Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions

Rivers and Their Fish will be one of the focus sessions at this year’s Maine Sustainability & Water Conference. The first part of this session will concentrate on some of the lesser known rivers in Maine, drawing out challenges and opportunities for water quality, fisheries restoration, energy production, ecosystem health and recreational values. Speakers will […]

A new theory explains how societies can achieve environmental sustainability by nurturing cooperation. It is detailed in a series of articles recently published in a special issue of the journal Sustainability Science. The theory was developed by Tim Waring, associate professor in the School of Economics and the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability […]

Mitchell Center Sustainability Awards are presented annually and are designed to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of Mitchell Center members, researchers, students and external stakeholders who have helped advance the values and principles at the heart of the Mitchell Center’s stakeholder-engaged, solutions-focused, interdisciplinary projects and partnerships. The 2017 Sustainability Award winners were announced recently as […]

In November, Mitchell Center faculty member Bridie McGreavy and doctoral student Tyler Quiring attended the National Communication Association Convention in Dallas, Texas. They shared their research connected with the Mitchell Center and learned from a variety of other scholars doing important theoretical and applied work on communication. On November 17, Quiring presented collaborative research as […]

Master’s student Parker Gassett provides an update on a Mitchell Center-funded project titled “Ocean and Coastal Acidification in Maine: Expanding Community Resilience Through Citizen Science, Outreach, and Education.” The project is led by Aaron Strong, assistant professor, School of Marine Sciences and Mitchell Center Faculty Fellow. Gassett, a dual Marine Policy/Marine Biology major, is a […]

A digital decision-aid tool aims to help organic farmers make permanent withdrawals from their agricultural weed seed banks Farming is a growing sector of the Maine economy, with substantial increases over the past 10 years in the number of farms, value of agricultural products, and number of farmers under the age of 34—respectively, increases of […]

UMaine workshop explores future of fisheries conservation In late September, the University of Maine hosted a workshop titled “Integrating Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management and Co-Management” at the Darling Marine Science Center in Walpole. Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management, or EBFM, has gained increasing interest among researchers, managers, and fishers themselves in light of current challenges to fisheries sustainability. […]

Master’s student Gabby Hillyer’s schedule is driven by tidal flow If you happen to be boating on the Medomak River in Waldoboro, Maine, you might encounter a little flotilla of buoys adorned with brightly colored flags drifting in and out with the daily tidal cycle. These “bucket drifters” are packed with scientific instruments that take […]

The Mitchell Center helps the Legislature evaluate a bill to reduce food waste and hunger in Maine When the Maine Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) needed an independent, outside organization to provide crucial data for Representative Craig Hickman’s proposed Act to Address Hunger, Support Maine Farms and Reduce Waste (Legislative […]

On June 19th, affiliates of the Maine Ocean and Coastal Acidification Partnership (MOCA) met together with representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and industry stakeholders at UMaine’s Darling Marine Center for a planning meeting to advance best practices in ocean and coastal acidification monitoring. The workshop […]