Rasmuson Fisheries Research Center
The Center was founded in 1994 by Elmer E. Rasmuson with a $1 million dollar endowment to the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The endowment continued to grow through a $100,000 donation by Wards Cove Packing Company and additional contributions by Mr. Rasmuson.
After Mr. Rasmuson's death in December 2000, a second major endowment in support of the Center was created through a bequest from Mr. Rasmuson's estate. The endowments are managed by the University of Alaska Foundation, and interest on the principal is used to support the research of graduate students that contributes toward the scientific or applied knowledge base of Alaska's marine environs and resources.
Our Mission
The Rasmuson Fisheries Research Center's mission is to promote excellence in research related to fisheries, and to develop young fisheries scientists.
Research Goals
Research priorities are evaluated annually by the center's Advisory Board. It is intended that research results will have the potential of adding to the economic and social value of fish and shellfish utilization, and will contribute to long-term benefits for Alaska.
The research priorities set by the board currently are:
- Ecology, biology, distribution and systematics of species of fish and shellfish affected by fisheries, both target and nontarget species;
- Responses of fish and shellfish and of stocks of fish and shellfish to variations of physical and biotic conditions;
- Genetic structure of Alaskan fish and shellfish populations;
- Fluctuations of fish and shellfish stocks, interactions of forage species with consumers including mammals and birds, and the ecosystems in which they occur;
- Development of the shellfish aquaculture industry in Alaska;
- Human dimensions of fishery systems; or
- Impacts of climate change on coastal fisheries and their communities and/or impacts of changing fisheries and ecosystems on human communities.