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The first World Fisheries Congress was held in Athens in 1992. It was divided into plenary sessions and thematic sessions.
This volume comprises papers presented in the workshops and sessions of Theme 3 of the World Fisheries Congress. The conservation of biodiversity has become recognized as a globally important issue in the 1990s. Our alteration of ecosystems - whether inadvertent or otherwise - has resulted in the loss of species, some of whose value to man we had yet to discover. Even where ecosystems have not been irreparably changed, accidental or purposeful introductions of species or stocks have led to perhaps irretrievable reductions in gene pools of important species.
As stated in the overview of Theme 3, the mission of those assembled was to "...assess the state of global aquatic biodiversity, identify significant past, current, and future threats...and propose possible solutions to those threats." To that end, the authors discuss topics ranging from conservation ethics, policy, and socioeconomics to the genetic- and population-level effects of introductions and stock transfers. That the issue is indeed global is reflected in discussions of problems in North America, Europe, Africa and New Guinea.
