URI_Research_Magazine_2010-2011_Melissa-McCarthy

multi- and interdisciplinary research

Sustainability: It’s Not Just About Energy Anymore.

In a developed society like the United States, the choices facing consumers can be staggering. This goes for food as well as more lasting products, such as clothing and TVs, and every day the choices seem to grow: Should you buy butter or margarine? Is free-range chicken healthier than the chicken raised in coops? And what about fish? How can you know the fish you are eating is safe? Where did it come from? How was it caught or raised? These latter questions have been the research province of Cathy Roheim, a professor in the University of Rhode Island’s (URI) department of environmental and natural resource economics and a nationally recognized expert on eco-labeling and its impact on the market for seafood. Her research spans across diverse disciplines from fisheries sciences to economics to aquaculture. “What I do is try to figure out whether or not the market is creating economic incentives to move toward sustainability,” said Roheim. Sustainability in fisheries is controversial, and not a simple term. At a minimum it might mean that the world is not depleting fisheries by over-harvesting, nor is it creating new ecological problems with aquaculture methods which, in many countries, are not well governed. With seafood consumption on the rise, assisted by the world’s ever growing population, sustainability has assumed a new urgency in the planet’s quest to feed itself. “The issue with both capture species and aquaculture is: Is it being done in a way that’s environmentally, economically and socially sustainable?” Roheim noted.

That’s the big question driving the multidisciplinary research of Roheim, who is a frequent advisor to industry, environmental groups and others interested in using the market to promote sustainable fisheries. She also currently serves as lead on the Sustainable Seafood Initiative, a joint program of Rhode Island Sea Grant and the College of the Environment and Life Sciences, which was created to educate policy- makers, retailers, the fishing industry and others about the effect of market-based efforts (such as eco-labeling) to promote sustainability. But within this broad objective of sustainability, Roheim has carved out a more specific line of inquiry: Namely, what drives consumers to make the choices they do and are they willing to pay more for fish they know has been caught or raised in an environmentally sound manner? Does labeling fish to show it meets sustainability standards make a difference to consumers? Or not? Multiple research projects since 1997 have looked at different aspects of these and other related questions, said Roheim. Currently, she is the lead investigator on a project funded with a $360,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which has as its goal helping consumers weigh the health benefits versus risks of consuming aquaculture products. Roheim’s co-investigators on the project are Robert Johnston, an economist at Clark University, and Seth Tuler, a risk communication specialist from the Social and Environmental Research Institute. Tuler will develop information tools for consumers contrasting health benefits and risks of farm-raised fish based upon the best scientific literature.

The University of Rhode Island 32