UN Student Program aims to dispel myths and promote facts about aquaculture

‘Farmers of the Water’ toolkit aims to debunk anti-fish farming myths and empower students to become sustainable aquaculture advocates

By Fabian Dawson
SeaWestNews

A new education initiative spearheaded by the   UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is taking direct aim at the myths surrounding fish farming, arming students with the tools to challenge misinformation and champion sustainability.

The Farmers of the Water education toolkit, launched by the FAO’s General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), is part of a wider strategy to foster understanding and public acceptance of aquaculture—an industry often maligned by misinformation by anti-fish farming activists.

“For aquaculture to gain social acceptance, public awareness is essential,” said Houssam Hamza, Aquaculture Officer at GFCM.

“The education toolkit was designed with a clear mission: to equip the next generation with the knowledge and skills to make informed choices about aquaculture and sustainability,” he said, according to report published by the Global Seafood Alliance.

Designed for students aged 5 to 18, the toolkit blends science with interactive, hands-on learning. It explores the environmental, social and economic benefits of aquaculture, showing how farmed aquatic food systems can help ensure food security and support local economies.

“Why? Because the future of aquaculture isn’t just about increasing production—it’s about doing so responsibly, ensuring food security, protecting the environment and engaging communities,” said Hamza.

Structured in three parts, the program includes a teacher-focused overview of aquaculture, play-based learning for younger students, and project-based teamwork for teens. It also encourages students to become ambassadors for aquaculture in their communities, reshaping public perception from the ground up.

But this is no ordinary classroom exercise. The GFCM has gone beyond traditional teaching methods, installing aquaponics units in select schools to bring fish farming concepts to life. In Lebanon, Egypt, and Tunisia, students are already planting herbs, harvesting produce, and even cooking their own meals using ingredients from school-based aquaculture systems.

The toolkit also tackles some of the most common misconceptions about aquaculture head-on.

Among them: “Does aquaculture harm the environment?” and “Is aquaculture only for big industries?”

Through real-world examples, students learn that responsible aquaculture practices, including sustainable feed use and habitat conservation that can help protect ecosystems, not degrade them.

“Students explore real-life examples of small-scale aquaculture and see how it benefits families, entrepreneurs, and entire regions, not just large corporations,” Hamza said.

The toolkit also emphasizes how aquaculture products which are rich in omega-3s, vitamins, and essential amino acids, contribute to healthy diets and global food security.

“Children are not just the consumers of tomorrow, they are also the consumers of today,” Hamza said.

“By investing in their knowledge and awareness, we are shaping a future generation that values healthy eating, embraces the Mediterranean diet, and understands the importance of sustainable aquatic foods,” he said.

What sets this toolkit apart, Hamza emphasized, is that it was created not just for students but with them. Pilot schools across the region provided direct feedback, allowing the GFCM to refine its content and ensure it was age-appropriate, engaging, and adaptable to different learning environments.

The toolkit’s impact is already being felt with requests for translations pouring in from across the region for versions in Arabic, Spanish, and French.

Hamza and his team are now preparing to expand the program, gathering feedback through more school pilots and working with local partners to ensure the toolkit evolves with the needs of students and educators.

In a time when aquaculture continues to be falsely portrayed by activist-driven campaigns, initiatives like Farmers of the Water are flipping the script by giving young people the tools to ask better questions, seek truthful answers, and become champions of a sustainable future, said Hamza.

Because in the end, the future of aquaculture doesn’t just lie in policy or production, it lies in the minds of those who will inherit it, he said.

(Main image shows students engaging with the Farmers of the Water toolkit to explore sustainable aquaculture. – FAO image)