Dr. Mostafa Ali Reza Hossain – or Ranu, as he was known to many friends – was born on 16th March, 1967 in the district of Chapainawabgonj in Northwest Bangladesh. Mostafa completed a BSc in Fisheries from Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) in 1990, and an MSc and PhD from the University of Stirling, UK, in 1998, where he studied optimal rearing conditions for catfish. He subsequently completed a post-doctoral fellowship on fish biodiversity in Kyoto University, Japan, and a Fulbright Fellowship at the University of Washington, USA, conducting innovative research on microplastics pollution in freshwater ecosystems.
From 1992, Mostafa worked at BAU’s Department of Aquaculture, serving as a professor for much of his career, including 2 years as the Head of the Department of Fisheries Biology and Genetics. During this time, he led or contributed to around 20 research projects, authored close to 100 journal articles, books and book chapters, and supervised numerous Masters and PhD students. He also served as a general secretary of Bangladesh Fisheries Research Forum, and as a member of the committee responsible for compiling the IUCN red list for Bangladesh.
Mostafa was one of the foremost experts on freshwater fish taxonomy in Bangladesh. His passion for documenting and sharing knowledge on the fish fauna of Bangladesh led him to establish singlehandedly a Fish Museum and Biodiversity Center on the BAU campus, where one of the main exhibits is a series of beautiful photographs of freshwater fishes that Mostafa painstakingly compiled himself over a period of many years. To help conserve and restore freshwater biodiversity, Mostafa created an experimental fish sanctuary in a branch of the Old Brahmaputra close to BAU campus that successfully enhanced fish stocks in the surrounding area.
Alongside his deep appreciation for and understanding of fish biology and ecology, Mostafa was fascinated by people, including those dependent on fish for their livelihoods and sustenance. His empathy, inquisitiveness, intelligence, approachability, and gentle and dignified demeanor made him an exceptional field researcher, capable of striking up conversation with and eliciting deep information from people from all fields of life. His talents in both technical and qualitative research, along with his wide-ranging interests and intellectual curiosity made him a natural trans-disciplinarian, equally at home and happy thinking and talking about fish biology and aquatic ecology, farm management and fishing practices, or wellbeing and culture.
Mostafa was dedicated both to living a good life, and to improving the lives of others. He helped to set up and raise funds for a night school at BAU campus for orphans and working children. His warmth, energy, enthusiasm, and generosity of spirit also enriched the lives of the many students, colleagues and friends fortunate enough to have known him. He was widely considered a ‘walking encyclopedia’ – the first person to turn to for information in all matters related to fish – but also recognized for his wisdom and good counsel and kindness and care in all other matters. He was someone to be listened to and trusted and learned from and admired and emulated.
All these qualities made Mostafa central of the Dried Fish Matters project. His early research on dried fish value chains in Bangladesh with colleagues from WorldFish provided much of the initial inspiration for the DFM project proposal. He was a cornerstone of the DFM Bangladesh country team, as well as a regular and active participant in DFM global, where he was a source of encouragement for many members of the wider project team.
Mostafa’s life was cut tragically short on January 29, when he suffered a massive heart attack on BAU campus. He will be deeply missed by all of those whose life he touched, but his legacy will continue through his work, and the work of the very many people to whom he served as a mentor and an inspiration. He was a beautiful soul in life, and will always be remembered fondly, with great love, affection, and respect.
Obituary written by Ben Belton, Nahiduzzaman Md., Samsul Alam, and Shakuntala Thilsted on behalf of Dried Fish Matters
