Delphi Research Method - just a thought on Curing World Hunger with Aquaculture

Curing World Hunger with Aquaculture 2025
Aquaculture is defined as the rearing of aquatic organisms under controlled or semi-controlled conditions. Aquaculture is not new. Many ancient civilizations had used some form of aquaculture. In China, the aquaculture can be traced back to around 3500 B.C. with the culture of the common carp. In 475 B.C. The oldest document on fish culture was written by Fan Li, a politician and administrator, dated back to 475 B.C. His document described methods for pond construction, brood stock selection, stocking, managing ponds and fish harvesting. In ancient Egypt, aquaculture seems to have evolved in parallel with the development of irrigation. Even though there is no document exists, drawings in tombs, dated back to about 2000 B.C. showed the aquaculture of tilapia. Other cultures such as the ancient Rome, English and European all had some types of aquaculture dating back many thousand years.
One aspect of aquaculture is called aquaponics, or the combination of aquaculture and hydroponics. Many scientists and researchers believe aquaponics could be a key component to a more sustainable, resilient food system. I believe aquaponics is the solution to world hunger. Culturally speaking, it is something humans have done for thousands of years but in much smaller scales. With advance in science and technology, new approaches to aquaponics can be developed and taught to tribes, villages, towns, cities all over the world.

Let’s say that the goal for the project is “to solicit expert opinion for a set of standard turnkey aquaponic systems catering to different topographies, weathers and cultures”, I think the Delphi method of research is probably best suit for this project. The participants will be from different parts of the world. They can conduct their own onsite research including pilot studies; refine their views as they learn from their experiences and as they receive feedback from the research team.
In addition to the ‘cultural readiness’ for the project, the need for inland communities to have sea and fresh water products, the need to decrease pressure on wild fisheries, and the need to have products from green and clean sources are all positive environmental forces. Government grants and private donation will make the project possible, however, until the technology become cheaper, some of the systems are still too expensive to implement, one example is the RAS (Recirculating Aquaculture System). Local and international rules, regulations and restrictions may also impact the project. These governmental forces will need to be studied up front in the feasibility study.