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Your generosity can help ensure that our vital work on behalf of aquatic species continues uninterrupted. Please consider donating today so we may upkeep and expand our online database!


fair-fish international association
CHF: CH68 0900 0000 8503 8259 6
EUR: CH51 0900 0000 9136 2602 9
BIC: POFICHBEXXX
Bank: PostFinance, 3030 Bern, Switzerland




Our team

The fair-fish database is a project launched and managed by fair-fish.

 

fair-fish is an NGO aiming at increasing welfare of aquatic animals in captivity and decreasing welfare hazards during catching, applying fair trade with fishermen and -women, and protecting the environment.

 

Meet the passionate individuals who make it all happen! Our team is comprised of dedicated professionals, driven by a shared vision to increase the welfare of aquatic species. Get to know them and discover what fuels their commitment to creating positive change.

Jenny Volstorf

News: Jenny Volstorf
Director & Editor-in-chief since 2020, Researcher & Reviewer since 2013

Jenny is part of the team behind the fair-fish database, as of 2020 as the director as well as researcher, reviewer, and editor-in-chief. A studied psychologist (Chemnitz, Germany) and trained at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development (Berlin, Germany) in her first life, she joined Billo Studer in setting up the FishEthoBase (now fair-fish database) in 2013. Since then, she has invested her time in creating, reviewing, and editing species profiles.

Her aim is to increase welfare of species in captivity by providing knowledge on needs and natural conditions. With the launch of the catch branch end of 2023, the horizon now broadened to finding the least stressful catching methods for wild-caught species and ways to improve them further.

Germanyjenny@..

Caroline Marques Maia

News: Caroline Marques Maia
Researcher since 2020 and Reviewer since 2022

Caroline is a biologist specialised in animal behaviour and welfare. She did a MSc and a PhD in Zoology at Unesp University (Brazil) by investigating choices, preferences, and motivations of fish species. Part of her PhD was developed at Pennsylvania State University (USA).

In 2016, together with Gilson Volpato, Caroline proposed the Preference Index to evaluate animal preference responses, including fishes, in a more reliable way. She also graduated as a specialist in scientific journalism and mantains a blog about animal behaviour and welfare. Living in Brazil, she works as an independent researcher and is interested in fish preference and motivation to access environmental resources and how to use this to improve the welfare of these animals.

Caroline is part of the team behind the fair-fish database since November 2020, creating, reviewing, and updating fish profiles. She also collaborates with other team members on scientific research and dissemination.

Brazilcarol@..

María J. Cabrera-Álvarez

News: María J. Cabrera-Álvarez
Researcher since 2020 and Reviewer since 2022

María is a biologist with a specialty in fish behaviour and neuroscience. She did a MSc in Animal Behaviour and Neuroscience at Utrecht University (The Netherlands), a PhD in Fish Social Behaviour and Neuroscience at McGill University (Canada), and worked at a Comparative Cognition laboratory at University of Cambridge (UK).

María is interested in the underlying mechanisms of animal cognition and social behaviour and in how we can use this information to improve the life and welfare of farmed fishes. She joined the FishEthoGroup team and the Fish Ethology and Welfare Group at CCMAR in September 2020. She is part of the team behind the fair-fish database, where she is responsible for creating, reviewing, and updating fish profiles. María also collaborates with other team members in behavioural and physiological research on farmed fish species and participates in the organisation of FishEthoGroup events.

Portugalmaria@..

Paolo Panizzon

News: Paolo Panizzon
Researcher since 2024

Paolo is a Biologist specialised in Behavioral Ecology, with a long experience in working with fish species. He got both his Bachelor's and Master's in Italy, studying fish personality. He then graduated in both Australia and The Netherlands with a joint PhD in fish laterality. His experience with fishes led him to develop a deep interest in fish behaviour and welfare.

After graduation, Paolo looked for opportunities to put to good use the skills and knowledge he developed during his PhD. He began his research on the fair-fish database in 2024. His goal is to contribute to the development of sustainable aquaculture practices. As global demand for food continues to rise, aquaculture and sustainable fishing offer a promising solution to meet this need while minimising the environmental impact of traditional livestock production.

Sebastian Scholz

News: Sebastian Scholz
Admin/Webmaster since 2016

Sebastian is the web designer, programmer, admin, and hoster of the fair-fish database website.

He studied sociology, applied computer science, and European history in Chemnitz (Germany) and in Växjö (Sweden). As part of the team of the "Fahrradkino Chemnitz" (bicycle cinema), Sebastian tries to show people the value of electric power in an entertaining way. He is also a programmer/developer of driving simulators and a photographer.

Sebastian has been taking care of the fair-fish database and other websites of fair-fish since 2016.

Germanyadmin@..

Former members

Joly Ghanawi
Former Researcher (2023-2024)
Billo Heinzpeter Studer
Founder and former Director (2012-2020)
João L. Saraiva
Former Researcher (2016-2022)
Pablo Arechavala-Lopez
Former Reviewer (2016-2022)
Maria Filipa Castanheira
Former Researcher (2016-2021)
Kerstin Glaus
Former Reviewer (2015-2018)
Tanya Slosberg
Former Researcher (2015-2016)
Ana Roque
Former Researcher (2014-2015)
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