63rd GCFI - San Juan, Puerto Rico
1-5 November 2010
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The Book of Abstracts
GCFI has received numerous comments from our members indicating that they want GCFI to develop policies to reduce our carbon footprint. For this reason, GCFI will no longer be printing a Book of Abstracts for dissemination at the conference. However, we will be providing the Book of Abstracts in page-flipping software with options to download the Book in pdf formats, add notes, translate abstracts, print pages, and many other choices. The Book of Abstracts is available by clicking on this link. Please see the menu on the top of the page to access the many available options. Of course you can print those pages that are most intersting to you. GCFI will continue to provide a printed schedule at the conference. We hope you like this change. Of course, we welcome your comments. -
Travel Information
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Air Travel Discount
GCFI has arranged a 5% discount for people travelling to San Juan on American Airlines for travel originating from any location. The reduced fare is available for travel from 30 October to 8 November. In order to receive the reduced fare, you must use the following aa.com promotion code when booking your ticket: 56H0BJ
About San Juan [From about.com]
San Juan, Puerto Rico, is one of the most historic cities in the New World, first explored and settled within fifteen years after Columbus’ monumental first voyage. It has been the scene of many historic events, from naval battles to pirate attacks. Today, the city is embracing its long and fascinating history and is considered a top Caribbean tourism destination..
Early Settlement
The first settlement on the island of Puerto Rico was Caparra, founded in 1508 by Juan Ponce de León, a Spanish explorer and conquistador best remembered for his quixotic quest to find the Fountain of Youth in sixteenth-century Florida. Caparra was unsuitable for a long-term settlement, however, and the settlers were soon moved to an island a short distance to the east, to the present site of Old San Juan. more»
The Venue
The meeting hotel is the EL SAN JUAN HOTEL & CASINO in San Juan, Puerto Rico. GCFI has negotiated special conference rates for those attendign the meeting. Please see the reservation page for more details.
For reservations, click here.
Please check back for more information.
The Program
Keynote Speaker- Professor Callum Roberts
GCFI is pleased to announce that Professor Callum Roberts from the University of York will be the keynote speaker at the 63rd GCFI. From the University of York website: Professor Roberts' research focuses on human impacts on marine ecosystems. While his interests in marine conservation have blossomed over the years, his field research remains firmly rooted on coral reefs. On the islands of St. Lucia and Saba in the Caribbean, he has studied the effects of marine reserves closed to all fishing. Those studies revealed both the huge scale of human impacts on the sea, and the means of protecting marine ecosystems from such effects. He is now working to gain acceptance for marine reserves more widely, including in Britain and Europe where he is helping fishers to promote the concept within the industry and to politicians.
Callum has served on a US National Research Council Committee on Marine Protected Areas and has also been a member of the Marine Reserves Working Group, headed up by Jane Lubchenco, Steve Gaines and Steve Palumbi at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis in Santa Barbara. With this group he sought to develop a more robust theoretical underpinning for the design and implementation of marine reserves. more»
IGeneral Meeting Information
The 63rd GCFI will be comprised on oral sessions and poster sessions. All oral presentations will be simultaneously interpreted into English and Spanish (French is pending). All oral presenters are required to submit a manuscript for publication in the Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute. The details of the Wednesday afternoon field will be provided when they become available.
Special Sessions and Workshops
Management of Coral Reef Ecosystems for Sustainable Fisheries- This Special session is sponsored by Coral Reef Program of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program. The increasing pressures on coral reef ecosystems require the adoption of more holistic management approaches, such as ecosystem-based management. A basic premise is the link between fisheries productivity and extent and health of the habitats required by exploited species. Stressors such as overfishing, coastal development, recreational misuse or overuse and land-based sources of pollution can potentially affect key habitats. This session seeks contributions that explore management options for protecting/enhancing the extent and health of key habitats supporting fisheries and other ecosystem services.
New and Emerging Technologies for Monitoring of Fisheries and Habitat
This Special session is sponsored by Coral Reef Program of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program. Monitoring is a fundamental source of information to assess change in exploited species, habitat and environmental conditions in response to natural and anthropogenic stressors and management interventions. Yet, monitoring activities are often labor intensive, subject to weather and sea conditions, and limited in space and time relative to the spatio-temporal scales of interest. The goal of this session is to explore new and emerging technologies in acoustics, remote sensing, video and manned and unmanned deep diving technology, etc. that can facilitate monitoring efforts and offer new avenues of assessment.
Invasive Lionfish Control and Management ― This Special session is sponsored by Florida Sea Grant College Program, University of Florida. Presentations are by invitation only and it is targeted to managers, NGO's, and fisheries officials throughout the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. The Workshop will address relevant lionfish issues emphasizing a range of topics including: Lionfish ecological impacts; Lionfish control strategies and Lionfish local and regional management. If you would like to participate on the workshop, please contact the session co-hosts: or .
Development of Sustainable Aquaculture Practices for the U.S. Caribbean ― The NOAA Aquaculture Program and Coral Reef Conservation Program will host the first in a series of invitational workshops aimed at developing environmental guidelines and standards for aquaculture operations sited near coral reef ecosystems. This day and half long workshop will focus on several key goals, including: exchanging available information (e.g., research, monitoring results, model output), identifying knowledge gaps, reviewing permitting procedures, and identification of key elements for development of regional best management practices.
The NOAA will convene a panel of experts to share their expertise on coral reef ecology, aquaculture research and monitoring, best management practices, and environmental standards. This workshop is by invitation only.
Incorporating climate adaptation into marine turtle conservation: capacity strengthening for planning and implementation ― Marine habitats and biodiversity across the Caribbean are highly vulnerable to climate change. Consequently, there is an urgent need to build climate adaptation capacity in the region and to implement adaptation measures locally, at sites of regional biodiversity importance. Such measures may then serve as models for similar action elsewhere. We are offering a two-day certified training workshop to prepare institutions for incorporating climate change adaptation into their ongoing conservation programs. The workshop unites the technical expertise and active regional support of WWF and WIDECAST and will focus on marine turtles and the coastal and marine habitats they depend on.
The workshop is geared towards marine turtle conservationists and marine protected area practitioners and will involve a combination of presentations, discussion, group exercises and practical field training. Topics covered will include: monitoring, vulnerability assessment, selecting and prioritizing adaptation options and communicating climate change. All participants will be presented with an Adaptation Toolkit that includes interactive tools, manuals and software to assist participants in moving forward with addressing climate change in their own programs.
Registration for this workshop is required and places are very limited. If you are interested in attending, please contact .
Spawning Aggregation Activities Sponsored by The Society for the Conservation of Reef Fish Aggregations
The Society for the Conservation of Reef Fish Aggregations (SCRFA) was formed in 2000 to promote responsible stewardship of reef fish spawning aggregations. Our work seeks to highlight the vulnerability of reef fish spawning aggregations to fishing, and the need for their better protection and management.
Building on our long association with the annual meetings of the GCFI, we are very pleased to announce two events that we are sponsoring on reef fish spawning aggregations. The first is a half-day presentation session on aggregations. While the primary focus of the talks will be the Caribbean and tropical western Atlantic, interesting and instructive examples will also be presented from ongoing work in the Indo-Pacific, where many of the challenges faced are similar.
Following on from the presentations, we will run a 2-hour workshop (with nibbles and drinks!!) to develop an outreach strategy to improve adoption and effectiveness of aggregation management and protection measures in the Caribbean. We believe that much remains to be done in this area and would value the opportunity to develop some ideas with those interested in this important issue and map out a way to make some real progress (Contact: ).
[click here for more information about the spawning aggregation session]
1. SPAWNING AGGREGATION SESSION
2 November 2010: half-day afternoon session with 12 speakers covering biology, monitoring and management of spawning aggregations and presenting a range of new ideas and perspectives.
2. GCFI WORKSHOP THEME AND GOALS
Title:
Fish Spawning Aggregations: Outreaching Further
Time:
2 November, 2010, 1730 to 1930
Location:
Same room as FSA session
Moderator:
Martin Russell
Structure/format:
A social round table discussion, with drinks and nibbles available.
Issues to be discussed:
Opportunities for Students
A number of opportunities are available to help support travel for students including the GCFI Student Travel Awardsand the Ron Schmied Scholarship. Students are also eligible to compete for the 2 awards for Outstanding Achievement. These awards are granted to the best presentations at the annual meeting and the winners are awarded travel to the subsequent meeting of the GCFI. [info]
- The percentage discount can be booked on-line at www.aa.com for AA/AE flights only. Use the authorization number noted above as the aa.com promotion code. Certain restrictions apply.
- Tickets may be purchased by calling AA Meeting Services at 1-800-433-1790. For AA ticketing the form of payment must be money order, certified/cashier check, valid credit card and a separate ticketing fee will apply.
- Electronic ticketing must be issued for all eligible itineraries, otherwise a paper ticket fee will apply.
- Other airline segments must be ticketed separately unless otherwise noted in contract. - AADVANTAGE members may accrue mileage on American Airlines for tickets purchased at contracted rates. For the rules of mileage accrual on partner airlines, please check with the AADVANTAGE Department.
- Electronic and Monetary upgrades to Business or First class are allowed after ticketing. Certificate award upgrades to Business or First are allowed based on AADVANTAGE certificate guidelines.
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Car Rental Discount
GCFI has arranged a discount with Avis Rental Cars for those attending the GCFI conference in Puerto Rico. Rates can be obtained using the Avis Worldwide Discount (AWD) number that is assigned to GCFI to receive the best available rates from Avis. AWD: G027999 The group discount number is designed to shop the best available rate, includes unlimited mileage and is available from seven days before to seven days after the event. Reservations should be made by calling Avis directly at (888) 754-8878 or by using this link
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Visa Requirements
The. U.S. requires visas for conference attendees from a number of countries. Please visit the U.S. State Department visa webpage for more information.