Suzuette Soomai, PhD Candidate and a member of the EIUI research program, participated in the 41st International Association of Aquatic and Marine Science Libraries and Information Centers (IAMSLIC) Annual Conference, “Blue Growth: Motivating innovations in aquatic information management,” hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in Rome, Italy, on September 7-11, 2015. IAMSLIC is an association of individuals and organizations with a common interest in aquatic and marine libraries and information science. Information management specialists, primarily from academic and research institutes, attended the meeting. The participants shared information on best practices and innovative ideas in fisheries and aquatic information management. The conference program contains the presentation and panel abstracts and a list of participants. This conference was held in conjunction with the 16th European Association of Aquatic Sciences Libraries and Information Centres (EURASLIC) Biennial Meeting.
Suzuette Soomai spoke in a special session on the FAO Global Blue Growth Initiative. Through this Initiative FAO is assisting member countries in conservation and management of fisheries resources while maintaining related economies. The special session also included presentations by fisheries management and data management experts in the Fisheries and Aquaculture Department of FAO.
Suzuette’s presentation, “Advancing the global “Blue Growth” agenda – the critical role of marine information use at the science-policy interface,” outlined the results of her recent doctoral research on the role of fisheries scientific information in decision-making in fisheries management. She highlighted the major findings of three case studies of fisheries bodies – the FAO, the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization, and the Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans. In addition, she described the drivers for the production of information and the enablers and barriers to its use in decision-making in these organizations.
The aim of Suzuette’s presentation was to inform information specialists and practitioners about the complexities of the science-policy interface and challenges in communicating marine scientific information in policy- and decision-making contexts. Understanding the complexities of the science-policy interface can promote the global agenda on “Blue Growth” by ensuring that the best available scientific information is used to achieve conservation and sustainable fisheries management goals.
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