International Arctic Fisheries Symposium Oct. 19-21 in Anchorage, Alaska

The International Arctic Fisheries Symposium is expected to bring together more than 200 experts from throughout the Arctic in the field of fisheries science and management Oct. 19-21, 2009 in Anchorage, Alaska.

The three-day symposium is designed to initiate international discussions for conserving and managing future fisheries in the Arctic Ocean including managing migratory, transboundary and straddling fish stocks. The symposium will identify current management regimes in the Arctic region and how relevant scientific and fisheries data can be used to inform future management decisions. The symposium will also identify gaps in existing management regimes and potential steps to address those gaps, as well as the need for improved scientific programs to support conservation and management of future Arctic fisheries.

"The Arctic is changing," said Ambassador David Balton of the U.S. Department of State, "and Arctic fisheries are likely to change as well. This Symposium presents a meaningful opportunity to consider these changes and the steps that governments and stakeholders may need to take as a consequence."

The symposium is being organized by the Institute of the North in coordination with the Department of State, the North Pacific Research Board, Oceana, the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council, the University of Alaska School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, the U.S. Arctic Research Commission and other fisheries agencies, non-profit organizations and stakeholders.

Joining Amb. Balton will be fisheries managers, policy makers and scientists from Canada, Norway, Iceland and the Russian Federation. Participants are also expected from other Arctic nations, as well as China, Japan and South Korea.

For more information on the symposium or to register to attend, please go to http://www.nprb.org/iafs2009/ or contact symposium coordinator Ben Ellis at the Institute of the North in Anchorage, Alaska at +1-907-771-2445 or via email at bellis@institutenorth.org.