Seaweed diversity: an Ecuadorian perspective (Tropical East Pacific)

To ensure food and job security, food production systems need to be innovated so that they protect the environment, mitigate climate change and become more climate-resilient. This is an opportunity for seaweed culture which captures nutrients and CO₂ and does not need freshwater or fertilizers. In Ecuador, edible seaweed is being produced by small farmers, but a sustainable biomass valorization strategy is missing. Moreover, a good knowledge of the existing seaweed species is still lacking.

This course offers an introduction to the diversity, taxonomy and biogeography of the seaweeds of the Tropical East Pacific (Ecuador), in the framework of the project Seaweed-based innovations for a resilient aquaculture and agriculture (SIRENA funded by VLIR-UOS).