Aquaculture-aided aquatic restoration and conservation: Highlights, challenges, and key lessons from global case studies

Aquaculture has long been used in the production of farmed seafood and the enhancement of fisheries. As awareness around global biodiversity loss and ambitious goals for conservation and restoration grow, there is increasing interest in expanding the use of aquaculture through approaches that go beyond traditional fisheries enhancement. Here we take a case study approach to identify highlights, limitations/challenges, and key lessons from aquaculture-aided conservation, and restoration initiatives. Nine detailed case studies are presented, involving freshwater and marine fish, invertebrates, and macroalgae from multiple countries in situations ranging from moderate to severe conservation or restoration need. These initiatives fostered cross-sector collaborations, advanced important ecological and biological knowledge, and helped strengthen localized resource stewardship. However, these initiatives faced limitations, including ecological constraints, technical complexity, social dynamics, and resource/economic challenges. Overcoming these barriers to advance this growing field will require: 1) collaboration across disciplines (ecology, aquaculture, conservation, social science) and sectors (science, policy, and practice); 2) open sharing of success, lessons learned, and failures; and 3) increased investment in research, infrastructure, and long-term monitoring. These case studies collectively demonstrate the growing potential of aquaculture-aided restoration and conservation as a powerful tool to assist in global conservation and restoration initiatives. By working together, sharing knowledge, and confronting limitations, we can build more effective ecological solutions and fully harness aquaculture’s capacity to contribute to global biodiversity and sustainability goals.