Talking the talk and walking the walk: Aquaculture, fish, and fisheries will continue to support the blue revolution and beyond

2024 marks the third anniversary of Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries, a multidisciplinary journal centering on the biological, socioeconomic, and cultural impacts of aquaculture, fisheries science, and fish biology, covering a broad range of topics addressing both farmed and wild aquatic plants and animals. As part of this journey, AFF has established a record of sound editorial practices that resulted in the journal being listed on the Directory of Open Access Journals and achieving our first impact factor. Here, we look back at the journey that got us this far and provide a perspective moving forward.

In our inaugural editorial ‘Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries: A New Home for the Blue Revolution’, we highlighted our overarching objective was to provide researchers working within all areas of aquaculture, fisheries science, and fish biology a platform to publish their findings, and by doing this, we sought to build a collaborative relationship with the research community (Becker & Calado, 2021). Our approach was not to place a value on novelty or global relevance but rather to consider scientifically sound research from a wide range of topics covering all areas and populations around the globe, aiming to attract research from underrepresented areas that needed attention the most (Becker & Calado, 2021). Studies of regional scope can be of significant relevance for populations that rely on aquatic ecosystems and their biological resources for their livelihood. Through this process, we have covered a multitude of themes, such as nutrition, sustainability, disease, immunology, conservation, cultural impacts, reproduction, ecology, climate change, pollution, oceanography, management, economics, and policy amongst others. With publications originating from 47 countries and spanning from all the major regions of the globe, we highlight multiple articles from African and Asian countries that have contributed to raising awareness in areas where targeted boosts to sustainable fisheries and aquaculture practices are most needed (FAO, 2024). Moreover, a number of authors based in low-income countries were able to benefit from waiver policies to support article processing charges, making their research available to all those who may benefit from it through open access.

Some of the editorial highlights published thus far have included a review of Nile Tilapia culture in Kenya that explores production technologies and socioeconomic impacts on local livelihoods (Munguti et al., 2022); an investigation into the restoration potential of offshore mussel farming on a degraded seabed habitat in the United Kingdom (Bridger et al., 2022); an assessment of predatory fish diets in invasive fish species in a traditional Hawaiian aquaculture system (Akiona et al., 2022); the evaluation of alternative protein sources in aquaculture in Tanzania (Limbu et al., 2022); the effects of temperature on the growth performance, haematological properties, and histomorphology of gill, intestine, and liver tissues in juvenile butter catfish in Bangladesh (Islam et al., 2022); and a global study looking at how ocean warming and acidification affect the life cycle of six commercialized species of sea urchins worldwide (Uboldi et al., 2023).

Coming up in 2024, Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries is focused on continuing to support young early-career aquaculture and fisheries scientists, as well as fish biologists. This was initially done through the launch of our junior editorial board, which we have recently expanded, and we are always welcoming new applications. Presently, we are aiming to build on this effort by launching our Early Career Author Award and Initiative. Collectively, this process is aimed to support and highlight the work of early-career researchers around the globe addressing topics framed within the scope of Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries. Support will be offered by providing guaranteed in-depth feedback that goes beyond the usual editorial process to uplift the quality of the manuscript with the goal that this will lead to publication for articles submitted by early-career authors. The criteria apply to those who are first-time authors or are PhD or MSc students or early stage Post-Docs who completed their PhD no more than 3 years ago and are listed on the manuscript as either the first, second, or last author. The ‘Early Career Author Best Paper Award’ will be judged from the above qualifying manuscripts in which a winning manuscript will be chosen each year in June, with the first award winner being selected in June 2025 by the Editors-in-Chief of Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries. We strongly encourage any qualifying scientists to apply by following the instructions on our website.

At Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries, we are always looking to improve the author's experience, and this has led us to reevaluate our initial article types. Taking this into account, we are soon to be welcoming two new article types: Viewpoints and Underwater Notes. Viewpoints will be similar to what an opinion or perspective piece might cover presenting the author's perspective on a specific issue or conceptual advances that convey new ideas or controversial opinions on cutting-edge topics on at least a regional scale. Underwater Notes are shorter format thought-provoking reports that may include more descriptive and opportunistic observations that may not adhere to the usual standard of research articles.

Furthermore, in 2024, we are planning to launch our first Special Issue focused on Aquatic Parasitology in Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries. This topic was selected as the first Special Issue due to its broad appeal across many themes that the journal covers, such as aquaculture health, wild fish, food safety, and public health.

We have recently also expanded our editorial board by welcoming a new co-Editor-In-Chief Christyn Bailey and a new Associate Editor Naz Demirel, who we look forward to working with to develop the journal further. Unfortunately, Dorothy Dankel has stepped down from the board this year after her three-year tenure, and we would particularly like to thank her for her leadership during the journal establishment phase.

While we can positively reflect on the advancement of the journal, we have much work ahead of us in which we want to continue to support the blue revolution, sustainable sources of aquatic food and resource equity, and beyond. This development aligns with the take-home messages from the recent report ‘The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2024’, by the FAO, that while there were major advances towards sustainability (e.g. for the first time, there were more animals being farmed than harvested from aquatic ecosystems through fisheries), there are still many major challenges to understand and navigate (FAO, 2024). Indisputably, there is an urgency to achieve a greater understanding of the impacts of climate change, pollution, disease, and antibiotic resistance in both farmed and wild aquatic plants and animals, as well as optimize feed production and sustainability, and overcome technological bottlenecks on a global scale amongst other pressing issues. In this fashion, the journal will continue to provide an evidence-based platform to discuss the major ecological, environmental, sustainable, and sociocultural challenges impacting aquaculture, wild fish, and fisheries on a regional and global scale.

In closing, none of this would have been possible without the support from the community of researchers who as authors, reviewers, and editorial board members have made invaluable contributions to the journal and its development. We are incredibly grateful for your collaboration and dedication to the philosophy of the journal and are looking forward to continuing this relationship and seeing Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries develop over the next years.

Christyn Bailey: Conceptualization; visualization; writing—original draft; writing—review and editing. Ricardo Calado: Conceptualization; visualization; writing—original draft; writing—review and editing. Joy A. Becker: Conceptualization; visualization; writing—original draft; writing—review and editing.