A recording of this panel discussion is available.
The talk will be held virtually via Zoom and in-person at 107 Norman Smith Hall, UMaine, Orono.
- Virtual attendance: Complete the registration form for Zoom connection information
Moderator
- Joshua Stoll, Associate Professor, School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine
Panelists
- Robin Alden, former Executive Director, Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries
- Heather Leslie, Professor, School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine
- Jessica Bonilla, Graduate student, Marine Policy, University of Maine
Join us for a panel discussion about Maine’s fisheries and how ecosystem thinking in ocean conservation has emerged, matured, and continues to evolve. Drawing on personal and professional experiences across different moments in time, our guests will explore how their understanding of fisheries, communities, and marine ecosystems has shifted—from early single-species management perspectives to more integrated, ecosystem-based approaches. Through conversation, we will examine lessons from the past, challenges of the present, and possibilities for the future, highlighting how place-based knowledge, collaboration, leadership, and adaptive thinking can shape more resilient fisheries and ocean stewardship.
Joshua Stoll in an Associate Professor in the School of Marine Sciences and co-leads the University of Maine’s National Research Traineeship Program in Ecosystem Science. He is also a Faculty Fellow of the Mitchell Center.
Robin Alden has worked to integrate fishermen’s knowledge into sustainable fisheries management throughout her career. She is a former Maine Commissioner of Marine Resources and retired as Founding Executive Director of Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries in 2018.
Heather Leslie is a Professor of Marine Sciences in the University of Maine’s School of Marine Sciences and a Faculty Fellow of the Mitchell Center. Her research, teaching, and public service focus on the connections among people and coastal marine ecosystems. As a marine conservation scientist, she draws on a combination of field experiments, modeling, and other approaches grounded in the ecological and social sciences and humanities.
Jessica Bonilla is a graduate student in the Marine Policy Program at the University of Maine and a member of the inaugural cohort of graduate students in the Ecosystem Science National Research Traineeship Program. Grounded in her hands-on experience working as a sternman in Maine’s lobster fishery, her work centers on women’s experiences with diversification and adaptive strategies in the lobster industry as coastal communities navigate social, regulatory, and environmental change.
