Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions

MACHIAS, Maine — Help reduce food waste by enjoying a free meal and good company during the Machias Area Community Suppers held at 5 p.m. on Thursdays at the Center Street Community Room, 9 Center St. The next weekly supper will be on May 16.  Hosted by the University of Maine Senator George J. Mitchell […]

Mitchell Center Faculty Fellow Dianne Kopec was quoted in a Portland Press Herald article on PFAS in birds and wildlife. The article, “High levels of forever chemicals in Maine birds add to concern about food chain” discusses the work researchers in Maine are conducting to try to understand how perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, […]

The 2024 Maine Sustainability & Water Conference featured presentations on numerous research projects related to sustainability and water resource issues in Maine. The event’s poster session featured 44 posters, 36 of them led by students. Several students received awards and recognition for their posters which were judged on the definition of the research problem, use […]

Along the rocky shores of Acadia National Park are 24 known archaeological sites that preserve the history and heritage of Wabanaki people. Many of the sites house pottery sherds, tools, animal bones and other artifacts that showcase ancient Indigenous culture from a bygone age.  Sea level rise, flooding and storms are eroding these sacred and […]

In the United States, more than 133 billion pounds of food are thrown away each year. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, food waste is responsible for 33% of total greenhouse gas emissions in Maine, and about 11% of emissions nationwide.  Kate Flynn, a fourth-year political science student at the University of Maine, was exposed […]

On January 23, Darren Ranco, a citizen of the Penobscot Nation, professor of Anthropology, chair of Native American Programs, and faculty fellow at the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at the University of Maine, gave a presentation for Pew Charitable Trust’s Transforming Evidence Network (TEN) monthly learning session. Darren’s scholarship focuses on how Indigenous knowledge […]

Transforming Evidence Network Learning Session January 23, 2024 9:30-10:30AM During this learning session, participants will hear from Dr. Darren Ranco, a citizen of the Penobscot Nation and Professor of Anthropology and Chair of Native American Programs at the University of Maine. His scholarship focuses on how Indigenous knowledge systems and diplomacies are used to protect […]

Kaiser Health News interviewed Mitchell Center faculty fellow Dianne Kopec for an article about toxic per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, found in freshwater fish. Kopec said eating fish with high concentrations of PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” may be more harmful than mercury. “They’re both really nasty,” she said. The Messenger, The Citizen, […]

See below a link to a November 22, 2023 article published in the Working Waterfront by Robin Alden. The article reflects on changes in the fisheries industry in the years since Robin founded Commercial Fisheries News in 1973. Robin is a valued member of the Mitchell Center’s Advisory Board and is a former fisheries editor, […]

University of Maine researchers are seeking to gain more insight into river herring recovery in the Penobscot River using a novel surveying tool: environmental DNA (eDNA). eDNA is the genetic material shed by all organisms in the environment, which can be collected and sequenced. By testing its viability as a survey tool, UMaine researchers and […]