World Fisheries Congress 2024 – 3-7 March 2024, Seattle, Washington, USA

Fish and Fisheries at the Food-Water-Energy Nexus

We look forward to welcoming you to Seattle, Washington for the 9^th World Fisheries Congress from 3-7 March 2024 hosted at the Hyatt Regency Seattle.

Organized through the World Council of Fisheries Societies, every four years delegates from around the world meet to exchange ideas and perspectives about new research, emerging issues, scientific breakthroughs, and governance related to fisheries science, industry, conservation, and management.

Join us in 2024 as we explore the congress theme of Fish and Fisheries at the Food-Water-Energy Nexus. We are preparing a program composed of an opening plenary, general sessions, education workshops, and planned symposia related to sustainability, fish and aquatic ecosystems, fisheries and society, and innovations in fisheries.

As host city, Seattle is an ideal location for an international fish and fisheries conference, with an international airport, a light rail system, and public transportation. Home to several academic, governmental and industry leaders in fish and fisheries sciences, Seattle has a vibrant downtown surrounded by verdant forests, snowcapped mountains, lakes and rivers, Puget Sound, and several National Parks.

Additional details about registration and the congress program will follow shortly. We look forward to welcoming you to Seattle.

Conference Timeline

Session submission open

Session submission closes

Abstract submission open

Abstract submission closes

Registration open

Early registration rates end

Congress begins

September 2022

13 January 2023

10 February 2023

30 June 2023

Summer 2023

31 January 2024

3 March 2024

Join Fisheries Professionals from Around the World

More than 1,200 oral and poster presentations have been submitted from over 70 countries.

Sessions

> Browse all sessions

Flex format / Abstracts closed

Assessing the Status of Inland Fisheries for Policy

Global policy frameworks (e.g., the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, Ramsar Convention, and Sustainable Development Goals) provide opportunities to assess how well inland waters and their ecosystem services are being conserved

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Ecosystem-based Management in Multi-species and Environmentally Dynamic Fisheries

The effects of climate change on marine ecosystems are accelerating and projections indicate that fish production will be further affected within the relatively short term (e.g. 10 years), to the

Flex format / Abstracts closed

Social and Ecological Dynamics of Global Distant Water Fleets and Emerging Policy Opportunities

Despite a recent increase in research on distant water fleets (DWFs), many details regarding their scale and scope remain unknown. Similarly, there is much to learn about their impacts on

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Defining Indicators for the Ten Steps to Responsible Inland Fisheries

The 2015 global conference, Freshwater, fish, and the future – cross-sectoral approaches to sustain livelihoods, food security, and aquatic ecosystems produced a forward-looking call-to-action characterized by the 2015 Rome Declaration’s

Networking event / Not accepting abstracts

The Bloom: A Networking Event for Women and Gender Minorities in Fisheries

Seafood and Gender Equality (SAGE), a leading NGO focused on building gender equality in the seafood sector, hosts a networking group for women and gender minorities in the sector called

Flex format, Hybrid Session / Abstracts closed

Climate Change Impacts on Inland Fish and Fisheries

Freshwater and diadromous fishes are mired in an extinction crisis, and the irreversible loss of biodiversity has consequences for human food security and economic opportunity due to declining inland fisheries

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Making a Case for Ending Bottom Trawling

Bottom trawling is a very common and highly destructive type of fishing gear, imposing significant ecological, social and economic costs. Decisions on trawl fisheries management pose notable policy challenges. During

Flex format / Abstracts closed

Leveraging Fishery-dependent Data in Stock Assessments and Fisheries Management: Working at the Interface of Observer and Electronic Monitoring Data

Fishery-dependent data is used to inform fisheries managers and stock assessments across the globe; however, the types of data collected and the structure of monitoring programs is diverse and best

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Tools, Approaches, and Best Practices for Scaling Sustainable Coastal Fisheries Management

To meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and secure livelihoods for growing coastal populations in a changing world, it is clear that we must rapidly increase the scale and pace of

Expert panel / Not accepting abstracts

Going Beyond Environmental Sustainability: Integration of Social Responsibility into Sustainable Seafood Interventions

Embedding social responsibility into the definition of sustainability has accelerated across fisheries and their supply chains, as human rights and labor issues are increasingly being included as key elements of

Workshop- Half Day

eDNA (Environmental DNA)- technology and its utility in assessing aquatic biodiversity

Time: 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM Environmental DNA (eDNA) assessment is a powerful tool for studying fish biodiversity in rivers, and it has become increasingly important for the management and

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Shark Depredation: Managing a Wicked Problem

This session will explore the challenging issue of shark depredation and current research directions involving researchers and resource managers from around the world. Key focus topics will be identifying the

Workshop- Half Day / Abstracts closed

Using Citizen Science To Solve Gaps In Fisheries Research And Management By Recruiting Anglers To Do The Work

Time: 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM In this workshop, participants will learn how to run a wide range of citizen science programs that can address specific research and/or management objectives.

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Management of Recreational Fisheries Accounting for Social Benefits, Economic Value, and Biological Sustainability

Recreational fisheries can represent a significant source of fishing mortality, have impact on ecosystems, and interact with commercial fisheries and other users of the marine environment. However, the evidence needed

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Addressing Contemporary Fisheries Issues Through Effective Scientist-Stakeholder Collaborations

Fisheries around the world, including in marine and freshwater ecosystems, face a myriad of issues that challenge the long-term sustainability of fisheries resources, fishing industries, and the associated communities. Efforts

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Aquaculture-aided Fisheries Enhancement, Conservation, and Restoration: Towards Responsible Development and Effective Reform

Aquaculture-aided fisheries enhancement, conservation, and restoration initiatives have long been pursued worldwide and are receiving renewed attention in the context of adaptation to global environmental change. Experience with such initiatives

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Mitigating for Dam Effects to Migratory Fish: Balancing Benefits and Costs

Human uses of water—such as for food and energy production—can unintentionally impact aquatic ecosystems and migratory fish species that are valued by society. In particular, the construction and operation of

Symposium / Abstracts closed

The Potential of Digitalization of the Whole Value Chain of the Fishing Sector Towards Sustainability, Quality and Safety

Digitization and advanced tools applied to fisheries, like Electronic Monitoring (EM) or Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM), artificial intelligence, machine and deep learning, data from different sensors or blockchain technologies, have

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Pathways for a Sustainable Co-existence of Offshore Energy, Fisheries and Marine Conservation: From Local Empirical Evidence to Global Perspectives

Offshore wind development is central to planning for renewable energy worldwide and reduction of carbon emissions. Existing, proposed, and planned offshore development overlaps with diverse marine ecosystems, and the effects

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Providing Mobile Tools to Report Activity and Scientific Data for Both Inshore Commercial and Recreational Fishers

This session is intended to explore the challenges and opportunities that exist in providing mobile tools to report activity and capture scientific catch and effort data for both inshore commercial

Hybrid Session, Speed talks / Abstracts closed

Advancing Data-Limited Fisheries Management Implementation through Applied Capacity Building

Across the world, limitations in capacity and data often hinder sustainable management in coastal fisheries. Effective capacity building programs to support these fisheries in developing sustainable fisheries management plans can

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Sustainable Fisheries Management through Innovative Seafood Traceability Solutions

In the fight to ensure that our seafood is safe, legally caught, and accurately labelled, traceability is a critical tool. However, to facilitate broad adoption, seafood traceability solutions must be

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Fish and Hydropower: Impacts, Opportunities, and Constraints

Hydropower is an important source of renewable energy that also contributes important ancillary services related to grid reliability; however, construction, and operation of hydropower facilities can have significant impacts, including

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Participatory Modelling and Stakeholder Engagement for Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management

Ecosystem-based fisheries management requires a profound understanding of the dynamics and feedbacks that occur within ecological systems, the human systems, and at the social-ecological interface. A number of different quantitative

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Technologies, Guidelines, and Policies: An Open Discussion about Recreational Fishing Impacts and Solutions

This session aims to bring together a diverse and vibrant group of speakers from across the globe and create an environment for open discussions about the impacts of recreational fisheries,

Expert panel / Not accepting abstracts

Onboarding Fisheries Scientists to Open Science: Integrating Collaborative and Inclusive Principles into Education, Workforce Development, and Community Management

The world’s fisheries are in a period of rapidly changing ocean conditions; Open Science will help the field adapt by promoting rapid innovation and collaboration to make science transparent, reproducible,

Expert panel, Hybrid Session / Not accepting abstracts

Defining “Destructive Fishing” and Options to Support a Fair Transition to Low-impact Methods

The term “destructive fishing” is widely used across policy, media and academic sectors but with no agreed definition or associated indicators, progress towards sustainable fisheries management and reducing biodiveristy loss

Flex format, Hybrid Session / Abstracts closed

Managing Fisheries in a World of Shifting Stocks: Integrating Biological, Policy, Behavioural, Social and Economic Aspects

This session will convene discussions on current advances in fisheries management adaptation in response to changes in distribution and productivity of fish stocks due to climate change. These changes are

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Approaches for Understanding Recreational Fishers

Understanding recreational fishers is challenging. We united experts in social and ecological sciences to produce an edited book focused on disciplinary and interdisciplinary overviews of attitudes and behaviors of recreational

Flex format / Abstracts closed

Incorporation of Ecosystem Information into Fisheries Management Decisions

Failure to translate ecosystem science into management action can result when information is not conveyed to the appropriate management body or because of the nature of the information or the

Hybrid Session, Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Blue Economy and Its Impacts on Small-Scale Fisheries: Moving Towards Just and Equitable Ocean Use and Protection

A critical challenge facing our growing human population on this primarily ocean-covered planet is how to equitably and justly manage, use, and protect marine resources across local, national, regional, and

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Otoliths and Beyond: Advancing Chemical Tracers in Calcified and Archival Tissues for Sustainable Fisheries

Chemical data stored in fish otoliths and other archival tissues (e.g., scales, shells, fin rays, eye lenses) provide a wealth of information on fish life histories, from natal origins to

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Innovations in On-Demand Fishing

This full-day session will focus on the latest advancements, obstacles, and problem-solving pertaining to on-demand fishing. On-demand, or “ropeless,” systems eliminate static rope in the water column compared to fishing

Symposium / Abstracts closed

Behavioral Ecology Informs the Conservation and Management of Fishes

Behavioral ecology is the study of how the environment and species interactions shape animal behavior to determine the success of individuals, populations, and species. It is a well-developed field with

Flex format, Hybrid Session / Abstracts closed

Status of Fish and Fisheries in the Himalayan Region

Over 1.3 billion people depend on water and the associated aquatic resources in the Himalayan region. The ecosystems of the “third pole” and the animals inhabiting them are threatened with

Hybrid Session, Symposium / Abstracts closed

Enhancing Coastal and Ocean Observing Networks for Ecosystem and Fisheries Monitoring and Prediction

Integrated multidisciplinary ocean observations are a key contributor to understanding ocean processes, variability and changes which have profound implications to support robust climate- and ocean-related forecasts, predictions, and projections to

Hybrid Session, Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

Market-Based Tools for a Global Sustainable Seafood Future: Solutions for Addressing Equity, Inclusion and Transferability

This session will discuss the transferability of tools in the sustainable seafood movement, examining the challenges, successes, lessons learned and unsolved problems of implementers. Experts will discuss how systems designed

Speed talks / Abstracts closed

Management, Governance, Scientific and Socio-economic Attributes Driving Successes or Failures in Meeting Fishery Objectives

Fisheries vary along a wide range of attributes, which may influence the extent to which numerous fishery objectives are met. Some attributes may enable some objectives to be met while

Flex format / Abstracts closed

Learning from Each Other to Build Effective Networks for Innovative and Effective Governance to Sustain Iconic Diadromous Fishes

The complex life history strategies of diadromous fishes, using both ocean and freshwater habitats and often crossing political borders makes them particularly vulnerable to anthropogenic activities. The development of successful

Expert panel / Not accepting abstracts

Enforcement and Observer Programs: An Essential Partnership to Protect Observers, Maintain High-Quality Data, Combat IUU, and Ensure Sustainable Fisheries Management

This session seeks to highlight the essential relationship between fisheries observer programs and enforcement in order to foster the support of observers and ultimately sustainable management of our marine resources.

Flex format / Abstracts closed

Sustaining Human Health for a Sustainable Industry – Making Sense to Make Safer Healthier Fisheries

Sustaining the health and wellbeing of people in Fisheries has never been more important. Mental Health and wellbeing programs, psychological and physical safety programs all require commitment and behaviour change

Round table discussion / Not accepting abstracts

A Synoptic Framework for Assessing Synergies and Tradeoffs between Decarbonization Solutions and Fishery Ecosystems

This session invites participants to apply their knowledge to practical problem solving by contributing to a resource that will guide decarbonization planners and policy makers in harmonizing emissions-reductions objectives with

Workshop- Half Day / Not accepting abstracts

Reckoning with Colonialism in Fisheries: First Steps for Researchers

Time: 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM There is growing recognition that colonialism shapes fisheries sciences and management in contexts around the globe. Calls for justice in fisheries governance require systems-level

Expert panel / Not accepting abstracts

Accelerating Progress: Solutions Through Innovative Technology, Selective Fish Passage and a Dynamic Science-Knowledge-Policy Interface

Fisheries science tells us that we have a fish sustainability crisis. Climate change and decades of human intervention have disrupted the balance of river ecosystems. Clean, renewable energy resources are

Networking event / Not accepting abstracts