Researcher of the Week: Avery Cole

Avery Cole is a masters student in the School of Economics at the University of Maine and a SEANET Research Fellow in Theme 4: Human Dimensions. As an undergrad, Cole spent two years at the University of Connecticut studying chemical engineering before he returned to Maine to study political science and math. After spending a year post-graduation with a brewing company in Bar Harbor, Maine, Cole returned to the University of Maine to pursue a masters in economics.

During his first year of graduate studies, Cole began working on a SEANET project analyzing the potential effect of aquaculture on Maine’s housing market. In addition, Cole looks at off-farm labor opportunities for oyster farmers in New England, and the driving factors behind whether or not they look for other employment. This project looks to understand how oyster farmers provide for themselves if farming alone is not financially adequate.

“[We are considering] what is the best way we can [keep adding aquaculture] to produce [quality product] with the fewest problems for not just the growers and the people who want it, but for the people who don’t,” Cole explains. “There are still ways that we can move forward and build this sustainable effort […] just so long that we are informed about where we should make these siting decisions and put aquaculture.”

In addition to his research, Cole spends a lot of time hiking, skiing, and traveling. Before graduate school, Cole spent four months visiting national parks across the United States, and still finds opportunities to travel within his studies.

“I just got back from a conference in Seattle, which was an amazing experience,” says Cole. “And I’m going to D.C. next week to present in a session. You don’t often get this opportunity, especially as a first year.”

According to Cole, these opportunities are all due to the support of UMaine’s School of Economics and SEANET, both of which support graduate endeavors like the conferences and sessions Cole is taking part in.

After graduate school, Cole hopes to keep working on projects like the one he works on through SEANET. For Cole, an unsustainable outlook is the biggest issue in modern times. He hopes his work will help inform policy around the environment and energy in order to build infrastructures and networks, with an emphasis on social and environmental sustainability, moving forward in his studies and future career.