Industry forges links with PhD talent pool

AQUACULTURE’S future leaders will meet with industry representatives in a series of seminars designed to find new ways of tackling the sector’s challenges.
Four PhD students from the universities of Stirling, Aberdeen, and Glasgow, as well as the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), will join 11 participants from Scottish companies, including Mowi, BioMar, the Scottish Salmon Company, Scottish Sea Farms, and Dawnfresh Seafoods.
In the first of the two-day seminars, beginning tomorrow in Stirling, the students will learn the skills, tools, and methods to address issues ranging from fish welfare – including the prevention and control of sea lice – to minimising environmental impact.
The Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC), which is part-funding the PhD cohort, will host the inaugural Aquaculture Innovation and Industry Engagement Programme (IIEP) at its offices in Stirling University’s Innovation Park. The subsequent sessions will take place on March 19-20 and April 4-5.
SAIC head of skills and talent, Mary Fraser, said: ‘Our new programme is specifically designed to drive innovation, by forging early links between aquaculture’s future leaders and equipping them with the right skills.
‘Over the course of three months, we want to bring the worlds of academia and industry together to help them learn from one another and understand how they can work in partnership.
‘As well as coming up with new ideas, our participants will look at how to discern workable ideas from the pack, develop and de-risk prototypes, and work with regulators.
‘We’re very encouraged by the level of engagement with the programme – it has proven so popular that it is over-subscribed, underlining the appetite in aquaculture for innovation, learning, and development.’
Picture: SAIC CEO Heather Jones (left) with some of her team