The 2016 FSBI Annual Symposium in Bangor, Wales was the best meeting that I’ve ever attended. Two things made FSBI such a wonderful experience: the applicability of the symposium theme to my own research and, perhaps more importantly, the small but international group of attendees.

The theme of the 2016 FSBI Symposium was “Fish, Genes, and Genomes: Contributions to Ecology, Evolution, and Management.” This theme was directly relevant to my own research on adaptive evolution in Chinook salmon supportive breeding programs, yet broad enough to span a wide range of fishes and ecosystems, which was a welcomed change from my usual focus of salmonids. From the presentations, I gained insight into new ways that I can look at my own data. In fact, I intend to start applying a couple of these new analyses to my data in the near future. I also enjoyed the keynote talks from Craig Primmer and Louis Bernatchez, which focused on novel approaches to apply genomics to conservation and management.

The relatively small size of the FSBI Symposium (~230 people in one room) was very conducive to forming personal and professional connections. I met many scientists and graduate students from Canada and across Europe, which has already led to a few potential research collaborations and postdoctoral opportunities. I also travelled with other graduate students from Canada and the UK to Snowdonia National Park for two days after the conference, an amazing experience that reflected the friendly atmosphere fostered by the FSBI Symposium.

I extend my sincerest gratitude to AFS-IFS and FSBI for enabling me to attend this meeting. It was truly a memorable experience. I’m excited to expand my involvement in both AFS-IFS and FSBI in the future.

– Charles D. Waters