JUNE 2020

Dear GSSTAR friends,

Welcome to our third newsletter working, despite such challenging and online resources that can be for the GCRF GlobalSeaweedSTAR conditions. I’m just so glad that we shared with our key stakeholders. programme. I still can’t quite believe have the technology and capability how our lives have been changed to host meetings and to continue to I hope that you enjoy reading since the last newsletter. The work collaboratively, even with our our latest edition of the GSSTAR COVID-19 pandemic has effected team spread so far, geographically newsletter and I would just like everyone of us and it is heartening speaking, apart from one another. to add my thanks to everyone that now, to finally hear about the first has supported us through the last signs of universities and laboratories Certain aspects of our work, however, few, extremely challenging months. opening once again. I am so proud have been significantly impacted, Fingers crossed, the last 18 months of so many of the GSSTAR team, such as the genetic sequencing of of the project, can see the easing who have been helping with national our seaweed samples, fieldwork, of restrictions and us all returning testing efforts and community particularly in Tanzania and of course, to our laboratories to finish the food bank initiatives, which you our attendance at major international work on which, so many millions will read about in more detail later conferences this year, which have all of livelihoods depend. in this newsletter. Even though been postponed. We are in contact the laboratories have been closed though with our funders and are Stay safe and healthy, and we’ve all been working from hoping to secure additional funding Liz Cottier-Cook, Lead Scientist home, I have been so impressed to allow us to complete this important with how hard the team are still work and to produce new publications

Researchers from GlobalSeaweedSTAR presented to UN delegates at the Food and Agriculture GSSTAR(FAO) subcommittee on fisheries researcher aids Indonesian COVID-19 response see page 3 Putting policy into practice as Scottish seaweed industry grows

GSSTAR seaweed policy research is helping to shape the fledgling UK industry

Prof Elizabeth Cottier-Cook and Professor Cottier-Cook, Dr Campbell As a result, five key messages Dr Iona Campbell continue their and Dr Janina Brakel presented the were reported by the group: work with relevant biosecurity most recent findings of the project 1. Significant gaps in scientific policymakers, to address challenges and their relevance to a growing knowledge and evidence limit faced by the seaweed industry, this industry in the UK. Work from the policy development time in the UK. European GENIALG project and Scottish Association for Marine 2. Significant gaps in regulatory The scientists were part of the Science (SAMS)-based experts knowledge of the industry limit GSSTAR team attending the in breeding (Dr Marie-Mathilde implementation Scottish Seaweed Industry Perrineau), social licensing Association meeting on 18th-19th 3. The industry needs to be (Dr Suzi Billing) and algal February, a national event that has mature enough to be of value biotechnology (Professor now doubled in size since 2019. to the economy for biosecurity Michele Stanley) supported measures to be developed The GSSSTAR biosecurity team the presentations. through regulators organised a round-table discussion The subsequent discussions at the Oban event on the topic of 4. Recommendations for identified a number of challenges Seaweed Aquaculture Biosecurity biosecurity could be led by in biosecurity management and Policy. In attendance were 13 industry and supported through policy and how these might experts from industry, academia academia and regulators. be implemented. and government, representing; 5. Raising regulatory and industry DEFRA (Plant Health Division), awareness of the importance CEFAS (Fish Health Inspectorate), of biosecurity for this emerging Marine Scotland, The Crown Estate, industry is critical in starting the and seaweed aquaculture experts process of developing any type working on projects at SAMS. of biosecurity strategy. GSSTAR researcher aids Indonesian COVID-19 response

A scientist, who has been analysing He explained: “We receive scientist with GlobalSeaweedSTAR seaweed in Indonesia with help from nasopharyngeal (throat) swab and lecturer at the University of the GlobalSeaweedSTAR project, samples from our sampling team, Malaya. is now using his skills in the battle which collects them from patients. For Their project is to analyse the genetic against COVID-19. me, I am responsible for the operation diversity of “Kappaphycus” and and interpretation of the PCR results. Dr Eka Sunarwidhi Prasedya, a “Eucheuma” seaweeds in Indonesia. Right now, we usually receive and lecturer and biotechnology researcher Dr Prasedya added: “As a young process around 50 samples per day, from The University of Mataram researcher, GSSTAR has helped me but we are very limited in reagents Lombok, Indonesia, is now working to network with not only scientists in and materials needed for viral RNA alongside medical doctors from the the biomolecular and seaweed fields, extraction and PCR.” University of Mataram Hospital, to but also farmers and local industries, help detect cases of the virus in the At the time of writing, positive cases in which currently depend on seaweeds West Nusa Tenggara region. Indonesia were rapidly increasing, as as their main financial income.” more labs contribute to the detection Dr Prasedya is using his skills in of the virus. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) to interpret samples from COVID-19 Dr Prasedya is proud to be able to patients. PCR is a method widely used help his country’s efforts in combating in molecular biology to make copies of the virus, but is looking forward to a specific DNA segment. It is possible getting back to his seaweed project to generate potentially millions of with Prof Phaik Eem Lim, a senior copies of DNA sequences using PCR. Saving seaweed as the case for cassava grows

First meeting with the political secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Subki and his team.

GSSTAR researchers in of , Malaysia the cassava of a potential collaboration on have been bridging the gap between is staamed, mashed and shaped the seaweed industry. farmers and policy makers, as they into cylinders. Putu is traditionally seek to understand the decline in wrapped in banana or palm leaves, The WP4 Malaysia team attended seaweed production. but is commonly sold today wrapped this meeting and presented findings in clear plastic. and recommendations regarding The work package 4 (WP4) this industry. However, progress Malaysian team, Drs Adibi and As part of their research, the WP4 was delayed, after the Malaysian Azam have worked together on Malaysian team had the opportunity government was dissolved in data analysis and have had a series to meet with the Political Secretary, February due to political issues. of engagements with different Mr Subki at the Ministry of stakeholders. They found fluctuating Agriculture and Agro-based seaweed prices were affecting Industry (MOAABI). His role is to the seaweed processing industry, advise the MOAABI minister, Dato’ causing the number of seaweed Salahuddin Ayub on Malaysian buyers to decrease. agricultural policy.

Many seaweed farmers in Mmalaysia The first meeting with him was on have recently switched to cassava January 22, 2020 at the MOAABI farming. Cassava is a primary headquarters. The team presented food and historically, served as a its research on the seaweed industry replacement for rice. The local people in Malaysia and introduced the use it to make putu, a traditional GSSTAR project. Mr Subki responded Filipino dish that is the staple food positively and within a month, ECR Azam with a seaweed farmer, who is of the Sama-Bajau people of the Mr Subki’s office had contacted growing cassava as an alternative income Philippines and the east coast researchers to discuss the details on Bum-bum Island, Semporna, Sabah. Capacity building taxonomy workshop

For as long as we have been living on the Earth, we have been taxonomists. Learning how to identify what is safe to eat, the materials with which to build or wear and if we put baggage in the hold when we fly, we use such skills to retrieve our cases from the luggage carousel. As a science, taxonomy is the discipline of describing, delimiting and naming organisms and it provides vital knowledge for many subject areas, including biodiversity, understanding evolutionary relationships, Prof Juliet Brodie passed on her skills in taxonomy conservation and management and discovery of new material and drugs.

As part of the GlobalSeaweedSTAR The workshop covered There was great anticipation at programme, a three-day (March 4 - morphological and molecular the end of the day, to see if it had 6, 2020) capacity building taxonomy taxonomy, nomenclature and algae. worked and when we all saw the workshop was held in the Botany It also included practical sessions, DNA bands on the gel, there was a Department at the University of Dar tides and fieldwork and a visit to the great feeling of success. Es Salaam, Tanzania. It was led university herbarium. by Prof Juliet Brodie (NHM) and Dr “It was a fantastic few days to Janina Brakel (SAMS), and assisted Prof Brodie said: “On the last day, work with such an engaged and by Joseph Faisan Jr (SEAFDEC), Janina bravely challenged the group, enthusiastic group. one of our Early Career Researchers some for the first time, to extract (ECRs) from the Philippines. The and amplify DNA from seaweeds, Asante sana!” workshop had 15 participants, including “Eucheuma”, the red algal including the Tanzanian ECRs, genus of carrageenophytes collected students, technicians and lecturers. from the seaweed farms in Tanzania.

Dr Janina Brakel challenged the group to extract GSSTAR researcher Joseph Faisan Jr of SEAFDEC and amplify DNA from seaweeds assisted at the workshop Could genetic diversity ease the strain on Zanzibar seaweed stocks?

Since 2011, seaweed farmers commonly known as “cottonii”) hot-dry season and diminishes during and traders in Zanibar have observed in the farming areas the wet season. High temperatures in experienced a major decline in of Unguja and Pemba (Zanzibar the farming sites (29.5–35.5 °C) are production and income. archipelago). suggested as one of the main triggers of the ice-ice disease, as well as, the Now, a new report for the UN’s Food It also makes short- and long-term bloom of epiphyte infestation. Another and Agriculture Organization (FAO), recommendations to protect the factor is high light intensity. The study by GSSTAR researcher Dr Flower farming ecosystem environment, recommends short-term measures Msuya and co-authors Danilo B. Largo control (prevention and mitigation) and long-term strategies, that include and Ana Menezes, seeks to find out of ice-ice disease and epiphyte implementing strict quarantine why. infestation, and to boost the seaweed procedures and improving the genetic industry in the island. The study identifies some causes of stock with alternative local strains. the seaweed die-off of “Eucheuma” Die-offs are mainly caused by a severe View the full report on the “denticulatum” (commonly known case of epiphyte infestation coupled FAO website: as “spinosum”) and “Kappaphycus with a high incidence of ice-ice fao.org/3/ca9004en/ca9004en.pdf striatum” and “K. alvarezii” (both disease, which intensifies during the

Seaweed Manifesto

GSSTAR has signed up to a new Global Compact, Action Platform GSSTAR supports this institutive global initiative, that aims to boost the for Sustainable Ocean Business. and a member of the Editorial growth of the global industry, while team. To find out more, or to preserving operations already at scale. It sets out a manifesto outlining sign up to the manifesto, visit: how seaweed can contribute to ungc-communications-assets. The Seaweed Revolution is led by delivering on the UN Sustainable s3.amazonaws.com/docs/publications/ Lloyds Register Foundation and UN Development Goals. The-Seaweed-Manifesto.pdf Star alumni spread the ‘happy’ with sweet gesture

As a part of the University of the Philippines Ichthyophilic Society Alumni Association (UPISAA), GlobalSeaweedSTAR researchers Jonalyn Mateo and Joseph Faisan have been bringing a smile to stranded students.

The alumni group delivered sweets, crisps and other treats to 137 stranded dormers and distributed more than 200 ‘happy packs’.

Jonalyn explained: “There are a lot of donated rice and canned goods already. That’s why we decided to donate a happy pack. Our goal is to cheer up students who are stranded in this crisis.”

Aside from the 137 dormers, other students who live in Miagao boarding houses, college personnel and tricycle drivers also received happy packs.

The group was inspired by the Helen Keller quote: “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

globalseaweed.org

globalseaweed.org ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS