Tessa is a lead researcher at the Aquatic Life Institute; an organization looking for ways to improve the quality of life for billions of aquatic animals around the world. She has previously lived and worked for non-profits in Florida, China, and Cambodia before taking on this remote research role. Tessa is keen to continue learning and collaborating with others in the animal advocacy movement, the effective altruism community, and beyond!
Tessa @ ALI
Karma: 469
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Thanks so much for your support! Yes, they are miraculous creatures and fiercely intelligent. I appreciate your feedback and will certainly keep that in mind for future communications regarding this initiative.
My colleague suggested the book “The Soul of an Octopus” as a great resource for this subject matter for those who are interested. This is on my reading list for the holiday break coming up, but any additional recommendations are much appreciated!
Hi there, Hadrian. Thanks for your support and comment. Unfortunately, it appears as though the environmental permitting regarding this specific farm is being allowed to proceed. And if everything else is successful (building, funding, etc.) we expect operations to fully commence. However, our efforts will be directed towards a variety of stakeholders in order to try and approach this problem from several different angles.
Our friends at the Good Food Institute are spearheading the alternative protein space with their Sustainable Seafood Initiative to address critical challenges facing the plant-based and cultivated seafood sector if you’d like to take a look at their cell line repository proposal. This area of work is fascinating to me and certainly something we should keep in mind when advocating for alternatives.
Thank you for your comment, Fai. Yes, it is an unfortunate reality that we are currently faced with regarding the prominence, interest, and advancement of factory farms. Altering this reality will require significant changes in many areas (policy, science, economics). It will also require individuals in each area to “band” together and work towards a better future. I do think it is important to keep that longtermist perspective in mind that you mentioned during these pursuits to try and spark institutional transformations wherever possible.
Thanks so much for your comment, Hamish. This is a great summary (and a lovely introduction doodle)!
Banding Together to Ban Octopus Farming
Greetings to all!
I’m Tessa, an EA enthusiast for just over 13 months now. My introduction to the EA community happened through my current organization, the Aquatic Life Institute (ALI).
A bit of background for those not familiar with ALI; we’re an international organization that supports research comparing potential welfare interventions. We then advocate for the implementation of promising initiatives, with the aim of positively impacting the lives of aquatic animals.
Over the past year, we’ve seen some promising victories for aquatic animal welfare. Many were made possible through the establishment of our coalitions (Aquatic Animal Alliance & Coalition for Aquatic Conservation), engaging in certification scheme improvement consultations, developing government feedbacks, and internally identifying priority areas for further research and development.
While we’re not new to the EA Forum per se, we are just beginning our ‘blogging/posting journey’ here and welcome any comments, questions, etc. from anyone interested in our work.
I look forward to our future conversations and wish you all the best!
Fincerely,
Tessa @ ALI
Hi Guy! Apologies for the late reply, but I have just sent you a direct message about this :) thanks for your interest and support. Cheers!