IFOP and Oikonos sign up a scientific collaboration strengthening agreement
April 30th, 2018
This agreement will focus on seabirds and their interaction with fisheries study.
On April 20th in Valparaíso, a collaboration agreement was signed among (IFOP) Fisheries Development Institute and NGO Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge, which aims to promote joint research activities in areas such as:
Incidental capture of seabirds in Chilean fisheries, including interaction diagnosis, affected bird species demographic studies and mitigation measures proposals.
To promote education and information spread in areas of mutual interest, through seabirds identification training, development of good practices manuals, and conducting studies on fishing communities.
To promote data exchange, information and equipment, and to publish collaborative scientific articles.
Leonardo Núñez, IFOP executive director emphasized that “this type of scientific collaboration agreements strengthen the institute’s function and allow to expand knowledge fields in order to definitively move towards an ecosystemic approach application in national fisheries.”
Dr. Rodrigo Vega, IFOP researcher, referred to this agreement as an opportunity to access information, experience and capabilities of organizations that address complementary research lines to those carried out by IFOP, which is also an innovation in collaboration policies .
On the other hand, Valentina Colodro, Oikonos’s director thanked trust deposited by IFOP in the NGO work done in Chile, expressing interest to collaborate on issues related to seabirds, since they are health indicators of our oceans, and many of them are currently in danger of extinction or other conservation categories. Some species, such as the white fardela, are also found in international agreements that demand us as a country to advance in the understanding of their threats and search for mitigation measures. IFOP is doing an incredible job to start generating inputs to address an ecosystemic management, innovative in South America, I am very proud to be in a dialogue stage and collaboration, contributing our grain of sand in our marine resources sustainable management .
At the end Luis Adasme IFOP researcher stressed out the point that ” signing of this agreement consolidates willingness to work together, and will also strengthen technical and professional capacities, as well as strengthen the connection among both institutions in order to advance in future research demands required by seabirds study and fishing operations interactions. “
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