Announcement: BBRSDA's Inaugural Graduate Student Research Program

The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA) is offering up to $30,000* to graduate students to progress the science and understanding the Bristol Bay salmon fishery. The BBRSDA is currently accepting proposals until 5 p.m. AKST on January 13, 2023. Awardee(s) will be announced by March 17, 2023.

The BBRSDA works to fulfill its mission of “Maximizing the value of the Bristol Bay fishery for the benefit of our members.” Fulfillment of the mission statement is accomplished through strategies focused on sustainability, quality, marketing, and other aspects that add value to the world’s largest wild salmon fishery. Proposals will be evaluated based on technical merit and their potential impact on the fishery.

In no particular order, research topics of interest include (but are not limited to):

- Quantifying the impact of “bleeding” fish on flesh quality
- Quantifying the impact of other common fishery practices on flesh quality
- Quantifying the impact of frozen-round processing techniques
- Furthering human understanding of Bristol Bay salmon runs and biological health
- Improvements to the efficiency, effectiveness, or environmental impact of fish harvesting
- Improvements to fishery data collection and analysis
- Improvements to technology used within the fishery and processing sector, including packaging
- Alternatives or improvements to traditional marine propulsion systems
- Improvements to fishery management (enumeration, analysis tools, etc.)
- Research related to sockeye salmon markets
- Economic studies focused on economic benefits, fishery structure, trends, etc.
- Marine mammal predation of salmon

This is an excellent opportunity for graduate students to apply their skills, time, and effort towards research which can produce tangible benefits for thousands of workers and millions of salmon consumers.

Proposal Requirements: i) 3-5 page proposal including a summary, introduction, methods, anticipated results, broader impacts, and intellectual merit. ii) brief candidate biography, iii) 1-page budgeted expenses, iv) 1-page timeline for completion with expected deliverables, v) Candidate CV, vi) Mentor letter of support and responsibility, vii) Mentor CV, viii) Disclosure if applying elsewhere for same or similar research elsewhere.

Awardee(s) will be required to present findings to BBRSDA members.

Additional awards may be granted out-of-cycle for timely and significant endeavors. Please send inquiries or proposals to info@bbrsda.com with “Graduate Research Proposal” and your last name in the subject line.

*In the circumstance of highly competitive, and for proposal(s) deemed of significant importance to the goals of the BBRSDA, funding may be awarded at a higher amount. In lieu of an individual award of $30,000 the BBRSDA may select multiple awardees.