CDU’s congratulations go to the Darwin Aquaculture Centre at Channel Island, where two staff members, Glenn Schipp and Damon Gore, have been awarded a $10,000 overseas fellowship to study new marine aquaculture technology.
They’re off to the United States, Israel and Scandinavia to look at developments in the field and bring them back to NT.
Darwin Aquaculture Centre is an NT government initiative, which moved into commercial production of (barramundi fingerlings) in 2001 when a large company established at sea-cage farm at Bathurst Island. It's gone ahead in leaps and bounds and production this year from the barramundi farming industry is to top 1000 tonnes.
In what Glenn describes as an “ad hoc” way, CDU has had a long term, cooperative relationship with the Centre through various student training and staff research programs through the School of Science and Primary Industries.
For example, the Darwin Aquaculture Centre regularly takes student placements from the university- particularly from the TAFE VET side of the operation. One of the Centre’s staff is employed under an apprenticeship and is doing his Certificate II through CDU.
Most recently, the Centre’s Evan Needham was part of a joint study tour with CDU, to East Timor with Tania Paul and Shaun McCarthy (funded by the ATSE Crawford Fund). The Centre also cooperates with the University through the occasional supply of juvenile crabs and fish for teaching and research.
On a formal basis, the University has a representative on the NT government’s Ministerial Advisory Committee on Aquaculture in the NT (MACANT).
Professor Chris Austin, who has recently arrived to take up the position of Head of School of Science Primary Industries, has a strong background in aquaculture.
Professor Austin says he’s looking forward to further strengthening the relationship between CDU and the Darwin Aquaculture Centre.
The $10,000 fellowship sponsor is the Department of Education, Science and Training, administered through the International Specialised Skills Institute (ISSI).