Species diversity in fish aquaculture

​Welcome to the RP Strategic Animal Webinars and the talk and Q&A session: Species diversity in fish aquaculture.

​Date: Thursday, February 12, 2026 (10 AM PST, 1 PM EST, 6 PM GMT, 7 PM CET)

​About: With more than 120 billion fish farmed annually across an expanding range of species and production systems, understanding fish aquaculture is essential for effective advocacy and policy development. In this webinar, Prof. Becca Franks (NYU) and Chiawen Chiang (NYU, Welfare Footprint Institute) will explore the current landscape of fish farming, examining how welfare challenges vary across different species and why this diversity matters for both animal welfare and policy interventions.

​Drawing on their recent paper "Disaggregating animal welfare risks in aquaculture" (published in Science Advances), the speakers will discuss species-level welfare risk factors and their uneven distribution across aquaculture. The session will also cover fish sentience, capacities, and behavior; the expansion of aquaculture globally; and why aquaculture diversification matters for welfare and policy.

​This session will equip you with a deeper understanding of the complexities of fish welfare in aquaculture and considerations for strategic prioritization.

​Speakers:

​Prof. Becca Franks is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at NYU, the director of the WATR-lab, and co-director of the Wild Animal Welfare Program at NYU. Prof. Franks is an animal welfare scientist working with an environmental studies lens.

​Chiawen (Chiaw) Chiang is a researcher at New York University's WATR-lab, where she studies fish behavior and welfare. Her current work focuses on species-specific welfare impacts in aquaculture and the behavioral complexity of fish in both captive and wild environments. She is also a research associate at the Welfare Footprint Institute.

​Format: We'll start with a focused 20-25-minute presentation, followed by an extended Q&A session.