Mitchell Center students awarded Knauss fellowships

Marina Cucuzza and Gabriella Marafino are among four students from Maine colleges and universities to be awarded Knauss fellowships for 2021. The Sea Grant John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship places early career professionals in federal government offices in Washington, D.C., where they receive hands-on experience transferring science to policy and management. For many fellows, this opportunity helps launch their careers at NOAA and other federal agencies, according to a news release from Maine Sea Grant.

Marina completed a dual master’s in marine biology and marine policy at UMaine in spring 2020, advised by Joshua Stoll and Heather Leslie, both Mitchell Center faculty fellows. As part of the Mitchell Center project Nested Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management, she led foundational research leading up to the workshop “Integrating Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management and Co-Management.”

Gabriella is a master’s candidate in the School of Marine Sciences at UMaine who worked on a Mitchell Center project focused on how scientific information is produced and used in regulatory and permitting decisions, particularly around tidal power in the area of Eastport, Maine. That project was led by Jessica Jansujwicz, a Mitchell Center faculty fellow, and included a diverse team of interdisciplinary researchers.

Congratulations, Marina and Gabriella!