Few of us would have considered the possibility of a global pandemic at the beginning of 2020, and most of us had quite specific plans of what we wished to achieve in the year ahead. Yet as the year progressed, researchers in aquaculture in every corner of the globe faced increasing restrictions affecting their working lives.

The COVID‐19 pandemic has had tragic consequences including death, severe illness and extreme isolation in particular for many of our older and respected colleagues. It has thus caused a significant loss of knowledge and (so often underestimated) wisdom in aquaculture science. We must acknowledge this professional loss, and the personal loss of so many individuals around the world, before we begin to consider the impact on our working lives. Perhaps this will make us more circumspect about our own challenges, which while not trivial, are lesser than those of people suffering from COVID‐19 or caring for them.

During the year, JWAS was fortunate to publish an excellent editorial on recent studies of the commercial impacts of COVID‐19 on aquaculture, aquaponics, and allied businesses in the United States (van Senten et al. 2020). There is a dearth of such analysis for impacts on active researchers, despite the fact that these have been manifold. First, the pandemic restrictions have meant colleagues have been unable to access their research sites and laboratories for most, if not all, of the past year. This has negatively affected experimental setup and completion, data collection and analyses in many laboratories worldwide. The advancement of projects funded locally, nationally or at international levels has thus been seriously impacted over the past year.

The inability to travel has resulted in many colleagues also being unable to carry out activities within their international collaborations or to complete any tasks in the foreign nations where they had planned to work. Other projects have been unable to fill positions awarded to overseas postdocs or international scientists with severe effects on task completion. For those colleagues who were able to focus more on local and national projects in lieu of international travel, there may have been some compensation of the lost progress. However, observations suggest that this compensation has been negligible. How long this will continue and what it will mean in terms of scientific outputs in 2021 is hard to predict. Nonetheless, it is fair to say for many projects and researchers that 2020 was a lost year.

International travel has not only been impacted in terms of scientific exchange or work in other nations by researchers. Contributors and organisers are sorely aware that all international conferences for aquaculture have been cancelled or moved to online formats in the past year. This trend also looks very likely to continue for at least the first half of 2021. The impact of this is of course felt keenly by the editorial team at JWAS, with limitations to our ability to take in the excellent work being conducted by colleagues around the world. We are also unable to share our thoughts or garner your insights into current and future hot topics for aquaculture research. Not only have we lost the chance to network in person, there is a large impact on the entire scientific community in the lack of informal face‐to‐face exchanges in and around conference sessions all around the world. The implications for this are significant in terms of reduced information exchange within the aquaculture community worldwide. How far this has been compensated by online collaboration, online conferences and other digital forms of communication is hard to estimate. I certainly have greatly missed the formal and informal exchanges which I so value from national and international conferences, workshops, meetings and exchanges. Many of us unable to travel to our institutes, research sites and laboratories have experienced this loss of spontaneous opportunities to create and develop new ideas at a local level as well.

Many researchers are also responsible for the well‐being and advancement of early postdocs and students completing degrees alongside teaching courses at universities. The pandemic's impact on the student experience and learning, through rapidly implemented online courses, lacking the hands‐on lab sessions or practicals, and absence of on‐farm or on‐site experience is already large. It is extremely important in the coming year that we as researchers and mentors improve the student experience as much as we can. If possible, we must attempt to make up for the face‐to‐face time those students have been unable to enjoy over the past year. Ensuring the optimal education of our young and upcoming scientists and producers is an extremely important part of our response as academics to ensure that no long‐term negative impact of the pandemic is felt within our young scientific community.

When the pandemic began, I mused whether there would be a flood of manuscripts submitted to the journal from academics who were forced to spend time at home, unable to commence exciting new research or new experiments. Instead, they would be forced to finally analyze and write up data sets, some of which may have been neglected for some time. This has certainly been the case for me and some colleagues in the first months of the pandemic and may have led to an increase in submissions in the second and third quarter of the year for JWAS. This however is unlikely to continue, as exciting datasets run out and the motivation of those banished to endless home‐office time fades. The researchers in the aquaculture science community are increasingly desperate instead for some return to normality as soon as possible.

Exploring what we can, or were forced to, do differently during the pandemic is important. For many, it has been surprising how much can be achieved in online meetings and conferences especially when developing new content or summarizing important subject areas. Existing networks and existing collaborations can also be kept active and vibrant at a distance using the variety of tools available for digital information exchange. Yet development of new networks and working relationships via digital or online platforms has proven much more difficult. Where physical research has been limited by lab, site or country access, some modeling and artificial intelligence approaches have shown real promise. These positives should be built on, if and when the restrictions are lifted. Many other positive insights and efficiencies have come with the pandemic. It is important that we acknowledge them and learn from them to improve our outputs and our services to those we work with and those we teach.

It remains very difficult to offer advice or ideas about the year ahead. Nonetheless, it is important to note that adversity often creates opportunities for rapid change, positive developments, new ideas and innovation. We must apply the diverse skills of our scientific community to ensure that the damage done to aquaculture is not long‐term and that the lessons learned in terms of vulnerability of supply chains and aquaculture production, along with aquaculture's importance in times of adversity are not lost. Young researchers, especially doctorate and early postdocs must “catch the curve” this year. They should not be negatively influenced in their career development or choices after a year of pandemic restrictions. Equally, we must ensure the continued growth of active scientific research and quality literature around aquaculture, which we have been so lucky to be involved in over the past decades.

So as the year commences with exciting opportunities and interesting times ahead, let us all take stock, learn and hope for a 2021 filled with positive new beginnings.

Matt Slater

Executive Editor

Journal of the World Aquaculture Society

我们中很少有人会考虑到2020年初发生全球大流行的可能性，而且我们大多数人都制定了非常具体的计划，以实现我们希望在来年实现的目标。然而，随着这一年的发展，全球各地的水产养殖研究人员面临着越来越多的限制，影响了他们的工作生活。

COVID-19大流行造成了悲剧性后果，包括死亡，严重疾病和极端孤立，尤其是对我们许多年长且受人尊敬的同事而言。因此，它造成了水产养殖科学知识的重大损失（常常被低估）。在我们开始考虑对工作生活的影响之前，我们必须承认这种专业上的损失以及世界上许多人的个人损失。也许这将使我们对自己的挑战更加谨慎，尽管挑战不小，但要比遭受COVID-19或关怀的人的挑战要小。

在这一年中，JWAS很幸运地发表了一篇出色的社论，介绍了有关COVID-19对美国水产养殖，水培技术及相关企业的商业影响的最新研究（van Senten等人，2020年）。尽管这些分析是多方面的，但缺乏对活跃研究人员的影响的此类分析。首先，大流行的限制意味着过去一年中大部分（如果不是全部）同事都无法访问其研究地点和实验室。这对全球许多实验室的实验设置和完成，数据收集和分析产生了负面影响。因此，在过去的一年中，地方，国家或国际各级资助的项目的进展受到了严重影响。

由于无法旅行，许多同事也无法在其国际合作范围内开展活动或在计划工作的外国中完成任何任务。其他项目无法填补授予海外博士后或国际科学家的职位，这严重影响了任务的完成。对于那些能够将更多的精力放在代替国际旅行的地方和国家项目上的同事来说，可能已经对失去的进展有所补偿。但是，观察结果表明，这种补偿微不足道。很难预测到2021年将持续多久，以及对科学产出的意义。尽管如此，对于许多项目和研究人员而言，可以公平地说2020年是迷茫的一年。

研究人员不仅在其他国家的科学交流或工作方面影响了国际旅行。贡献者和组织者非常意识到，在过去的一年中，所有国际水产养殖大会都被取消或转为在线形式。至少在2021年上半年，这种趋势似乎也很可能会持续下去。JWAS的编辑团队当然会敏锐地感受到这种趋势的影响，但由于我们接受全球各地同事所做的出色工作的能力受到限制，世界。我们也无法分享我们的想法或收集您对当前和未来水产养殖研究热点的见解。我们不仅失去了亲自面对面交流的机会，在世界范围内的会议期间和会议周围缺乏非正式的面对面交流，对整个科学界产生了巨大影响。就减少全世界水产养殖界内部的信息交流而言，这具有重要意义。很难估计在线协作，在线会议和其他数字通信形式所能补偿的程度。我当然非常想念正式和非正式的交流，在国家和国际会议，讲习班，会议和交流中，我非常珍视这些交流。我们中的许多人无法前往我们的研究所，研究地点和实验室，也经历了自发的机会丧失了在地方一级创建和发展新思想的机会。就减少全世界水产养殖界内部的信息交流而言，这具有重要意义。很难估计在线协作，在线会议和其他数字通信形式所能补偿的程度。我当然非常想念正式和非正式的交流，在国家和国际会议，讲习班，会议和交流中，我非常珍视这些交流。我们中的许多人无法前往我们的研究所，研究地点和实验室，也经历了自发的机会丧失了在地方一级创建和发展新思想的机会。就减少全世界水产养殖界内部的信息交流而言，这具有重要意义。很难估计在线协作，在线会议和其他数字通信形式所能补偿的程度。我当然非常想念正式和非正式的交流，在国家和国际会议，讲习班，会议和交流中，我非常珍视这些交流。我们中的许多人无法前往我们的研究所，研究地点和实验室，也经历了自发的机会丧失了在地方一级创建和发展新思想的机会。我当然非常想念正式和非正式的交流，在国家和国际会议，讲习班，会议和交流中，我非常珍视这些交流。我们中的许多人无法前往我们的研究所，研究地点和实验室，也经历了自发的机会丧失了在地方一级创建和发展新思想的机会。我当然非常想念正式和非正式的交流，在国家和国际会议，讲习班，会议和交流中，我非常珍视这些交流。我们中的许多人无法前往我们的研究所，研究地点和实验室，也经历了自发的机会丧失了在地方一级创建和发展新思想的机会。

许多研究人员还负责早期博士后的福祉和发展，以及完成学位和大学教学课程的学生。通过快速实施的在线课程，缺乏动手实验课程或实践知识以及缺乏农场或现场经验，大流行对学生体验和学习的影响已经很大。在接下来的一年中，作为研究人员和导师，我们将尽最大努力改善学生体验，这一点极为重要。如果可能的话，我们必须设法弥补那些学生在过去一年中无法享受的面对面时间。

大流行开始时，我想着是否会有大量学者将论文投稿到期刊上，而这些论文被迫在家里呆了一段时间，无法开始令人兴奋的新研究或新实验。取而代之的是，他们将不得不最终分析和编写数据集，其中一些数据可能已经被忽略了一段时间。在大流行的头几个月中，对于我和一些同事而言确实是这种情况，并且可能导致JWAS在今年第二和第三季度的提交量有所增加。但是，随着令人兴奋的数据集用完，那些被驱逐到无休止的家庭办公时间的动机逐渐消失，这种情况不太可能继续。水产养殖科学界的研究人员越来越绝望，希望尽快恢复正常。

探索在大流行期间我们可以做或被迫做不同的事情很重要。对于许多人来说，令人惊讶的是，在在线会议中可以取得多少成就，特别是在开发新内容或总结重要主题领域时。使用各种可用于数字信息交换的工具，还可以保持现有网络和现有协作的活跃性并保持一定距离。然而，事实证明，通过数字或在线平台开发新网络和工作关系要困难得多。在物理研究受到实验室，站点或国家/地区访问限制的情况下，某些建模和人工智能方法已显示出真正的希望。如果解除限制，以及何时解除限制，这些积极因素都应建立。大流行还带来了许多其他积极的见解和效率。

提供有关来年的建议或想法仍然非常困难。但是，必须指出的是，逆境通常会为快速变化，积极发展，新思想和创新创造机会。我们必须运用我们科学界的各种技能，以确保对水产养殖业的损害不是长期的，并确保在供应链和水产养殖业的脆弱性方面汲取的教训以及在逆境中水产养殖业的重要性不会丢失。年轻的研究人员，尤其是博士学位和早期博士后，必须在今年“赶上曲线”。经过一年的大流行限制，他们不应受到职业发展或选择的负面影响。同样，我们必须确保围绕水产养殖的活跃科学研究和高质量文献的持续增长，

因此，随着新的一年的开始，机遇充满希望，有趣的时刻到来，让我们大家盘点，学习并希望到2021年充满积极的新起点。

马特·斯莱特

执行编辑

世界水产养殖学会杂志