Sharks International 2026

Sharks International is the world’s largest shark, ray, and chimaera scientific conference and takes place every 4 years. Blue Resources Trust won the bid to host this conference in 2026 in Sri Lanka, which would make it the first time for this conference on the Asian continent. This would ensure accessibility to a wide group of scientists, policy makers, and students that typically cannot partake in such conferences due to visa restrictions and/or travel costs. Additionally, while previous iterations of this conference have largely focused exclusively on scientific research, there is growing demand and interest (and need!) to bridge the gap between science and policy. Blue Resources Trust as the host are well-versed in using science to bring about policy change at national, regional (e.g., IOTC), and international levels (e.g., CITES and CMS) and will leverage this knowledge, along with those of our close partners, to provide unique insights on policy successes and ongoing initiatives. This would enable researchers to understand some of the principal requirements for policy success and to leave this conference with a better understanding of how to frame future research accordingly to directly impact positive conservation policy. Similarly, those with a policy background would be exposed to new and current research that could lead to new conservation opportunities. And both these groups interacting, working closely together, and establishing partnerships to build upon each other’s strengths would lead to long-term successful outcomes for sharks, rays, and chimaeras.