Ve spolupráci s Institutem akvakultury a rybářství při Wageningen University and Research, Nizozemsko (AFI WUR) jako vedoucí institucí připravujeme dvoufázový projekt Horizon zaměřený na výživu ryb v rybničních systémech, který integruje témata cirkulárního biohospodářství a zdraví planety. Ve dnech 16.-17.04.2023 proběhla oficiální schůzka k projektu v AFI WUR, které se za FROV JU zúčastnil doc. Ing. Jan Mráz, Ph.D. (jako spoluřešitel projektu) a Dr. Koushik Roy (jako hlavní řešitel pracovního balíčku).

Setkání proběhlo úspěšně. Pracovní balíček, za který by byla FROV JU zodpovědná, by se týkal "rybniční akvakultury a výživy kaprů" v rámci „VP3 – Udržitelná akvakultura“ výzkumného centra CENAKVA.

Je také potěšující, že výzkumná skupina zabývající se výživou ryb v malých rybnících na FROV JU, konkrétně Ústavu akvakultury a ochrany vod (UAOV), získala mezinárodní pozornost vědců zaměřených na potravinový systém a odborníků na výživu zvířat. Na fotografii je začínající vědkyně zabývající se potravinovým systémem Dr. Ollie van Hal z AFI WUR, která představila modely k řešení budoucího suchozemského potravinového systému a později hovořila o tom, jak by FROV JU mohla pomoci rozšířit model díky integraci vodního potravinového systému s českými rybníky. Dr. Koushik Roy dále informoval o podaném projektu GAČR týkající se zahraničního postdoktorandského stipendia na AFI WUR, které by v případě úspěchu mohlo být využito k rozvoji podobných modelů.

From 16th to 20th May 2022, representatives of the FFPW USB, Vladimír Žlábek, Michal Hojdekr and Martin Vlček, took part in internships aimed at strengthening the expertise and know-how in the areas of Management, International affairs and development, Ecology, Environmental protection and Aquaculture. The internship took place in the National Center for Mariculture of the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research in Eilat.

From 9 to 13 May, we (Alžběta Strouhová, Lucie Kačerová) participated in the Staff Week, organised as part of the Erasmus + program by the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Spain. Our interest was to establish new contacts at the international level. Staff Week was attended by 40 participants from 17 European and African countries. As part of the program, we visited, among others, the Marine Science and Technology Park and The Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (PLOCAN).

From 12 to 14 July 2022, I paid a visit to AquaForum, Bern University of Applied Science (Switzerland) and conducted a final sampling for European perch fed different level of Hermetia illucens meal in combination with poultry meal as replacement for fish meal. The aim of the trip was also preparation and design for next joint experiment (collaboration with RethinkResource GmbH, Coop Switzerland and Tropenhaus Frutigen).

On April 13^th and 14^th, 2022, I attended a joint INTERREG workshop in Aigen-Schlägl, Austria, with colleagues from the Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Biochemistry¨(Jiří Koleček, Vladimír Žlábek). The aim of the workshop was to establish cooperation with BOKU Vienna in the field of Environmental chemistry/Biochemistry. For this purpose, a number of professional presentations were held and colleagues from BOKU prepared interesting excursions with practical examples of the results of their activities in the field. The workshop took place within the project KPF-01-335.

This event was attended by: Koleček Jiří, Randák Tomáš, Turek Jan, Avramovic Mladen, Žlábek Vladimír, Fedorova Ganna, Grabic Roman, Koubová Anna, Bořík Adam a Brooks Bryan William.

On the 24. 7. 2023, together with Martin Bláha, Christoph Steinbach, Thora Lieke and Jan Regenda, I visited the Lehr- und Beispielsbetrieb Lindbergmühle, which belongs to the Bezirk Niederbayern - Fachberatung für Fischerei. We were received by the director dr. Stephan Paintner and his colleagues, and the subject of the working meeting was, in addition to a detailed tour of the workplace, a discussion on potential topics of cooperation in the field of fisheries and water protection. During the working meeting, we also discussed issues of support with a representative of the regional council and the chairman of the association Natuparkeverband Bayern, Dr. Heinrich Schmidt.

In the period from 15 to 20 March 2022, Michal Hojdekr took part in a business trip to Dubai. He took part in the trip together with other university representatives, experts in the field of construction, transport and Smart Cities. The aim of this trip was, among other things, to participate in the world exhibition EXPO 2020, which is divided into 3 main sectors, namely Sustainability, Mobility and Opportunity. The official visit of the Czech national exposition, whose pavilion Czech spring is located in the Sustainability sector, was planned in such a way as to be able to visit the official presentation of FENIX, which together with the S.A.W.E.R. producing water from the air using solar energy, the core of the Czech pavilion. We were personally guided through the Czech pavilion by the General Commissioner of the Czech Pavilion, Mgr. Jiří František Potužník.

Sustainability and social responsibility have recently been a strong issue in the university environment. In the context of these trends, the knowledge gained during the business trip will be further transferred to the JU environment.

From May 23^rd till May 27^th, I attended the International Training School on Sustainable Resource Recovery Strategies Towards Zero Waste at the University of Borås in Sweden. The training, organized by FULLRECO4US - COST Action 20133, covered a broad range of topics, for instance, laws, regulations, policies and social aspects of resource recovery and the techno-economic assessment of waste valorization technologies. Furthermore, insights into current ‘hot topics’ such as anaerobic sludge digestion, bioreactors, and nutrient recovery from (waste)water were given.

I am looking forward to implementing the acquired knowledge in my research with the help of my colleagues at FROV and my new contacts abroad. I want to acknowledge the financial support I received from the COST Action to participate in the training in person.

From 8^th to 12^thMay 2023 I participated in the "staff week" at the University of Malaga in Spain. A total of 50 staff members from different universities (from a total of 30 countries) participated in this staff week. The week's programme included mainly familiarization with the University of Malaga, including a visit to the Rector's Office and networking with the possibility of cooperation.

From May 15 to 28, 2023, I completed an Erasmus+ internship at the secretariat of the European Aquaculture Society in Ostend (Belgium). During the internship, I learned more about the organization of the largest European aquaculture event, the Aquaculture Europe conference. The internship was mainly focused on getting involved in the overall organization of Aquaculture Europe, which will take place in Vienna on September 18–21, 2023, getting to know the roles of EAS staff, steering committee, program co-chairs and local organizing committee. I was involved in the compilation of the scientific program, industry-oriented events, social program and activities organized for students. Among other things, after completing the internship, I was appointed student coordinator for Aquaculture Europe 2023 and became part of the team responsible for preparing the Industry forum.

From 10 to 12 May 2022, we paid a visit to AquaForum, Bern University of Applied Science Switzerland and conducted a sampling for European perch fed dietary alternative protein sources. The aim of the trip was also the transport of experimental diets within a joint experiment.

Dr. Carlos Yanes met with the Blue planet company biology staff from 9 to 13:30. The main meeting focus was on looking at new systems design for a rotifer system for new potential prototype.

From 5th to 15th August 2022, representatives of the FFPW USB, Michal Hojdekr and Martin Vlček, took part in internships aimed at strengthening the expertise and know-how in the areas of Management, International affairs and development, Internal evaluation and Project management. The internship took place at the University of Calgary, Canada.

Three astacologists from our faculty, Martin Bláha, Lukáš Veselý and Filip Ložek, visited the 5^th Croatian Symposium on Invasive Species held in Zagreb, Croatia. Here, all scientists presented oral contributions on topics related to their research, i.e., “New kids on the block”: crab species introductions appear in European inland waters (MB), Invasive signal crayfish modified trophic niche width and food source utilisation of noble crayfish in sympatric locality (LV) and Overlooked biodiversity depletion: signal crayfish as a menace for European ectosymbionts (FL). Before the symposium, astacologists visited a small stream in Plomin Luka, near Rijeka, where they did an astacological survey. This stream is relatively short, with warm water originating near the power plant. For this time, any invasive crayfish species were not found there.

From 30 October - 1 November 2023 we participated in a meeting to launch the international MSCA-DN CRYOSTORE project. More information about the project at the following address.

I participated in the English course organized by the language school Bayswater in Cyprus as part of the ERASMUS+ program from October 15, 2023, to October 22, 2023.

It was an intensive general English course.

On September 20-22, 2023, we (Petr Císař, Mohammad Mehdi Ziaei) started the TNA project focused on the automatic monitoring of fish diseases at the Denmark Technical University (DTU). The trip's goal was the initial sampling of fish and installing a camera system in cultivation tanks. The project will continue until December, and data from the tanks will be recorded using remote access.

On December 12-13, 2023, we (Petr Císař and Mohammad Mehdi Ziaei) completed an experiment within the TNA project - early detection of fish diseases at DTU in Denmark. The experiment was carried out in collaboration with FROV, DTU (Denmark) and ECAAH (Italy). As part of a 3-month project, I used video cameras to record rainbow trout infected with RMS for the development of an automatic system for detecting the symptoms of this disease. The results of the project will be published as a scientific article.

I had my Ph.D internship at Montpellier Institute of Cancer Research (IRCM), University of Montpellier, France. The internship took place from 1^st October- 31^st December 2023).

The study focused on assessing the activation of various human and zebrafish nuclear receptors by environmental water samples.  I also tested 24 pure compounds on human and zebrafish progesterone receptor cell lines to observe differences in activation.

During my stay, I learnt how to use robots to perform invitro bioassays. I was also able to build connections with other scientists in the field and discussed future collaborations.

I visited INRAE, France, for a small research project from June to September 2023 as a part of my study plan funded by the ERASMUS mobility program. The study was focused on the in vitro culture and cryopreservation of zebrafish embryoid bodies. I would describe INRAE as a vibrant research environment, and the colleagues from the lab were very supportive and welcoming. This short visit helped me learn new scientific techniques and build new networks.