tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/fisher-6874/articlesFisher – The Conversation2022-02-02T18:52:15Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1722182022-02-02T18:52:15Z2022-02-02T18:52:15ZFish on acid? Microdosing zebrafish with LSD shows its potential benefits for humans<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443433/original/file-20220131-126279-j84hlf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C15%2C2600%2C1650&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Because of their social nature and the fact that they share 70 per cent of their DNA with humans, zebrafish make ideal test subjects.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 175px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/fish-on-acid-microdosing-zebrafish-with-lsd-shows-its-potential-benefits-for-humans" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Microdosing — <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/dec/02/people-microdosing-on-psychedelics-to-improve-wellbeing-during-pandemic">regularly ingesting small amounts of a psychedelic substance</a> — has gone mainstream.</p>
<p>Believed to increase productivity, spark creativity or improve open-mindedness, the microdosing of psychedelic drugs is gaining popularity with both academic researchers and those interested in experimenting.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/microdosers-of-lsd-and-magic-mushrooms-are-wiser-and-more-creative-101302">'Microdosers' of LSD and magic mushrooms are wiser and more creative</a>
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<p>But microdosing may offer more beyond its mood-boosting abilities.</p>
<p>Using zebrafish and our new method for precise and repeated drug administration, my colleagues and I are studying LSD and terpenes (chemicals in plants responsible for their scent, among other things) in a series of projects exploring potential novel treatments for mental illness and alcohol use disorder.</p>
<p>Zebrafish might seem an odd choice in studying human health, but <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nature12111">they share 70 per cent of their genes with us</a> and are a popular nonhuman organism used by scientists to study biological processes. They are also incredibly social, making them <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s12276-021-00571-5">well-suited for behavioural studies into psychiatric disorders</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nrd46277">drug discovery</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/animals-in-research-zebrafish-13804">Animals in research: zebrafish</a>
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<p>However, past drug research using zebrafish has studied “chronic” administration — putting fish in a drug solution for weeks. Since humans require (at the very least) some sleep, this administration can’t accurately reflect human consumption patterns.</p>
<h2>Dose control</h2>
<p>To address this limitation, we developed a new method to dose multiple fish accurately and efficiently for exact exposure times. By placing an insert into the housing tank, we can move groups of fish from their housing tank into a dosing tank for a precise dosing period, more closely mimicking the way that a person might consume drugs or alcohol.</p>
<p>To verify that this new dosing procedure could have behavioural and neurochemical effects, we completed a series of projects using our new method to examine the effects of alcohol and nicotine.</p>
<p>First, we tested the zebrafish with a daily moderate dose or a weekly binge-level dose of ethanol for three weeks. We found a significant difference in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0063319">location preference in the daily moderate group</a> compared to controls during a withdrawal period, which implies there were neurological changes. </p>
<p>Then we followed up with a study using <a href="https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6551">lower doses for shorter periods of time</a>. Here, we saw decreased boldness and increased anxiety-like behaviour during withdrawal from the highest dose (<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.2994">opposite to what is seen after an acute single-dose</a>). </p>
<p>Similarly, testing the model <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-65382-6">using nicotine</a>, we found again that acute doses decreased anxiety-like behaviour while repeated dosing led to an increase of anxiety-like behaviour during withdrawal.</p>
<p>For humans, having an alcoholic drink or a cigarette <a href="https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.147.6.685">can decrease anxiety, and the inverse is observed in withdrawal</a>. Our zebrafish model is consistent with this, which has given us confidence that we can test novel compounds with potential therapeutic effects in humans.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="a short glass drink with alcohol next to an ashtray with a smoldering cigarette in it. in the background, out of focus, a man wearing a blue shirt and surgical mask" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443573/original/file-20220131-142871-nfbzlc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Researchers have been finding that cigarette and alcohol consumption has increased during the pandemic. These substances can reduce anxiety, but withdrawal from them can increase it.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<h2>Potential therapies</h2>
<p>Terpenes are a large and diverse group of aromatic compounds. They are responsible for the smell, taste and pigmentation of plants. Many terpenes — like those found in tea, lemongrass, cannabis and citrus fruits — <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31269-5_15">have medical benefits</a>.</p>
<p>We found that zebrafish acutely dosed with the terpene limonene (found in citrus fruit peels and cannabis) and myrcene (found in cannabis and hops), showed a significant reduction in anxiety-like behaviour. One observation that may be clinically significant is that — contrary to nicotine or alcohol — no negative effects were seen after repeated dosing for seven days, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-98768-1">suggesting minimal to no addictive potential</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-98768-1">This study</a>, alongside <a href="https://doi.org/10.1078/094471102321621304">previous research</a>, suggests that the terpenes limonene and beta-myrcene possess sedative and anti-anxiety effects that have potential as valuable therapeutic compounds for the treatment of a variety of mental health conditions.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="close-up of a hand holding tweezers handling small squares of cardboard that are microdose tabs" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/443561/original/file-20220131-141004-b3qulk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">There is a growing interest in microdosing psychedelics to increase productivity and spark creativity.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<h2>Prairie psychedelic research</h2>
<p>Some of the most influential research into psychedelics <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/psychedelic-research-in-1950s-saskatchewan">began in Saskatchewan in the 1950s</a>. British-born psychiatrist Humphry Osmond <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC381240/">used LSD and mescaline to treat alcoholism</a>, with single doses showing a 50 to 90 per cent recovery rate over two years.</p>
<p>However, while Osmond saw success in large single-dose treatments, the acute administrations required continuous monitoring of the patient over the seven- to 15-hour “trip” to prevent any <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1124/pr.115.011478">harm arising from impaired judgment</a>. From a therapeutic perspective, this would be very time-intensive for clinicians, and is not feasible. </p>
<p>This is where microdosing comes in. With the potential to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-019-05417-7">easy and safe</a>, we believe this pattern of exposure to be more therapeutically relevant, as doses are small enough to be safely self-administered with the proper guidance of a clinician.</p>
<h2>Future knowledge</h2>
<p>In our first study, we repeatedly microdosed our zebrafish with LSD. Using behavioural neuroscience tests to quantify locomotion, boldness and anxiety-like behaviour, we observed no impact on behaviour after 10 days of repeated dosing. Like with terpenes, this may suggest a lack of withdrawal symptoms or addictive potential, which is encouraging for clinically viability for use in humans.</p>
<p>Our current study examines the effects of LSD microdosing on the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal, <a href="https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/april-2021/covid-19-shows-us-why-canada-needs-a-federal-alcohol-act/">which is a growing issue in Canadian health care</a>.</p>
<p>In Canada, the negative effects of alcohol are widely felt. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder remains the leading developmental disability in Canada, and alcohol harm is a top <a href="https://www.cihi.ca/sites/default/files/document/report-alcohol-hospitalizations-en-web.pdf">cause of injury and death</a>. It costs Canadians <a href="https://csuch.ca/publications/CSUCH-Canadian-Substance-Use-Costs-Harms-Infographic-2020-en.pdf">billions of dollars in lost productivity, and is a burden on the health-care and judicial systems</a>. Treatment and rehabilitation can be costly, time consuming and bogged down in lengthy wait times — if accessible at all.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fetal-alcohol-spectrum-disorder-amid-covid-19-fewer-services-potential-boost-in-rates-145593">Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder amid COVID-19: Fewer services, potential boost in rates</a>
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<p>Further research into other psychedelics, like psilocin (the psychoactive compound in psilocybin, or “magic mushrooms”), are also planned with the goal of providing scientific evidence to help determine whether these substances should be used in larger clinical trials in humans.</p>
<p>Psychedelics may provide assistance, but despite increasing evidence that LSD and psilocin <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pharmthera.2003.11.002">are non-addictive and low risk</a>, they remain highly restricted. Perhaps with more research and the continuing shift in public perception, we might yet again see LSD being used as a radical treatment for mental health and addiction.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172218/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Trevor James Hamilton receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). </span></em></p>Growing interest in psychedelics has spurred new research decades after hallucinogenics were tested in Saskatchewan in the 1950s. And an unassuming common fish is proving a useful test subject.Trevor James Hamilton, Associate Professor in Neuroscience (Department of Psychology), MacEwan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1520092020-12-16T02:13:22Z2020-12-16T02:13:22Z‘We didn’t have money or enough food’: how COVID-19 affected Papua New Guinean fishing families<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/375247/original/file-20201215-17-101l7pr.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C25%2C1756%2C952&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dean Miller</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In March 2020, Papua New Guinea went into a state of emergency to contain the spread of COVID-19. For Ahus Island — a small atoll community of around 600 people off the north coast of Manus Island — the state of emergency had far-reaching consequences. </p>
<p>In July and August, we interviewed Ahus islanders about their experience of COVID-19, and what they did to cope. </p>
<p>Their <a href="https://www.coralcoe.org.au/blog/lived-experiences-of-covid-19-impacts-on-an-atoll-island-community-papua-new-guinea-2020">stories</a> from the first six months of COVID-19 offer insight into the impacts of the pandemic on small-scale fishing communities and isolated islands. </p>
<p>As the new normal unfolds, the <a href="https://www.worldfishcenter.org/pages/covid-19/">COVID-19 pandemic will continue to reverberate across fishing communities</a>. The stories from Ahus island reflect the experiences of other <a href="https://lmmanetwork.org/resources/covid/">fishing communities across the Pacific</a>. Other <a href="https://lmmanetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/LMMA-Network-PNGCLMA-WCS-PNG.-Covid-Update-4-PNG-16.07.2020.pdf">Papua New Guinean coastal communities</a> struggled with food shortages, and needed external support for basic foods and services. Getting cut-off from markets and food can affect people’s livelihoods and well being in unforeseen ways.</p>
<p>Globally, there is a need to coordinate short and long-term responses to support small-scale fisheries, especially across the <a href="https://aciar.gov.au/publication/covid-19-and-food-systems">Indo-Pacific, where food insecurity is already a concern</a>. </p>
<h2>Fishing pressure on island’s reefs decreased, but at the cost of people’s livelihoods</h2>
<p>In Ahus, most people earn a livelihood selling fish — almost no food is grown on the island itself, and there are almost no other jobs. </p>
<p>During the state of emergency, fishers and fish sellers struggled to get to markets and to sell fish, which put stress on fishing families. Normally, fishers sell fish at the town market, a 40-minute boat ride from the island. During the state of emergency, the market was deserted and there was almost no demand for fish. With no customers, people stopped earning income and were unable to buy food:</p>
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<p>We found it hard because you go to the market and there’s not one person who’ll buy fish from you.</p>
<p>If you have money, you get food, if you don’t have money you can’t get food. And the way we get money is from the sea alone.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Passenger restrictions meant fewer passengers could get to town. And trips took three times as long because boat owners switched to smaller motors to save petrol. </p>
<p>One man explained: </p>
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<p>For us on this island, it is hard … We travel by sea. We go by boat. Now, if only limited people can get on a boat, then that affects us.</p>
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<p>The island’s market also closed briefly at the beginning of the pandemic, and travel to the mainland was restricted, leaving some people with no way to access food. Some people secretly bartered fish with relatives on the mainland, but others had to wait for markets to reopen.</p>
<p>When they did reopen, there was limited cash in the community, and many returned to a traditional system of bartering fish for vegetables.</p>
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<img alt="People gather at community markets on tropical atoll island" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=326&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=326&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=326&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/375258/original/file-20201215-19-fatqzc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">People gather at the local island market. Normally, fishers sell fish at the town market, a 40 minute boat ride from Ahus island.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photo credit: Dean Miller</span></span>
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<p>The combination of disruptions of markets and transport restrictions impacted fishing. People explained that it was hard to get fuel from town to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolling_(fishing)#:%7E:text=Trolling%20is%20a%20method%20of,when%20fishing%20from%20a%20jetty.">troll</a> for ocean fish. Others fished less because they were afraid to leave the house for too long. </p>
<p>The town hospital was only accepting emergency patients. One woman said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>So I told our family, you can’t go to the sea, because if you get sick then how can we go to the hospital? So during that time no one went fishing, and we didn’t have money or enough food.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Fishing pressure on island’s reefs decreased, but at the cost of people’s livelihoods.</p>
<h2>‘Little, little for each child and each adult’</h2>
<p>To cope with lack of income and difficulty getting food, most households started reducing what they ate. One woman said: </p>
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<p>Before, we’d all eat rice often. Not now. I’ve cooked sago over and over, and everyone complains … but there’s nothing else.</p>
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<p>Many families rationed food. As one person said: </p>
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<p>There was limited food … we’d serve just a little, little for each child and each adult. It doesn’t matter if you’re full up or only just full, that was your share.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Restricting food comes with risk. Diets of fish, sago and rice alone don’t contain enough essential nutrients to maintain health. Children’s physical and mental development can be permanently impaired if they are undernourished. </p>
<p>As families struggled to support themselves, some stopped sharing and helping others in the community. Several people mentioned that they’d received government support during past emergencies in the form of food and basic services. Others had heard other provinces were receiving support and were frustrated that their community had been left out. </p>
<h2>The road ahead</h2>
<p>Since these interviews, we have spoken again with people in the community. Their situation has improved since the state of emergency lifted. </p>
<p>The sea cucumber season opened in September, bringing a quick cash injection to the community. Markets have returned to business as usual, food is accessible and people have started sharing again. </p>
<p>But the last year has shown many communities are ill-prepared for the economic disruption that comes with a pandemic. Pandemic responses that do not account for impacts on food and nutrition security may lead to non-compliance and foster distrust in the legitimacy of future directives.</p>
<p>Decision-makers, locally and globally, must balance management of pandemics with a recognition that fish and fishing communities are essential to local well being.</p>
<p>Our research report can be found <a href="https://www.coralcoe.org.au/blog/lived-experiences-of-covid-19-impacts-on-an-atoll-island-community-papua-new-guinea-2020">here</a>. </p>
<p><em>Wilda Hungito, a PNG-based private research consultant and co-author on the report, contributed to this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/152009/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jacqueline Lau is jointly employed by WorldFish and the ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef studies at JCU.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Sutcliffe is jointly employed by WorldFish and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef studies at JCU.</span></em></p>Decision-makers, locally and globally, must balance management of pandemics with a recognition that fish and fishing communities are essential to local well being.Jacqueline Lau, Research fellow, James Cook UniversitySarah Ruth Sutcliffe, Marine Social Sciences PhD candidate, James Cook UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/918022018-02-23T13:09:30Z2018-02-23T13:09:30ZSmall-scale fisheries are throwing away fish that could feed those in poverty<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207494/original/file-20180222-152363-x973r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Waste not, want not.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Benjamin Jones</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>At least <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-2979.2005.00177.x">7.3m tons</a> of fish (usually dead or dying) are thought to be discarded each year from marine fisheries around the world. But these estimates come mostly from observations of large-scale industrial fisheries. Limited attention has been paid to small-scale fisheries, which are assumed to have low discard rates – some estimate <a href="http://www.fao.org/docrep/008/y5936e/y5936e00.htm">as little as 3.7% total catch</a>, compared to more than 60% for some large-scale shrimp trawlers. </p>
<p>Small-scale or artisanal fisheries – for which there is no universal definition – are generally considered more sustainable than their large-scale industrial counterparts, but there is increasing evidence that shows this is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982207010639">not always the case</a>. They employ more than <a href="http://www.fao.org/fishery/ssf/people/en">99% of the world’s 51m fishers</a> and likely account for more than half of the <a href="http://www.fao.org/family-farming/themes/small-scale-fisheries/en/">total global fisheries catches</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207293/original/file-20180221-132674-1kaicdf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Sri Lankan fisherman.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Benjamin Jones</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One of the biggest problems for both large and small-scale fisheries around the globe is bycatch – fish and other marine organisms caught when the fishers are targeting something else. Powerful images of turtles and dolphins caught in fishing gear have caught the sympathy of the general public, but unintentional landings of fish aren’t as evocative. The truth is, however, that fish bycatch is a big issue. </p>
<p>Progress is being made in Europe <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/cfp/fishing_rules/discards_en">within large-scale fisheries</a> thanks to campaigns such as the <a href="http://www.fishfight.net/">Fish Fight</a>. But small-scale fisheries – though there is increasing recognition outside that they are “<a href="http://toobigtoignore.net/">too big to ignore</a>” – are only just beginning to recognise the fish bycatch and discard problem.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207292/original/file-20180221-132670-1nmatwg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Catch and bycatch.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Benjamin Jones</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our newly published research has found that artisanal fisheries in Sri Lanka are <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2018.00052/full">throwing away more marine species than they keep</a>. For every fishing trip in one of Sri Lanka’s largest lagoons, Puttalam Lagoon, fishermen could be throwing away more than 50 fish. What’s more, of the 62 species recorded in the survey, more than 80% were routinely discarded. The reasons for this practice are unclear but sometimes it is because the individual fish are too small – or they are species without a high market value.</p>
<p>We found that fishers targeting shrimp in particular caught more non-target species and had higher discards than those targeting fish. This is particularly worrying at a time when Sri Lankan shrimp exports are increasing, after the EU granted the country <a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1663">improved access to its market</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206258/original/file-20180213-44647-1q7rwfv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fishers in Puttalam Lagoon discard non-target catch onshore.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Benjamin Jones</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Potentially 90% of the world’s fish stocks are <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5555e.pdf">threatened by over-fishing</a> – when more fish are caught than the population can replace. And the “tell-tale” signs of over-fishing are now being observed in Sri Lanka and across other research sites in the Indo-Pacific region. Fishers in these locations have told us and other researchers that they are catching much less fish than they were five years ago.</p>
<p>But this is not just an ecological issue, it is a social one too. In this era of increasing food insecurity, our findings highlight a serious concern for Sri Lanka. This unwanted seafood could be used to provide protein for the poorest in society. Instead, we found that fish with high nutritional value is being eaten by feral dogs and birds. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/206309/original/file-20180213-175001-7bwauv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Unwanted fish end up as quick and easy meals for animals.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Benjamin Jones</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Billions of people worldwide rely daily on fish for protein, while 50m people also rely on catching fish for work. But, if the levels of bycatch and discard continue, the livelihoods and food security of the people that depend on these fisheries will be under threat. If the problem is not managed, there won’t be any fish left in the waters.</p>
<p>There is one ray of hope for Sri Lanka, however. There are some <a href="http://www.fao.org/policy-support/resources/resources-details/en/c/426988/">small-scale fishery cooperatives</a> which maximise long-term community benefits by dealing with the threats of fisheries mismanagement, livelihood insecurity and poverty. Communities with successful and inclusive cooperatives are better off than those without. Cooperatives have the potential to empower small-scale fishers against environmental and socioeconomic shocks, but the problem in Puttalam Lagoon is that these cooperatives are not operating across all levels of society.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/207283/original/file-20180221-132642-29xcdo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fishing cooperatives do exist, but there could be more.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Benjamin Jones</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If the bycatch and discards issue is going to be solved over the long-term, we need to look at combining sustainable management practices with community schemes to reduce unnecessary seafood waste all over the world. Together the millions of small-scale fishers all over the world have an immense amount of power, they just need to realise it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/91802/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Benjamin L. Jones is a founding director of the conservation charity Project Seagrass.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Leanne Cullen-Unsworth is a director of the conservation charity Project Seagrass.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard K.F. Unsworth is a founding director of the conservation charity Project Seagrass.</span></em></p>Artisanal fishers in Sri Lanka are throwing away more marine species than they keep.Benjamin L.H. Jones, Research Associate, Cardiff UniversityLeanne Cullen-Unsworth, Research Fellow, Cardiff UniversityRichard K.F. Unsworth, Research Officer, Swansea UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/618992016-07-14T22:28:05Z2016-07-14T22:28:05ZAfter Fisher: affirmative action and Asian-American students<p>After eight years, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-crucial-texas-case-on-race-considerations-in-college-admissions-44117">Abigail Fisher</a> case finally <a href="https://theconversation.com/after-supreme-courts-fisher-decision-what-we-need-to-know-about-considering-race-in-admissions-59784">has been put to rest</a>. In a landmark judgment on June 23, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of race-conscious affirmative action in university admissions. </p>
<p>Abigail Fisher, a white woman, had sued the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) for its race-conscious admissions policy after she was denied admission. She had argued that the university violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.</p>
<p>Supporters of race-conscious admissions programs are understandably gratified. But has the case resolved the larger moral and political disagreements over affirmative action?</p>
<p>Roger Clegg, president of the <a href="http://www.ceousa.org/">Center for Equal Opportunity</a>, which supports colorblind policies, has already called the decision just “<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/24/us/politics/supreme-court-affirmative-action-university-of-texas.html?_r=0">a temporary setback</a>.”</p>
<p>Indeed, over the last 40 years, affirmative action opponents have repeatedly strategized anew after important Supreme Court decisions in favor of affirmative action. They did so after the 1978 decision in <a href="http://www.casebriefs.com/blog/law/constitutional-law/constitutional-law-keyed-to-chemerinsky/equal-protection/regents-of-the-university-of-california-v-bakke/">Regents of the University of California v. Bakke</a>, when the Supreme Court, while allowing race to be one of the factors in choosing <a href="http://nepc.colorado.edu/files/Moses_TheDiversityRationale.TheIntellectualRootsofandIdeal.pdf">a diverse student body</a>, held the use of quotas to be “impermissible.” </p>
<p>And they did so after the 2003 decision in <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/539/306/case.html">Grutter v. Bollinger</a>, when the high court again ruled that race-conscious affirmative action was constitutional.</p>
<p>We are scholars who study affirmative action, race, and diversity in higher education. We believe that the disagreement about affirmative action will not
end anytime soon. And it may well center on lawsuits on behalf of Asian-American college applicants. </p>
<h2>Here is what is coming next</h2>
<p>Through his organization, the <a href="https://www.projectonfairrepresentation.org/">Project on Fair Representation</a>, Abigail Fisher’s advisor, Edward Blum, is currently engaged in a <a href="https://studentsforfairadmissions.org/">lawsuit challenging</a> Harvard University’s race-conscious admissions policy. </p>
<p>What is different about the <a href="http://studentsforfairadmissions.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/SFFA-v.-Harvard-Complaint.pdf">Harvard lawsuit</a> is that the lead plaintiff in the case is not a white student. The plaintiff is an Asian-American student. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130611/original/image-20160714-23365-137rvqu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Asian-Americans participate in an Advancing Justice conference.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/justiceconf/15364290448/in/photolist-ppG1gs-ppEvQx-ppKxNw-pE4tMS-fjpnxG-oKkpH2-oKioP3-ppHAfX-ppDjC4-pG9Svz-pG8YoZ-ppG1qf-pE4uUm-pE3uKL-oKmiSx-pG8XtT-ppGYWb-fjaaza-oKioG9-pFU68K-ppKtHh-ppJvdo-pFVaor-pGefe3-ppJxjY-fjoUu7-pE4oZA-ppHDCP-oKiruy-ppJowh-ppHBEa-ppEuFD-ppGTMy-pE3vFd-fjpa2y-pE4uiw-oKmmzg-pE4usQ-oKik3f-ppKtKG-oKisgd-pE3pYb-pE4qTf-pGeeEs-pFVbe4-pE4px9-ppKvjd-pGefJ1-pGedjw-ppGUdU">Advancing Justice Conference</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“Students for Fair Admissions,” an arm of the Project on Fair Representation, filed a suit against Harvard College on November 17, 2014, on behalf of a Chinese-American applicant who had been rejected from Harvard. The lawsuit charges that Harvard’s admissions policy violates <a href="http://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/for-individuals/race/index.html">Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964</a>, which bars federally funded entities from discriminating based on race or ethnicity.</p>
<p>The “<a href="http://harvardnotfair.org/">Harvard University Not Fair</a>” website greets readers with a photo of an Asian-American student accompanied by the following text: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Were you denied admission to Harvard? It may be because you’re the wrong race.”</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>How it started</h2>
<p>This controversy over how Asian-Americans are being treated in selective college admission was jump-started in 2005, when sociologists <a href="https://www.princeton.edu/%7Etje/">Thomas Espenshade</a> and <a href="http://scholar.princeton.edu/sites/default/files/cchung/files/chang_y_chung.pdf">Chang Chung</a> published <a href="https://www.princeton.edu/%7Etje/files/webOpportunity%20Cost%20of%20Admission%20Preferences%20Espenshade%20Chung%20June%202005.pdf">findings</a> from their study on the effects of affirmative action bans on the racial and ethnic composition of student bodies at selective colleges and universities. </p>
<p>Espenshade and Chung found that if affirmative action were to be eliminated, the acceptance rates for black and <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/12/08/students-adopt-gender-nonspecific-term-latinx-be-more-inclusive">Latino</a> applicants would likely decrease substantially, while the acceptance rate for white applicants would increase slightly. But more than that, what they noted was that the acceptance rate for Asian-American applicants would increase the most by far. </p>
<p>As the researchers explained, Asian-American students “would occupy four out of every five seats created by accepting fewer African-American and Hispanic students.” </p>
<p>Such research has been cited to support claims of admissions discrimination against Asian-Americans. </p>
<p>In the complaint against Harvard, Espenshade’s research was cited as evidence of discrimination against Asian-Americans. Specifically, the lawsuit cited research from 2009 in which Espenshade, this time with coauthor <a href="https://www.rti.org/expert/alexandria-walton-radford">Alexandria Radford,</a> <a href="http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9072.html">found</a> that Asian-American applicants accepted at selective colleges had higher standardized test scores, on average, than other accepted students. </p>
<p>These findings, especially that Asian-American applicants seem to need a higher SAT score than white applicants or other applicants of color in order to be admitted to a selective college are being used as proof that elite institutions like Harvard are discriminating against Asian-Americans in their admissions processes. </p>
<h2>The picture is more complicated</h2>
<p>As we know, selective admissions processes are much more complicated than SAT score data can show. There are many factors that are taken into consideration for college admission. </p>
<p>For example, in the “holistic” admissions processes endorsed by the Supreme Court in Grutter v. Bollinger, standardized text scores are not the only, or even the main, criterion for admission. <a href="https://www.aamc.org/initiatives/holisticreview/about/">“Holistic” review</a> takes many relevant factors into account, including academic achievement, of course, but also factors such as a commitment to public service, overcoming difficult life circumstances, achievements in the arts or athletics, or leadership qualities.</p>
<p>So, why would the plaintiff in the Harvard case conclude that the disparities in SAT scores shown by Espenshade and Radford necessarily indicate that Asian-American applicants are being harmed by race-conscious affirmative action? </p>
<p>Legal scholar <a href="http://apahenational.org/?page_id=402">William Kidder</a> <a href="http://media.asian-nation.org/Kidder-Negative-Action.pdf">has shown</a> that the way Espenshade and Radford’s findings have been interpreted by affirmative action opponents is not accurate. The interpretation of this research itself rests on the faulty assumption that affirmative action is to blame if an academically accomplished Asian-American applicant gets rejected from an elite institution. </p>
<p>Based on his analysis, Kidder concluded, </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Exaggerated claims about the benefits for APAs [Asian Pacific Americans] of ending affirmative action foster a divisive public discourse in which APAs are falsely portrayed as natural adversaries of affirmative action and the interests of African American and Latinos in particular.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>In our opinion as well, focusing on simplistic ideas about standardized tests as the primary evidence for who “deserves” to be admitted to elite institutions like Harvard may serve to stir up resentment among accomplished applicants who get rejected.</p>
<p>As the “Harvard Not Fair” website and accompanying lawsuit demonstrate, these findings have been used to fuel a <a href="http://www.jaconlinejournal.com/archives/vol26.1-2/banning-politics.pdf">politics of resentment</a> among rejected Asian-American applicants.</p>
<p>When speaking with reporters, Espenshade himself has acknowledged that <a href="http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/5/16/complaint-federal-harvard-admissions/">his data are incomplete</a> – given that colleges take myriad factors into account in admissions decisions – and his findings have been overinterpreted and actually <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/11/03/elite">do not prove</a> that colleges discriminate against Asian-American applicants. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/130456/original/image-20160713-12389-1m8kj97.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Are Asian-American students a monolithic group?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/brainchildvn/3005463222/in/photolist-5zzMvq-4E3x4k-gZVoyq-6fVSsc-hyi8DC-8x8MvT-dkX8eD-4E3x56-dkY496-dkX8gg-4Tenr6-gZWMk2-5zziDu-4TAeVw-5zzTqq-5zzX5C-gZWopW-5zzZ8G-5zviMz-4VFbik-bDyRg3-5zzbuG-5zzRBs-dkX8ec-r4DrgY-4WEYRg-5zzUpu-5zzhcm-5zvyzF-5zvdua-9wAUG5-5zvhUB-dkY4de-5zvpVg-5zuXBV-5zvQtz-5zv7a2-5zvoRZ-5zAbwj-5zvAs2-aEfpT3-reqP2q-foRaAe-5zvYLt-5zzY33-5zA4fL-5zv12i-5zvxrk-5zvagc-5zuUp2">Charlie Nguyen</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Moreover, in using <a href="http://harvardnotfair.org/">images of Asian-American students</a> to recruit complainants against Harvard and other highly selective institutions of higher education, the Project on Fair Representation <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/chains-of-babylon">relies on the idea</a> that Asian-Americans comprise a monolithic group. In fact, the term “Asian-American” refers to a <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-there-an-asian-disadvantage-in-higher-ed-44070">diversity of Asian ethnicities</a> in the United States, whose educational opportunities and achievements vary widely. </p>
<p>The 2010 census question on race included check boxes for six Asian groups – Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese – along with a box for “Other Asian,” with a prompt for detailed responses such as “Hmong, Laotian, Thai, Pakistani, Cambodian, and so on.” </p>
<p>In addition, by casting plaintiffs as meritorious and deserving of a spot at an elite university, it also conveys the <a href="http://press.princeton.edu/titles/10134.html">stereotypical received wisdom about Asian-American “model” students</a> who are wronged by race-conscious affirmative action programs. </p>
<h2>The Harvard lawsuit comes next</h2>
<p>At this time, Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, is pending. </p>
<p>Now that Fisher has been decided, this case is the next front in the divisive politics surrounding race-conscious affirmative action in higher education admissions.</p>
<p>Relevant to the Harvard case is that a civil rights complaint alleging that Princeton University discriminates against Asian-American applicants was dismissed in 2015 after a long federal <a href="http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S44/30/14M00/index.xml?section=topstories">Office of Civil Rights investigation</a>.</p>
<p>Although public disagreement about the policy continues, affirmative action is an imperfect, but as yet necessary tool that universities can leverage to cultivate robust and diverse spaces where students learn. June 23’s <em>Fisher</em> ruling underscores that important idea. </p>
<p>Related to the coming public discussions about the Harvard lawsuit, we are of the opinion that race-conscious policies like affirmative action need to be supported. The fact is that “Asian-Americans” have diverse social and educational experiences. And many <a href="https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/digitalServices/pdf/professionals/asian-americans-and-pacific-islanders-facts-not-fiction.pdf">Asian-Americans benefit from affirmative action policies</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/61899/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christina Paguyo receives funding from the National Science Foundation and in the past has received funding from the American Educational Research Association. She is a owner and consultant for Data Luminaries, LLC. She is affiliated with the Democratic Party and is a member of the American Educational Research Association, American Evaluation Association, American Society for Engineering Education, and the Association for the Study of Higher Education. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daryl Maeda and Michele S. Moses do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Here’s why disagreement about affirmative action will not end any time soon. Coming up next is a lawsuit brought by Asian-Americans challenging Harvard’s race-conscious policy.Michele S. Moses, Professor of Educational Foundations, Policy, and Practice, University of Colorado BoulderChristina Paguyo, Post Doctoral Fellow, Colorado State UniversityDaryl Maeda, Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/170102013-08-27T20:30:00Z2013-08-27T20:30:00ZThe ghost of Peter Slipper will still haunt Fisher<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/29827/original/s9s6qp4s-1377259166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Former speaker Peter Slipper is virtually no chance to retain his Queensland seat of Fisher after a highly controversial last term in office.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Dave Hunt</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>A number of seats in Queensland may go a long way to deciding the outcome of the federal election. However, it is doubtful that <a href="http://www.aec.gov.au/profiles/qld/fisher.htm">the seat of Fisher</a>, located in the southern part of the Sunshine Coast, will be one of them. Instead, it will provide an interesting divergence given developments in the last parliamentary term.</p>
<p>Former Speaker of the House of Representatives <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Parliamentarian?MPID=0V5">Peter Slipper</a> has been a constant presence in the seat of Fisher for nearly 30 years. He held the seat from 1984-1987 as a member of the National Party, before losing it to the ALP’s Michael Lavarch, later attorney-general under Paul Keating. </p>
<p>Slipper recaptured the seat in 1993, this time as a Liberal Party candidate. Before 2010, Slipper had been a fairly low-profile MP, barely noticed outside his local electorate. Despite the low profile, Slipper was re-elected on six consecutive occasions.</p>
<p>In 2010, Slipper gained national attention via a series of scandals. Local paper the Sunshine Coast Daily made substantial allegations against Slipper for <a href="http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/peter-slipper-expenses-sunshine-coast/603890/">misusing his parliamentary travel entitlements</a>. This scandal was compounded when Slipper was nominated unopposed to succeed Harry Jenkins as <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-24/harry-jenkins-resigning/3690850">Speaker of the House</a> in November 2011. Concurrently, Slipper resigned from the Liberal Party. </p>
<p>Less than six months later, in April 2012, Slipper’s former staffer James Ashby <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-04-21/calls-for-slipper-to-stand-down-amid-harrassment-claims/3964486">claimed</a> that his boss was sexually harassing him. The subsequent court case led to Slipper <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-09/peter-slipper-resigns-as-speaker/4303966">resigning as Speaker</a>, and he returned to the backbench as an independent MP.</p>
<p>These developments have given the seat of Fisher a higher prominence than it has previously been accustomed to. Aside from Lavarach’s six year term during the Hawke-Keating years, the seat has always been held by conservative parties since its foundation in 1949, and this dominance was a foregone conclusion. </p>
<p>However, redistributions since 2007 have pushed the seat further south into the more working class areas of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland such as the Glasshouse Mountains and Kilcoy. This allowed Labor to make small but significant dents in Slipper’s comfortable margin, which the Liberals hold by a <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2010/guide/fish.htm">not insurmountable cushion of 4.1%</a>.</p>
<p>In the hopes of improving this margin, the Liberal Party endorsed former Howard government minister Mal Brough, who unsuccessfully <a href="http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/liberals-failed-attempt-have-slipper-disendorsed/609434/">tried to oust Slipper</a> as the Liberal Party candidate in 2010. Brough held Fisher’s neighbouring seat of Longman until he was surprisingly defeated in 2007 by uninspiring Labor candidate Jon Sullivan.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/29828/original/f7nd3kfg-1377259941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Former Howard government minister Mal Brough will likely return to parliament as the MP for Fisher.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Petrina Berry</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Throughout Slipper’s tenure, the ALP have struggled to maintain a significant presence in the electorate. Despite winning the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/elections/qld/2012/guide/kawa.htm">state seat of Kawana</a> (which encompasses a significant part of the Fisher electorate) in 2001 and 2004 during the height of Peter Beattie’s dominance, the ALP failed to transfer this success to a federal level. </p>
<p>This time around, Labor have pre-selected Bill Gissane, who has little name recognition in the electorate and will struggle to get any coverage during the campaign, which will be (and has already been) <a href="http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/clive-takes-on-mal-over-ashby-cash/1993757">dominated by the personalities of Slipper and Brough</a>.</p>
<p>Similarly, the minor parties also suffer from these difficulties. In Fisher, the Greens could benefit from a lack of choice on their side of the ideological spectrum. Katter’s Australian Party, on the other hand, is a chance to capture the votes of disaffected ALP voters in the Hinterland booths who are unmoved by the Greens. </p>
<p>The Palmer United Party remain an unknown quantity in terms of voting percentage, and Palmer may have been better suited to run in Fisher where the media attention would have been greater than in its northern neighbour, Fairfax, where he is a candidate. Based on previous elections, however, the minor parties are unlikely to have a significant impact on the result.</p>
<p>A point of interest though will be how high Slipper will poll. Without the Liberal Party brand, Slipper’s vote as an independent candidate will be purely based on personal appeal. The Sunshine Coast Daily’s <a href="http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/slipper-pulls-on-running-shoes/1983274/">recent poll</a> (taken before he announced his candidacy) had Slipper on a exceptionally low 0.5%. Though he will poll higher than this, the ceiling of his vote is difficult to calculate given that Slipper now has a volatile relationship with voters.</p>
<p>This plays into the broader narrative that Fisher will have on election night. The result seems clear cut, but the intrigue lies elsewhere. The Liberals will likely retain Fisher. However, all eyes will be on how Slipper accepts defeat and whether he will choose to go quietly or make one final ripple in the electorate he has been linked with for decades.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/17010/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Todd Winther was a Member of the ALP in the Fisher electorate until he resigned in August of 2011.</span></em></p>A number of seats in Queensland may go a long way to deciding the outcome of the federal election. However, it is doubtful that the seat of Fisher, located in the southern part of the Sunshine Coast, will…Todd Winther, PhD Candidate in Political Science, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.