Women In Aquaculture Scholarship
“A woman can do anything a man can do.” These were the words shared by Geir Olsen, who founded Kvarøy Arctic with his father in 1976, at an intimate dinner party on the island in December 2019.
And, to prove his point, our small 23-member company on Indre Kvarøy in Norway has five female employees. Seven of our eight team members in the U.S. are women.
“Historically, like the culinary industry, women aren’t well represented in aquaculture,” shared Kvarøy Arctic CEO Alf-Gøran Knutsen. “We are hoping to change that with this scholarship opportunity by supporting education in the field and by offering the paid internship to work at our farm.”
It is with this in mind that we at Kvarøy Arctic are pleased to announce we have created the first scholarship for women in aquaculture in partnership the James Beard Foundation—a nonprofit organization whose mission is to celebrate, nurture, and honor chefs and other leaders making America's food culture more delicious, diverse, and sustainable for everyone. Applications for the “Women in Aquaculture” scholarship are available to those studying the subject at a college or university in any country, and can be submitted via the James Beard Foundation website starting May 1, 2020. One recipient will be selected each year.
The $10,000 scholarship includes a paid one-month summer internship on the Kvarøy Arctic salmon farm site. The recipient can continue their internship each year they are in school and will be considered for employment upon graduation.
“It’s been a dream of mine to create a path for women in aquaculture,” says Kvaroy Arctic strategic development lead Jennifer Bushman. “I’m thrilled to be working with a company that shares this mindset and is paving the way for more gender equity by investing in education and real-life experience on the farm. This is truly a rare opportunity and I am eager to see this important initiative realized.”
“This is only one of two international scholarships available from the James Beard Foundation,” says James Beard Foundation Impact Programs Manager Emily Rothkrug. “We are proud to support the leadership shown by Kvarøy Arctic to develop the first-of-its-kind scholarship for women in aquaculture.”
How to Apply:
Application forms are available digitally at jamesbeard.org/scholarships beginning on May 1, 2020.
All scholarship application materials must be submitted by June 11, 2020. Scholarship winners will be notified in August 2020.
About the James Beard Scholarship Program
Established in 1991, the James Beard Foundation Scholarship Program assists students from across the food community including aspiring and established culinary professionals who plan to further their education at a licensed or accredited culinary school or hospitality institution, college, or university. As of 2020, the Foundation has awarded more than $8.5 million in financial aid to over 2,000 recipients.
About the James Beard Foundation
For more than 30 years, the James Beard Foundation has highlighted the centrality of food culture in our daily lives, with a mission to promote good food for good™. Through the James Beard Awards, unique dining experiences at the James Beard House and around the country, scholarships, hands-on learning, and a variety of industry programs that educate and empower leaders in our community, the Foundation has built a platform for chefs and asserted the power of gastronomy to drive behavior, culture, and policy change around food. The organization is committed to giving chefs and their colleagues a voice and the tools they need to make the world more sustainable, equitable, and delicious for everyone. For more information, please visit JamesBeard.org and follow @beardfoundation on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
