Bridging Fish, Fisheries Science, and Conservation Across the Americas

Are you interested in fisheries science, management and conservation throughout Latin America and the Caribbean? If so, you are invited to the Latin America and the Caribbean Fisheries Congress that will address freshwater and marine systems through science presentations, training opportunities, student events, and much more.

A wide variety of topics will cover marine, estuarine, and freshwater fisheries management; commercial, subsistence, and sport fishing; cultural and historical roles of fish and fisheries; impacts on water and fish populations from energy, resource extraction, and land use; native and nonnative fisheries; the intersection of traditional cultural knowledge and western research practices; and the role of the many publics who rely on or enjoy aquatic resources.

If you are interested, the Latin America & Caribbean Fisheries Congress (LACFC) Program Committee invites proposals for symposia, pre-conference workshops and continuing education courses, and innovative sessions that support the theme and look to advance the fisheries profession.

“From the small island streams of the Caribbean to the powerful rivers of Central and South America, one can find beautiful fish with fascinating life histories. The fish scientists in these regions face a multitude of challenges, yet succeed in incredible ways in protecting, conserving, and managing these fish for the benefits of food sustainability, biodiversity, and aquatic habitat quality. The Latin America & Caribbean Fisheries Congress will showcase that incredible science for the benefit of communication, collaboration, and inspiration.”

Patrick Cooney, Past President of the International Fisheries Section of the American Fisheries Society

Symposium proposals:

Symposia are the scientific centerpiece of the Congress. The LACFC Program Committee is seeking proposals for half-day, full-day, or multi-day symposia. The committee is soliciting proposals that cover the full breadth of  topics related to fisheries management and conservation in the Latin America and Caribbean region.  This can include freshwater and marine systems of all types. 

Symposium organizers will be responsible to prepare proposals, coordinate with the program committee as the program is developed, solicit presentations for the sessions, approve/deny the inclusions of additional abstracts from the general abstract submission, communicate with speakers, and identify moderators for the live session.

Submission of symposium proposals through the portal

Symposium organizers will need to submit their final symposium proposal to the LACFC symposium submission portal.  Proposals can be submitted here.   The final symposium submission deadline is October 1, 2022.

Innovative Sessions:

The Program Committee encourages organizers to submit creative proposals for sessions that utilize and engaging design, approaches, and formats. These proposals could include lightning/speed presentation sessions, slam sessions, or other interactive and non-traditional sessions. Innovative session proposals can be submitted here. 

Workshop/Continuing Education proposals:

Pre-conference continuing education courses will be offered onsite as half-day or full-day sessions on Monday, May 15, 2023. Courses should be designed to offer in-depth professional development that is of interest to a variety of participants, ranging from students to professionals. It is also acceptable to propose sessions for specific audiences.  Submission of proposals for workshops and CE can be done here.

A hybrid meeting model

We recognize that there will be people interested in the LACFC but unable to travel.  In order to provide access to the LACFC content we will employ a hybrid meeting model to support virtual participation.  This will include the following features:

• All presentations will need to provide a recorded version of their talk or poster 7-days prior to the opening of the Congress.  This will allow the organizers to share all material on the Congress website and meeting platform and provide access to all material to all registrants.
• The Plenary Sessions will be live-streamed to all registrants as well as recorded and placed on the Congress website.
• Registrants will be able to submit questions to all presenters and establish dialogue with any other meeting attendees through the meeting platform and app.
• Symposium organizers will be offered the opportunity to host online discussions of their presenters and registrants.
• Session organizers will be allowed the option of playing recorded presentations as part of their session.  We recognize that this is preferable in some cases to provide for a more cohesive set of presentations.  Others prefer to only access recorded presentations through the website or meeting app.
• What this does not include:
  • We will not be including remote, live presentations as part of sessions (e.g. use of Zoom).  Limited and unreliable internet connections make inclusion of such remote presentations unworkable and costly.

Proposal Submission and Requirements:

All final proposals need to be submitted  in English through the online portal. Proposals will be reviewed, and the Program Committee may request revisions or collaborations to reduce overlap in topics and strengthen offerings. Organizers will be notified regarding the status of their proposals by October 15, 2022.

Proposals will be asked to include the following information:

1. Session Type: Symposium or innovative session
2. Intended length: 1 block, half-day, full day, 2 days
3. Session Title
4. Organizer(s): Name and contact information, submitting organizer will be the point of contact
5. Description: A brief description of your session that will be included in the online program (150 word limit)
6. Session abstract: Abstracts will be limited to 350 word and 2,500 characters.

For More Information, please contact the following:

Learn more about the event: https://fisheries.org/2022/06/latin-american-and-caribbean-fisheries-congress-to-convene-fisheries-professionals-from-underrepresented-regions/

For questions on symposium submissions, please contact:

Norman Mercado Silva (norman.mercado@uaem.mx) or Miguel Garcia Bermudez (mgarcia@fisheries.org)

For questions on Professional Development and Continuing Education, please contact:

Lauren Maza (lmaza@fisheries.org), Claire Coiraton (claire.coiraton@ecowb.org)  or Eva Salas (evasalas@fishbio.com)

For technical questions or problems with submitting a symposium abstract, please contact:

Tricia Fry (tfry@fisheries.org)