this project is to support and work alongside farmers in Viet Nam and Thailand to co-develop low-cost, sustainable, early warning monitoring systems of aquaculture health. This will facilitate sustainable resilience to environmental fluctuation, reducing production losses through disease. Systems will be developed around shrimp aquaculture, but with a focus on technologies transferable across species and SE Asia. The long-term impact will provide in-country capacity to predict adverse changes to aquatic animal health and welfare. This will better inform aquaculture practices, reduce disease outbreaks and mortality, improve food security, and therefore enhance economic development. The project will be delivered through the following four objectives: (1) Co-develop novel strategies to monitor and identify physiology and behaviour changes in aquaculture animal health with SE Asia stakeholders. (2) Co-develop low-cost point-of-need sensors for known aquaculture pathogens and nitrogenous waste parameters. (3) Create predictive climate models to identify the scale and impact of weather events, leveraging existing data and new data provided through objectives 1 and 2. (4) Continuously engage with end-users to ensure an understanding of needs and priorities. In working with local fish farming communities, the expected outcomes include a deep understanding of working practices and priorities for the aquaculture farming community, resulting in a fit-for-purpose, easy to use low-cost, sustainable monitoring tool in water quality and potential disease detection. This will be modelled in the context of wider pond and environmental conditions, such that farmers can predict potential problems and react in a timely fashion. As the tool kit includes the development of on-site methods for detecting aquatic pathogens, the link between environmental conditions and disease will also be elucidated. The direct beneficiaries are small aquaculture farming communities, particularly those from low-income households with little access to modern technologies. Through end-user workshops we will promote gender equity and inclusivity across protected characteristics and communities; end-users will be involved in development of monitoring systems and provided with key tools to monitor and predict pond conditions. Greater predictive ability will benefit policy makers and governments through increased resilience and planning in the context of climate change. Technologies developed, while targeted at shrimp aquaculture in Viet Nam and Thailand, have a high transfer potential across species farmed under similar conditions (i.e. many fish species in SE Asia) broadening end-user beneficiaries in the long-term.
The Evidence Fund - 300708
UK - Foreign, Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO)
The Evidence Fund procures and manages research and evaluations that primarily benefit ODA eligible countries. Most research and evaluations paid for by the Evidence Fund are country-specific, and all respond to requests for evidence to inform programme or policy decisions. Primarily serving research requests from HMG’s Embassies and High Commissions in ODA eligible countries, and from HMG policy and strategy teams, the Evidence Fund strengthens the evidence behind the UK’s priority international development investments and development diplomacy. The Evidence Fund also invests modest amounts of non-ODA, to strengthen the evidence behind wider UK foreign policy.
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