Director's Welcome
Welcome to the Center of Sustainable Seafood Systems! The Center is housed in the multidisciplinary School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering (SMSOE) with faculty from the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, NH Sea Grant, and UNH Extension. The Center was formed with a vision to establish a new paradigm in seafood production that supports the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. While a global perspective is necessary, change occurs at the local level with people. We can rethink how seafood is produced not only in the US, but around the world.
The US has an approximate $16 billion USD seafood trade deficit, with products shipped over the oceans contributing to the carbon footprint. Sustainable seafood produced locally reduces this climate impact and provides jobs that enhance communities. For instance, innovative seafood systems can balance combinations of finfish with extractive species (shellfish, sea vegetables) and echinoderms (sea urchins and sea cucumbers) on land or at sea with positive environmental impact. Products are not only for human consumption, but also animal feed, organic fertilizer, and fuel! Design optimization, however, will require a transdisciplinary approach. Therefore, I am excited to be working in the SMSOE, across two colleges with UNH Extension and Sea Grant. With this structure we can offer broad, applied curriculum in Sustainable Seafood Systems, not only to Biologists, but students with all Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) backgrounds.
Please join us on this amazing journey as we transform our home to be a place where all can prosper. Help us to provide not just jobs, but a way of life where every day our vocation is to help our neighbors, the oceans, and the planet!
David W. Fredriksson
Director of the Center for Sustainable Seafood Systems
School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering
