News and events
Aqua-tnet News is no longer being published. For latest news about training opportunities and project outputs please see AquaTT Training News
AQUA-TNET Presented at ISAFE2
John Bostock presented the AQUA-TNET project at the recent Second International Symposium on Aquaculture and Fisheries Education (ISAFE2) in Shanghai, China (22-24 April 2015), reflecting on some of the lessons learned coordinating the project for 3 years. Slides from the presentation are available via Slideshare. The potential for stronger links between Asian and European programmes and initiatives was particularly stressed, with innovation being a key means of mobilising funding support.
Digital Teaching Skills Workshop Interviews
A selection of interviews recorded by Clive Dove at the Aqua-tnet Digital Teaching Skills Workshop held in Malta in June 2014 is now available on the workshop page, and for your convenience - right here!
AQUACASE Teaching Resources Website Launched
The AQUACASE website has been under development throughout the AQUA-TNET3 project as the key output from Workpackage 1. It provides a set of aquaculture business case studies that can be used for a wide variety of aquaculture teaching. These describe real operations with supporting photos and videos. There are also presentations of aquaculture in different European countries and teaching materials that use these resources. More recent additions include teaching materials on project management, data management and scientific communications. A guide is also available for a full 5 ECTS course "Open the Door to European Aquaculture" which is expected to be integrated into future higher education programmes. Initial testing of the materials has been carried out, but more feedback is welcomed to help guide future development
Presentations at Aquaculture Europe 2014
Presentations made by Marieke Reuver and John Bostock at Aquaculture Europe 2014 are now available here
Aquaculture International - Special Edition
Aqua-tnet partners have been busy working on a set of articles to be published in a special edition of Aquaculture International (Springer). As these are finalised they are being made available as "Online First" articles on the SpringerLink website.
Aqua-tnet Videos on YouTube
The retrospective video on the Aqua-tnet project that was produced for the 2014 Annual Meeting is now available on the Aqua-tnet YouTube site. A series of more forward looking interviews with Aqua-tnet members have also been posted together with the opening presentation on aquaculture in Malta.
Digital teaching skills workshop material
The materials from the two-day Digital skills workshop (24-25th June) are now available via the link. Please also use our Facebook Group, the Twitter hashtag #aquatnet, and the Diigo Aqua-tnet group to stay in touch with latest updates, links and discussions.
Annual Meeting 2014 Concludes Successfully
The Annual Meeting and Digital teaching skills workshop have concluded successfully in Malta. The presentations have now been uploaded to the meeting web page
Annual Meeting 2014 Programme
The final programme for the Annual Meeting on 26-27th June in Malta has now been published and information made available on the preceding two-day digital skills workshop (24-25th June). Please also use our Facebook Group and the Twitter hashtag #aquatnet, to stay in touch with latest updates and discussions.
Aqua-tnet participation in EATiP meeting
The Annual Meeting of the European Technology and Innovation Platform (EATiP) was held in Brussels on 3 – 4th April. This was attended by several Aqua-tnet members and included a presentation from John Bostock as Coordinator. There was lively debate about how EATiP can work effectively with all stakeholders and with other projects and platforms to enhance efficiency and effectiveness of research and knowledge sharing activities. It was appreciated that Aqua-tnet is a key asset for the sector in the area of education, training and lifelong learning. Details of the meeting and the presentations that were made are available at http://www.eatip.eu/Default.asp?SHORTCUT=631
Workpackage 1 meet in Stirling
Members of the Workpackage 1 working group met at the University of Stirling in Scotland over the 25th and 26th of March 2014. The main aim was to design a course on European aquaculture that uses the resources developed on the Aquacase website and facilitates collaboration between Aqua-tnet member institutions. The course will also enable lifelong learners with an interest in aquaculture but no formal background to participate.
Annual Meeting 2014
The final annual meeting of the Aqua-tnet III project is planned for 26-27th June in Malta. This will be immediately preceded by a two-day digital skills workshop to help participants adopt some of the latest ICT tools in their teaching (24-25th June). Further information will be available on the AE2014 page
Steering Committee meet in Amsterdam
A meeting of the Aqua-tnet Steering Committee took place on 13-14th January 2014 in Amsterdam. Agenda topics included progress on project deliverables, plans for the annual meeting scheduled for June 2014, and strategies for ensuring the sustainability of the network and activities beyond the current EU LLP Erasmus funding.
First Erasmus+ call issued
The first call in the new EU lifelong learning programme "Erasmus+" has been launched. From the Erasmus+ website: "Erasmus+ aims at boosting skills and employability, and modernising Education, Training and Youth work. The seven year programme will have a budget of €14.7 billion. This represents a 40% increase compared to current spending levels and shows the EU's commitment to investing in these areas. Erasmus+ will provide opportunities for over 4 million Europeans to study, train, gain work experience and volunteer abroad. In addition to providing grants for individuals, Erasmus+ will support transnational partnerships among Education, Training and Youth institutions and organisations to foster cooperation and bridge the worlds of Education and work in order to tackle the skills gaps we are facing in Europe. Erasmus+ brings together seven existing EU programmes in the fields of Education, Training and Youth; it will for the first time provide support for Sport. As an integrated programme, Erasmus+ offers more opportunities for cooperation across the Education, Training and Youth sectors and is easier to access than its predecessors, with simplified funding rules."
Workpackage 3 meet in Trapani
A very successful WP3 (Aqua-tnet on the move) meeting was hosted in Trapani, Italy, by Concetta Messina and Andrea Santulli from the University of Palermo on 29 November 2013. A core element of the discussions was the Aqua-tnet Education Gate, our one-stop-shop for education in our fields, which will see a revamp in the new year. The intention of the group is to increase involvement from companies, research centres, industry, and especially those students, researchers and professionals who wish to move throughout the EU to undertake aquaculture and fisheries related training opportunities.
Workpackages 4 meet in Aberdeen
WP4 (Generic skills for future success) met on 27 November 2013 to discuss generic training needs within aquaculture education and particularly to work on three sets of course materials which will be made available through the Aqua-tnet project. These cover project management, data handling and analysis, and writing and communication skills. Aqua-tnet members will be able to draw on these materials for their own courses, or to collaborate to create virtual classes so that their students can learn together.
Workpackage 5 meet in Frankfurt
Members of the working group on innovation in lifelong learning (workpackage 5) met at the NH Airport Hotel in Frankfurt on 16-17th September 2013 to drive forward plans for project workshops and publications. They were also joined by representatives from workpackages 1, 2 and 6 to work on cross-workpackage issues such as the use of innovative learning approaches in PhD level training.
Aqua-tnet is now on Google+
If you are a user of Gmail and Google+ you can now connect with the Aqua-tnet project for updates and discussion using this link:
Aqua TT training course on Research Project Management
Aqua TT is running a short course on managing research projects from 22nd to 24th October 2013 in Dublin, Ireland. This practical three-day training workshop provides participants with (i) an understanding of the lifecycle of EC-funded research projects, (ii) a skillset to increase their ability to efficiently project manage their work, and (iii) the opportunity to apply these skills to real issues that occur in research projects.
Aqua-tnet page on Scoop.it!
There is now an Aqua-tnet page on the Scoop.it! news site. This mixes updates about the project with relevant items on aquaculture, education and training from around the web. There is also a facility for anyone with a Scoop.it! account to add comments to any article. If you find our monthly newsletters too infrequent and don't like using Facebook, this could be the service for you!
Aqua-tnet presentations at Aquaculture Europe 2013, 9-12 August 2013, Trondheim (Norway) (updated)
At Aquaculture Europe 2013, the work and achievements of Aqua-tnet were clearly visible as there were 2 oral presentations on Aqua-tnet. WP1 leader Odd Ivar Lekang presented ‘AQUACASE 3.0 – an innovative way to create interaction between academia and the industry’ during the Interact special session. WP7 leader Marieke Reuver presented ‘Aqua-tnet: networking, innovation and aspiration’, at the Communication & Transfer session. Previously the EAS Student Group hosted a student workshop featuring an introduction to Aqua-tnet and presentations by Magdolna Trenovszki (WP6), Marieke Reuver (WP7), Michael Moulton (WP1) and Margaret Eleftheriou (WP5).
In addition to these presentations and special sessions, AquaTT maintained a dissemination table at AE2013 receiving many visitors.
EATIP Annual Meeting 2013 (updated)
The European Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Platform has now been officially recognised as a European Technology Platform as a forum for developing strategic research and innovation plans for public and private sector support.
The fifth EATIP Annual General Meeting took place from 10-11th September 2013 in Brussels including a presentation on Aqua-tnet and a presentation on ESCO. Further details from the EATIP website.
AQUAEXCEL - Specialist short training courses for aquaculture researchers
The EU funded AQUAEXCEL project is now inviting applications for a further two specialist training courses. The first - "Contribution of genomic approaches to the development of sustainable aquaculture for temperate and Mediterranean fish" will be held in Rennes, France, from 16-18 October 2013. The second - "The application of chromosome set manipulations and the importance of gamete collection and management in aquaculture" will be held in Stirling, UK, from 18-22 November 2013. Further detail and application forms are available from http://www.aquaexcel.eu/training_courses/
European Parliament publish draft report on "Rethinking Education"
The European Parliament have published a draft response to the Communication from the European Commission (COM(2012) 669 Final) "Rethinking Education: Investing in skills for better socio-economic outcomes". The tone is very supportive and stresses again the need for more creative partnerships between industry and different education and training providers and improved focus on flexible lifelong learning.
FEAP Annual Report Published
FEAP has published its 2012 annual report. As last year this edition also gives a comprehensive overview of European fish farming and the issues affecting its development. Several case studies provide reference points, showing how the sector can react and develop.
The report highlights different issues that reflect the needs and concerns of the profession, combining technical, legislative and strategic topics, each of which affects how European fish farming can develop in the most sustainable way, including economic, environmental and social considerations.
New YouTube Playlists
YouTube has become the most popular platform for sharing video and there is now a wealth of resources that are valuable for learners including many in our field of aquaculture, fisheries and aquatic resources management. The Aqua-tnet channel on YouTube has a growing number of playlists that should be of interest to both students and teachers. If you have video material on YouTube that you would like to see featured in this way, please send us a link via the "Contact Us" menu item at the top of this page.
Journal Links Page Added
A new Academic Journal Links page has been added to the site with the aim of making research as accessible as possible for learners of all ages. You can click through to individual journals to see tables of content for current and past issues and read open access articles directly (or others if your organisation has a subscription). You are also encouraged to make use of RSS feeds so that you are alerted to the latest content through your browser or e-mail client.
Aqua-tnet at LINQ 2013, 16-17 May
The Aqua-tnet project was presented at the Learning Innovations & Quality Conference in Rome on 17th May 2013 by John Bostock (Coordinator). The presentation slides are available via SlideShare.
Aqua-tnet Annual Event 2013, Istanbul (Turkey), 13-14 March
The Aqua-tnet Annual Event 2013 was successfully held and presentations are now available on the event page via the link above.
Aqua-tnet @ AQUA2012 in Prague (1-5 September 2012)
Aqua-tnet was represented at the AQUA2012 event, which was held in Prague from 1-5 September 2012. The abstract "Aqua-tnet: taking European education to the next level" had been accepted for an oral presentation, and was presented by Marieke Reuver at the "Education, Extension, and Technology Transfer" session. Aqua-tnet coordinator John Bostock gave a presentation on "The aquaculture knowledge economy: boom or bust?" at that same session.
The EAS-Student Group held a workshop on Student Professionalism and Development. More information can be found on their website.
For more information please contact marieke@aquatt.ie
Aqua-tnet on Facebook
If you are a Facebook addict, or just an occasional user, you can keep up with the latest events, discussions and photos about aqua-tnet in our new Aqua-tnet Facebook Group. You will need to join the group to see the posts and add your own updates.
Blog and LinkedIn Discussions Launched
As a way of enabling broader and deeper discussion on topics relevant to Aqua-tnet members we have launched a Blog page where members are welcome to raise a topic for debate or give a personal view (Link also in top menu bar). The page has links to the internal Discussion Forum, and also to a new Aqua-tnet Discussion Group on LinkedIn. To access the latter you will need to have a LinkedIn account and will need to apply to join the group. We look forward to seeing you there.
Internship Opportunities
Aqua-tnet has been approached by several talented and motivated young individuals from around the world looking to work as interns in renowned businesses. Internships are not only an excellent way for graduates to gain new skills but are also a way for companies to gain access to fresh ideas and new ways of looking at things. Interns can greatly increase your company's productivity and provide a means of finding potential full-time candidates.
Information on candidates interests and contact details will be made available at http://www.aquatnet.com/index.php/167/internships/.
If you are a graduate and would like to post your request for an internship please complete the template and email to info@aquatnet.com.
Please check the calendar for all upcoming events
Aqua-tnet is the European Thematic Network in aquaculture, fisheries and aquatic resources management (more)
