Our National Research Traineeship Program

Leveraging the Gulf of Maine as an extraordinary living laboratory, our National Research Traineeship (NRT), Ecosystem science in the face of rapid ocean change: a convergence approach, aims to empower the next generation of scientists, managers, policymakers and changemakers in a new, convergent approach to marine and coastal ecosystem science.

Graduate students who participate in this training program will develop new ways of understanding and creating data, knowledge, and tools that can be leveraged to enable ecosystem-based approaches. We aim to (a) broaden participation in marine science by underrepresented groups; (b) train a workforce that recognizes the full array of knowledge and tools available for ecosystem-based management and climate resilience; (c) contribute science and tools that local, state, tribal and federal resource managers can use to enable ecosystem-based responses to rapid ocean change; (d) develop integrative data streams and tools that blend traditional and local ecological knowledge, existing fisheries and environmental science approaches, and new and emergent data streams; and (e) build capacity among scientists, environmental professionals and other coastal community members to engage in solutions-oriented science and stewardship.


A photo of a coastal Maine island

Meet Our Team

We are a transdisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Maine who are collaborating with other scientists and practitioners from government and non-profit institutions to offer a novel training program that foregrounds collaboration, ontological and epistemological diversity, and stakeholder empowerment.

Photo of Christine Beitl
Photo of Sudarchan Chawathe

Christine Beitl, Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology

Environmental governance, anthropology, human ecology

Kristina Cammen, Associate Professor, School of Marine Sciences

Ecological genomics, marine mammal science

Sudarshan Chawathe, Associate Professor, School of Computing and Information Sci.

Computer science, data integration, data science, scientific data management


Photo of Chafan Chen
Photo of Heather Leslie

Chaofan Chen, Assistant Professor, School of Computing and Informational Sci.

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, data science

Tora Johnson, Sunrise County Economic Council

Geospatial analysis, environmental social science

Heather Leslie, Professor, School of Marine Sciences

Ecology, conservation science, coupled social-ecological systems science


Photo of Darren Ranco

Darren Ranco, Professor, Native American Studies

Native American Studies, Indigenous research methods

Joshua Stoll, Associate Professor, School of Marine Sciences

Environmental social science, fisheries and ocean governance, food systems

Tony Sutton, Assistant Professor, Native American Studies

Wabanaki food systems, sustainability science, environmental communication


Michelle Staudinger, Associate Professor, School of Marine Sciences

Climate change, fisheries ecology, biodiversity

Hillary Smith, Assistant Research Professor, School of Marine Sciences

Common-pool resources, gender and environment, sustainable food systems

Tracy MacKeracher, NRT Program Coordinator, School of Marine Sciences

Wellbeing, lobster fisheries, social-ecological systems

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Funding

Our National Research Traineeship is made possible by the generous support of the National Science Foundation (# 2244117). If you are interested in contributing to the long-term sustainability of our program, please contact Joshua Stoll (joshua.stoll@maine.edu).