Recognition for industry stalwarts
Held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián, highlights included the opening session in which the European Aquaculture Society (EAS) gave its Honorary Life Membership Award to Michael New and its Distinguished Service Award to Yves Harache for their long-term contributions to the development of aquaculture and the activities of the society.
Honorary Life Membership is the highest EAS award and is given to those persons that have had a marked impact on the development of European aquaculture. Since 1981, EAS has bestowed this award on only 10 people, including Eric Edwards, Bernard Chevassus-au-Louis, Peter Hjul, Colin Nash and more recently, Courtney Hough, Pascal Divanach and Patrick Sorgeloos.
The award was presented by incoming President Sachi Kaushik, who expressed his own personal pleasure in the nomination that had been approved by the EAS Board of Directors in 2013. Sachi introduced the awardee by his contribution towards making everyone aware of the well-recognised role of aquaculture in feeding the masses and his deep involvement in breaking frontiers.
Michael New has been involved with EAS for many years, as a member of the Board and as President of the society. He is also a member of the Editorial board of the EAS journal, Aquaculture International. He has been involved in aquaculture for almost 45 years, in both private and public sectors, in many countries throughout the world.
A major action showing his commitment to the cause of aquaculture was by his founding of the NGO Aquaculture without Frontiers (AwF) in 2003, which has been recognised globally for its commitment to help and support small farmers and improve their livelihoods.
The outgoing EAS President Kjell Maroni then took the floor to present the Distinguished Service Award, for individuals that have devoted very significant effort and time to the development of EAS and its objectives. The award had only been presented twice in the history of EAS, but the board decided that the eminent scientist, Yves Harache, who has made significant contributions to the development of aquaculture over the last 40 years – throughout the globe, and from salmon to shrimp – deserved to be its third recipient.
