64^th GCFI - Puerto Morelos, Mexico

31 October - 4 November 2011

About Puerto Morelos

Located only 20 minutes south of Cancun on the Riviera Maya, Puerto Morelos is an oasis of tranquility and nature. It is one of the last few remaining authentic fishing villages of the Mexican Caribbean. Close contact with the local community, along with the cultural and natural attractions bring visitors looking for an experience different from that of the principal tourism centers of Cancun and Playa del Carmen.

Puerto Morelos is the oldest fishing community of the Mexican Caribbean, and is a small village bordered by a beautiful beach and a section of the second largest coral reef system in the world. Puerto Morelos also has mangroves, jungle and sand dunes, ecosystems which are pillars of the local economy which is predominantly fuelled by fishing and tourism. Adjacent to the village is the Puerto Morelos Reef National Park, declared a protected area by the federal government in 1998 and measuring 9,066,63.11 hectares. The area covered by the park includes 21km of barrier reef which lines the coast. Rich in biodiversity and well cared for, the Puerto Morelos Reef National Park has ecological, economical, commercial, historical, educational, esthetical and recreational value, which make the area unique in a national context. With a high percentage of Puerto Morelos and the surrounding areas' population dedicating themselves to fishing, tourism and marine research, the economy heavily relies on the conservation and well being of the ecosystem.

Puerto Morelos can be used as a base from which to explore other significant sights in the area, such as a crocodile farm, a botanical garden, archeological ruins and natural underground caves. Activities nearby include spectacular reef snorkeling, diving, jungle hikes and 'cenotes'; natural sinkholes in the limestone crust which reveal the subterranean waters that flow beneath the region… not to mention everything that the Riviera Maya has to offer.

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 the following links for English, Spanish, and French. 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. The PDF file can be downloaded from the page flipping application.

The Venue

The 64^th GCFI conference will be held at the Dreams Hotel in Puerto Morelos. The hotel is all-inclusive including food and drinks.

For hotel reservations please use the Hotel Booking Form and either Fax the form to 011 + 52 + area code + phone number (011-52-998 -872 9201) or email it to: reservations1.drerc@dreamsresorts.com. You must use the hotel booking form to receive the GCFI room discount rate and added benefits. Pleaes read the information on the first page of the form - this will provide critical information about the hotel booking process.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE HOTEL RESERVATION

1. To make a reservation, you must use the form supplied on the website. The online reservation system is not designed to accept GCFI reservations at the negotiated rates and certain additional services will not be provided (e.g. free internet in the rooms)
2. The room cost is in Mexican pesos. As of 15 July, the exchange rate was 11.7187 pesos per USD. To get the most current exchange rate, go to www.xe.com.
3. You will be required to make a deposit of 2 nights at the rate that is shown on the form (2,350 pesos for a single room per night or 1550 pesos for double occupancy all inclusive. With the 15 July exchange rates, this amount is $200.53 USD single occupancy or $132.27 double occupancy. Note that this is an all inclusive rate that includes all food and drinks. Taxes are also included in this rate.
4. GCFI strongly encourages you to use the Hotel Reservation Form because it entitles you to the hotel rate, and benefits that are not available to other guests (e.g. free internet, and access to GCFI special events).
5. In order to ensure that there are no charges against your deposit, you must cancel your reservation at least 20 days in advance.
6. To receive the special rate negotiated by GCFI, you must register with the hotel by October 2.
7. You should receive confirmation directly from the hotel for your reservation. If you do not hear back from the hotel, please follow-up directly with them to ensure that your reservation was received. The hotel phone number is 011 52 998 872 9200. The email address is reservations1.drerc@dreamsresorts.com

For transportation between the airport and the hotel contact:

• Mexotic Travel
• Email:grupos@mexotictravel.com
• or Karen-diaz2010@hotmail.com
• (tel)011-52-998-887-0808
• The cost of transportation is $15 USD each way; double occupancy)

The Program

Keynote Speaker- Dr. Yvonne Sadovy

GCFI is pleased to announce that Dr. Yvonne Sadovy from the University of Hong Kong will be the keynote speaker at the 64th GCFI. Dr. Sadovy has worked on and with coral reef fishes for over 25 years, increasingly focusing on their most vulnerable aspects: threatened species, and life history events vulnerable to fishing, especially spawning aggregations. She obtained her PhD from the University of Manchester in England, with thesis field-work conducted in Puerto Rico on the behaviour of the bicolour damselfish, Stegastes partitus. She continued to work in Puerto Rico, first in the Department of Marine Sciences of the University of Puerto Rico where her focus was on sex change and the red hind, Epinephelus guttatus, and then as Director of the government Fishery Research Laboratory (FRL) in Cabo Rojo, where she developed the scientific research programme. She has maintained a strong connection with the Caribbean largely through projects with the Caribbean Fishery Management Council, currently with collaborations in the Bahamas and Belize on the threatened Nassau grouper, Epinephelus striatus with a focus on its spawning aggregations. In 1993, Yvonne joined the University of Hong Kong where she is a Professor, teaching fish biology, fisheries and mariculture. Much of her work on biology and sustainable fishing is now conducted in the western Pacific and Southeast Asia, both in the field and with fishing communities. She has continued with her interest in the groupers, focusing on the luxury trade in live reef fish, a valuable and important trade with the major demand from southern China. The CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species)-listed Napoleon or Humphead wrasse, Cheilinus undulatus, and its sustainable international trade, is also of major interest as is the use of the Convention generally as a tool for better management of marine fishes.

Yvonne has produced over 100 peer-reviewed and popular articles, co-produced several conservation films, written or co-authored 4 books and been included in many newspapers, TV and radio programmes. Yvonne is Director and co-founder of the Society for the Society for the Conservation of Reef Fish Aggregations (SCRFA) (SCRFA), founder and co-Chair of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Specialist Group on groupers and wrasses and co-founder and co-Chair of the IUCN Marine Conservation Sub-Committee of the Species Survival Commission of IUCN. She is a Board Member and Trustee of WWF-Hong Kong and of Ocean Park-Hong Kong. She also loves to dance salsa.

The title of her keynote presentation at the 64^th GCFI is: "Conspicuous consumption and the hidden costs of luxury seafood"

General Meeting Information

The 64th 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

Integrating Management of Wetlands, Mangroves and Coral Reef Ecosystems for Conservation

This Special session is sponsored by National commission of Protected Natural Areas of Mexico (Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas de México).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 key species. Stressors such as coastal development, overfishing, climate change, and other anthropogenic factors and the lack of a coastal policy can potentially negatively impact 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.

Invasive Lionfish Control and Management

This Special session is sponsored by REEF and NOAA. The presentations are targeted to managers, NGO's, and fisheries officials throughout the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. The session will address relevant lionfish issues emphasizing a range of topics including:  ecological and economic impacts of lionfish; lionfish control strategies and lionfish local and regional management.  If you would like to participate in the workshop associated with this session, please contact the session co-hosts or .

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]

• Air Travel Discount

  
  

  
  GCFI has arranged a 5% discount for people travelling to Cancun on American Airlines for travel originating from any location. The discount is applicable on all fares including discount fares; however, reservations must be made on the American Airlines website. The reduced fare is available for travel from 25 October to 9 November. In order to receive the reduced fare, you must use the following aa.com promotion code when booking your ticket: 95H1BR

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. Electronic ticketing must be issued for all eligible itineraries, otherwise a paper ticket fee will apply.
4. 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.
5. 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.

• Car Rental Discount

  GCFI has arranged a discount with Avis Rental Cars for those attending the GCFI conference in Cancun/Puerto Morelos. 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# B136001 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 (800) 331-1600 or by using this link

  Visa Requirements

  Mexico requires visas for conference attendees from a number of countries. Please visit the Mexican State Department website of your country for more information.