71st Annual conference of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute (GCFI 71)

The 71st Annual conference of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute (GCFI 71) will be held in San Andres, Colombia from 5–9 November 2018 at The Royal Decameron Isleño Hotel.

Conference theme 

We’re pleased to announce that the Corporation for the Sustainable Development of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina (CORALINA) is hosting the GCFI 71 conference. The Archipelago of San Andres is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Colombia and the Caribbean, with coastal areas and coral reefs supporting substantial beach visitation, dive tourism and sport fishing. In recent years, the archipelago has seen a sharp increase in tourism from around 600,000 visitors in 2012 to more than 1,000,000 visitors in 2017.

While tourism can provide considerable economic benefits for communities, it places pressure on fisheries resources and the marine and coastal environments. Tourism growth can be managed sustainably to address these impacts and at the same time optimize visitor experience, maximize local livelihoods and tourism sector income, and reduce poverty in local communities.

The theme of this year’s conference is “Tourism in the Caribbean: challenges for the management of fisheries and coral reef ecosystems”. We will bring together experts, academics, policymakers and managers, and relevant organizations interested in marine issues, natural resources, sustainable fisheries and tourism to focus on this theme. We encourage presentations on topics including:

• Fisheries supply for the tourism industry
• Impacts of tourism on small scale and subsistence fisheries
• Food security
• Recreational fishing as a tourism activity
• Tourism as a sustainable livelihood option for fishing communities
• Tourism in marine protected areas
• Strategies for tourism management
• Climate change and tourism

Registration

GCFI 71 includes technical sessions, the Fisheries for Fishers forum, special thematic sessions, a poster session, the CINEFISH film festival, field trips and social events.

Registration can be completed online at this link. Early registration (until 30 September) for the meeting is US$185 ($85 for students); late registration after 30 September is US$225 ($100 for students). Registration at the door is US$250. Check the GCFI website (www.gcfi.org) for registration rates for daily participation.

Onsite registrations may be made with a credit card, check, money order, or US currency. Other arrangements may be made by contacting [email protected].

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS FOR TECHNICAL, SPECIAL AND POSTER SESSIONS

Abstracts for GCFI 71 are due 15 August 2018. Abstracts will be accepted in English, French, and Spanish. ALL ABSTRACTS MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY ENGLISH, SPANISH AND FRENCH TITLES. Abstracts are only required in one of the three languages; titles must be in all three languages.  Abstracts must not exceed 250 words (275for Spanish and French). Abstracts must be submitted using the secure online abstract Submission Form.

Acceptance to present within an oral session requires submission of a full and complete manuscript or extended abstract in the proper format (MS Word and jpg or PowerPoint figures).  Poster presentations do not require submission of a manuscript although they are enthusiastically accepted. However, students wishing to compete for the student awards and who are presenting an oral OR poster presentation are required to submit a manuscript for publication in the GCFI Proceedings at the meeting. Manuscript preparation guidelines are available online (pdf).

The Book of Abstracts will be available online in page-flipping and PDF formats. No printed Book of Abstracts will be distributed at the conference.

Authors of accepted presentations will be notified via e-mail by early September 2018. Time limitations necessitate that not all submissions for the oral competition will be accepted for oral slots. Submissions intended for the oral competition not granted an oral slot will automatically be entered in the poster competition.

Special session on Coral Reefs and Associated Ecosystems in a Changing Climate in the Framework of the 2018 Third International Year of the Reef.

Session duration: half day

Organizers: UN Environment-CEP, SPAW-RAC and Gulf Caribbean Fisheries Institute, Conveners: Ms. Lucie Labbouz (SPAW-RAC); ([email protected]); Ms. Ileana Lopez (UN Environment-CEP). This session is sponsored by UN Environment-CEP, SPAW-RAC, and GCFI.

The United Nations Environment Programme, through the Caribbean Environment Programme (UN-Environment–CEP) and its Regional Activity Center for the Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife Protocol (SPAW–RAC) of the Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment of the Wider Caribbean Region (Cartagena Convention), is pleased to host a technical session on “Coral Reefs and Associated Ecosystems in a Changing Climate”, to be held at GCFI 71 Annual Meeting. The session will be considered as a regional Caribbean contribution to the worldwide activities for 2018 Third International Year of the Reef.

The goal of this technical session is to share with the GCFI community the latest coral reef research results and conservation practices in the Caribbean and will serve as a forum to:

• Share information among decision-makers, scientists, managers, educators, resource users, and students on the value of, and threats to, coral reefs and associated ecosystems
• Promote partnerships among government agencies, the private sector, academia, and the civil society on coral reefs value
• Identify and support the implementation of effective management strategies for conservation, increased resiliency, and sustainable use of these ecosystems
• Promote best practices and sharing of lessons learned.

The technical session will focus on the following themes:

• Monitoring and research on coral reefs biophysical and socioeconomics features, including the work of the Caribbean Node of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN-Caribbean) which aims to strengthen the dissemination and exchange of the best available scientific information on the status and trends of coral reef ecosystems and research needs for their improved conservation and management;
• Restoration, including the work of the Coral Restoration Consortium (CRC) and particularly the results of an increasing amount of coral restorations initiatives, especially in the context of responding to the impacts of natural disasters;
• The socioeconomic context of coral reefs, including the work of the Global Socioeconomic Monitoring Initiative for Coastal Management (SocMon) working on a better understanding of human interactions with and dependence on coastal resources, including the impact of land-based sources of pollution;
• Coral Reefs for a sustainable economy, including the valuation of coral reefs ecosystem services in the framework of developing ecosystem-based management approaches and tools, as well as maintaining and promoting livelihoods associated with healthy coral reefs.