Meet the New 2010-2011 AAC Board of Directors

The Aquaculture Association of Canada's Board of Directors are elected by Association members annually. The Board of Directors help to lead the Association in conjunction with the AAC President (Tillmann Benfey), Vice President (Joy Wade), Secretary (Shelley King) and Treasurer (Caroline Graham). The AAC would like to welcome the following members to the Board of Directors for 2010-2011.

Céline Audet, Tim Jackson, Gehan Mabrouk, David McCallum and Shelley King

Read their Biographies ...

Céline Audet has been involved in aquaculture research since 1988 (M.Sc., UQAM; Ph.D., Laval University; post-doctoral training, McMaster University). Her research projects are on salmonids (anadromy, genetics, and genomics), marine fish species (larval and juvenile growth), and crustaceans (metabolism). Over the years, she has served on many Québec organizations that are devoted to the development of the aquaculture industry. She chairs a provincial aquaculture research network (Réseau Aquaculture Québec) and is principal investigator on a CREATE grant that provides scholarships at undergraduate to postdoctoral levels for training in aquaculture. She is a long-time member of the AAC and has served as a board member since 2008. She intends to use her scientific, networking, and communication skills to promote the development of research-industry interfaces and to develop tools to attract and interest a new generation to the field of aquaculture.

Tim Jackson has just completed a 2-yr term as an AAC Board member, serving on several committees and as Co-Chair of the Membership Renewal Committee. He is an Industrial Technology Advisor with the National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program, based in Saint John, NB, with sectoral responsibility for aquaculture and biotechnology in New Brunswick. He recently completed a 6-mo term as Acting Director in the NRC-IRAP Atlantic & Nunavut Region. Tim is a graduate of UNB Saint John (B.Sc. Marine Biology) and University of Guelph (M.Sc. Zoology) and for the past 18 yr has been employed in the private, university, provincial, and federal government sectors in the areas of aquaculture production improvement, genomics, forensic biology, culture of marine finfish species, and biotechnology applications for the aquaculture industry. His involvement in aquaculture initiatives as extended internationally to the US, China and Europe. He has served on the Offshore Aquaculture Steering Committee of the New Brunswick Salmon Growers Association since 2003.

Gehan Mabrouk is the Section Head of the Aquaculture, Biotechnology and Aquatic Animal Health Section, Science Branch, Newfoundland & Labrador Region, Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Gehan has graduated from Veterinary school, Cairo University, Egypt where she started her career in aquaculture research in the Animal Health Research Institute, Department of Agriculture, Egypt. In 1990, Gehan moved to Newfoundland and obtained a Masters of Science from Memorial University where she worked in a variety of research positions until 2001. Gehan then held various management positions in the public and private sectors. Gehan is Regional Chair for Aquaculture Collaborative Research and Development Program (ACRDP) in Newfoundland. She is a member of the ICES Working Group on Application of Genetics in Fisheries and Mariculture, Working Group on Environmental Interactions of Mariculture and Working Group on Marine Shellfish Culture. She aims to work to strengthen the role of the AAC in promoting the sustainability of aquaculture in Canada.

Raised on the coast and currently residing in Nanaimo, David McCallum has built a strong connectedness to British Columbia’s coastal resources and industry sector. In 2006, David completed his Master’s Degree (UVic Geography with funding from AquaNet), which examined potential compatibilities between the shellfish farming industry and marine conservation initiatives. This led to his 3.5-year term employment at the BC Shellfish Growers Association where, as Research & Development Coordinator, he acted as liaison between the BC shellfish farming industry and the science community. David currently works as an independent coastal resources consultant specializing in aquaculture industry development. He began his tenure on the AAC Board in 2007 and currently sits as chair of the Student Affairs Committee. He aims to further his effort on behalf of the AAC to advance Canada’s aquaculture industry sectors, specifically by bringing the AAC resources to industry.

Shelley King is Director of Project Management with Genome Atlantic where she is responsible for managing large scale, multidisciplinary research projects including the $18.1M Atlantic Cod Genomics and Broodstock Development Project (CGP) and the $5.8M Comparative Assessment of Diploid and Polyploid Physiology & Production Traits Cod Project (C-ADAP3T). Ms. King holds an MSc and an MBA from Memorial University, and has translated that into a broad range of experience in technology commercialization, business development, strategic partnership development and intellectual property management in both the private and academic sectors. Ms. King brings a strong vision for the aquaculture industry, as well as hands-on organizational skills, industry connections and knowledge of both the business and science of aquaculture.