In an effort to promote international education and seafood conservation, Sea Delight, together with Sea Delight Ocean Fund (SDOF), has developed an international internship program for graduate students from the University of Florida that will provide hands-on experience working in the current Fishery Improvement Projects (FIPs) and Better Fishing Practices Initiatives (BFPIs) that they support.
Graduate interns will spend a full semester in a country working on the respective fishery improvement efforts. During that time, the student will work closely with regional contacts to implement activities supported by the FIP of BFPI, which could include data collection, data compilation and analysis, and community outreach.
The Guy Harvey Foundation has provided two USD 5,000 (EUR 3,672) graduate student scholarships to help defray other expenses incurred by a semester abroad.
The program is scheduled to launch in 2015. The international location will be based on the needs of the FIP.
Though the program is currently open to students of the University of Florida, the SDOF’s goal is to develop a national program and with other NGOs and their partners in placing students in FIPs and conservation programs around the world.
“We are very excited to be able to develop this program with the support of the International Center and the Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences Department at the University of Florida, as well as the Guy Harvey Foundation,” said Adriana Sanchez-Lindsay, Sea Delight sustainability coordinator and SDOF president. “By investing in the graduate student’s education and providing hands-on professional experience, we believe we are investing in the next generation of leaders in our industry.
“We couldn’t be more pleased with the prospect of administering this prestigious internship program through the UF International Center. As we thrive for our students to become true ‘Global Gators,’ the program will provide hands on experience abroad, which will allow our graduate students to compete exceptionally well in an ever changing global environment,” said Susanne Hill, University of Florida International Center executive director.
