A recording of this event is available.
Lightning talks 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
Talks in this session will focus on sustainability research by graduate and undergraduate students in Maine. Each presenter will have 5-minutes for their talk. PowerPoint presentations are allowed but will be limited to 10 slides.
Agenda
3:00PM-3:03PM
Welcome – David Hart
3:03pm-3:08pm
Melisa Uyar and Rafiul Ahmed
Tapping into unmet demand for U.S. seafood: Can Maine lead the way?
3:09pm-3:14pm (virtual)
Erfan Najaf
Building a Greener Maine: Reducing Concrete’s Carbon Footprint and Cracking
3:15pm-3:20pm
Eddie Nachamie (undergraduate)
Investigating PFAS Contamination from Cleaning and Waxing Products in Maine Schools through a Participatory Action Research Project
3:21pm-3:26pm
Harry Nutifafa Arden and Amber Schultz
People, Coast and Offshore Wind Energy Development: Reflections from a mixed-methods study in Maine
3:27pm-3:32pm
Melissa Godin
Sandbagging the future in the fog of uncertainty
3:33pm-3:38pm
Katherine Simmons and Muhammad Hamza Imran
Increasing access to equitable sustainable energy transitions through co-designed community microgrids
3:39pm-3:44pm
Clara Thompson (undergraduate)
Coating Cellulose Nanofibrils and Poly-vinyl Alcohol on Paper as an Alternative to Perfluoroalkane Substances
3:45pm-3-50pm
Sonia Leone
Impacts of Climate Language on Rural Maine Community Resilience Initiatives
3:50pm-4:00pm
Facilitated Q&A
Abstracts
Tapping into unmet demand for U.S. seafood: Can Maine lead the way?
Melisa Uyar and Rafiul Ahmed
U.S. households frequently report a desire to increase seafood consumption but face persistent barriers that hinder actual behavior. This study examines the nature and distribution of these consumption barriers across different U.S. regions. We also focus on the potential for Maine’s aquaculture industry to convert unmet intent into realized demand. Data for this study comes from a 2023 representative survey (n = 7,438) administered by the University of Maine School of Economics. The sample includes respondents from U.S. Major Cities (n = 2,361) and the Northeastern U.S. (n = 5,077), encompassing variables such as seafood purchasing and consumption patterns, choice experiment, key barriers to at-home seafood consumption, seafood and marine environment quality perceptions, visitation history, and demographics.
Preliminary results suggest that around 87% of our sample report wanting to prepare or eat more seafood at home. Barriers to increased consumption include knowledge (how to prepare/store/safe preparation) and price, both of which are emerging more frequently than dislike of seafood, suggesting that factors other than taste restrict at-home consumption. We find meaningful differences consistent with variation in fresh seafood access across locations. We also examine the relationship between perceptions of the location’s marine environment, seafood quality, and water quality concerns and barriers experienced.
These findings offer valuable insights for aquaculture producers: by addressing knowledge and cost barriers, industry stakeholders can better align product offerings with consumer intent and tap into unmet demand.
Building a Greener Maine: Reducing Concrete’s Carbon Footprint and Cracking
Erfan Najaf
Concrete infrastructure in Maine faces a critical challenge: premature, early-age cracking caused by shrinkage and temperature changes, which leads to costly repairs and a shortened service life. At the same time, conventional concrete carries a heavy environmental burden due to the high CO₂ emissions from its primary ingredient, cement. My research tackles both of these problems by developing a more durable and sustainable concrete tailored for our state.
The approach is two-fold. First, by optimizing the ratio of sand and stone, we have developed new mix designs that significantly reduce the required cement content. A full Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) confirms that these mixes dramatically lower the material’s environmental footprint across all indicators, including climate change impact.
Second, to enhance durability, we are investigating the addition of Cellulose Nanofibrils (CNF), a bio-based nanomaterial derived from wood. Results show that adding a small amount of CNF increases both compressive and flexural (bending) strength, creating a tougher concrete that better resists crack formation. This project presents a Maine-based solution for building greener, longer-lasting infrastructure.
Investigating PFAS Contamination from Cleaning and Waxing Products in Maine Schools through a Participatory Action Research Project
Eddie Nachamie (undergraduate)
The aim of this research project is to investigate the source of PFAS contamination in Maine’s public schools and communicate the results to school administrators. This work is important because PFAS have become a ubiquitous environmental contaminant and present a looming public health threat. These compounds have been linked to liver and kidney diseases, increased cholesterol, certain cancers, endocrine disruption, and developmental toxicity. The pace of work on this problem has accelerated in the state of Maine after a series of farm closures in the late 2010s as a result of contamination. School systems have yet to be fully investigated as sources of contamination through floor waxing, stripping, and cleaning products, but early evidence from the New Hampshire DES shows this is an area of emerging concern2. In 2024, researchers from MDI Biological Laboratory detected PFAS contamination in homes surrounding MDI High School which had been found to have high PFAS concentrations in its drinking and wastewater sources following a sampling round by the Maine Drinking Water Program in 2023. The research highlighted the potential for floor wax, floor stripping, and other cleaning products utilized in the school to be the source of PFAS contamination4 My research will investigate if floor stripping and waxing wastewater is the primary cause of PFAS contamination in school drinking and wastewater systems. Understanding the cause of contamination in schools will help administrators and school boards make better decisions about floor maintenance practices and product choices in order to protect public health and the environment.
Increasing access to equitable sustainable energy transitions through co-designed community microgrids
Katherine Simmons and Muhammad Hamza Imran
Access to reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy remains a persistent challenge for many rural and Indigenous communities across the United States. High energy costs, frequent outages, and limited local control continue to affect social and economic well-being. Microgrids, which are localized and semi-independent energy networks, offer a promising approach to enhancing community resilience and advancing energy justice. Their success, however, depends on meaningful participation from the communities they are designed to serve.
This study presents a systematic literature review examining the current landscape of community-led microgrids, focusing on how communities engage in co-design processes with researchers, developers, and utilities. The review explores four main themes: the mechanisms of community participation and their influence on project outcomes; how engagement affects whether systems operate as intended; ownership models that promote energy sovereignty; and the barriers and opportunities that shape community-led microgrid development.
Findings indicate that projects built on strong community engagement, including collaborative workshops, accessible communication, and technical training, are most likely to achieve long-term success and reflect local needs and values. Community and Tribal ownership models, in particular, promote sustained operation and economic self-determination. However, persistent technical, financial, and regulatory challenges continue to limit widespread adoption. To advance an equitable and sustainable energy transition, microgrid development must be grounded in community partnership, transparent communication, and shared decision-making supported by clear ownership and maintenance structures.
Sandbagging the future in the fog of uncertainty
Planning ahead under financial, political, and climate uncertainty is stressful. Some people may psychologically protect themselves from the distress of a perceived bleak future by simply choosing not to think about it. Economists would call this a behavioral trap, a self-reinforcing cycle in which factors such as stress, financial constraints, and uncertain institutions push people toward short-sighted choices that don’t accurately account for their long-term interests, both for themselves and for their communities. In sustainability practice, this might lead people to avoid investing in climate resilience, especially for median homeowners, who are disproportionately impacted by rising insurance premiums and mitigation costs. Across all income levels, more abstract concerns like climate anxiety and political instability may also narrow the planning horizon. In these scenarios, people are “sandbagging” their future–that is, choosing short-run fixes that feel fine today but don’t build durable stability and resilience tomorrow. An emerging study aims to collect empirical evidence to model these behavioral traps, and to examine whether financial, political, and climate anxieties shorten the horizon for the choices people make for both themselves and their communities.
People, Coast and Offshore Wind Energy Development: Reflections from a mixed-methods study in Maine
Harry Nutifafa Arden and Amber Schultz
Coastal communities face increasing pressure to provide resources amid several other issues related to spatial competition and climate change, which makes understanding residents’ preferences for coastal development vital. Focusing on Maine, where an offshore wind energy project was designated for the Gulf of Maine in 2022, this research employs a mixed-methods approach to investigate the mixed perceptions of residents in Searsport and Yarmouth about the potential impacts and community benefits. The research design integrates both qualitative and quantitative data from over 20 key informant interviews with stakeholders, using semi-structured questions and over 400 household surveys made of open-ended questions, Likert-scale questions and choice experiments deployed by a drop-off/pick-up technique. After the first phase of our data collection, we reflect on the rationale, challenges and lessons learned from applying diverse methodologies in researching people and their perceptions about coastal space use. The overall experience demonstrates that while a mixed-methods approach can be cumbersome, it is indispensable in coastal-marine social science research for capturing the nuanced perspectives required for effective and equitable policy.
Coating Cellulose Nanofibrils and Poly-vinyl Alcohol on Paper as an Alternative to Perfluoroalkane Substances
Clara Thompson (undergraduate)
When packaging food, a good grease and oxygen barrier is needed. Paper alone is not a good barrier, so when used it has been coated with perfluoroalkanes (PFAS). However, these
“forever chemicals” have detrimental environmental and health effects, leading to a ban on their use in food packaging. In this research, the formation of composite cellulose nanofibril and poly(vinyl alcohol) coatings is being developed as a replacement. CNFs (cellulose nanofibrils) are cellulose typically obtained from wood and, in this research, refined to nanofibrils mechanically. CNF layers formed from highly refined CNFs make for good grease and oxygen barriers, however at lower refinement large pores exist between the fibers, allowing oxygen through. To combat this without the expense and energy output needed for high levels of refinement, this research aims to fill these pores with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH). PVOH acts as a good grease and oxygen barrier, can be produced from biobased materials, and is biodegradable. This research utilizes CNF at 70% fines. Fines is a measurement that can be used as a metric of refinement, and higher percentages indicate higher refinement. To form CNF coatings, a solution of 0.6% weight CNF was coated onto water-resistant paper, and vacuum filtration was used to pull the water from the solution through the paper, leaving behind a layer of CNF. Multiple trials have been completed with differing target basis weights of CNF.
Impacts of Climate Language on Rural Maine Community Resilience Initiatives
Sonia Leone
Language about climate change may create barriers for communities seeking to engage in resilience initiatives, and these barriers can be especially pronounced for rural and Indigenous communities. My undergraduate Honors Thesis, titled Impacts of Climate Language on Rural Maine Community Resilience Initiatives, analyzes the barriers and opportunities of climate language in rural Maine communities and Wabanaki Tribes. It also examines how iterative co-production of research and equitable relationships can support successful resilience initiatives. This study uses three methods: (1) A literature review of peer-reviewed publications about place-centered climate knowledge and equitable research methodology, which is compared to (2) interview data from from Maine community leaders who engage with resilience projects and issues at the local level, and (3) data from a survey co-developed with representatives from Maine communities and Wabanaki tribes to understand citizen perceptions and preferences regarding of energy and climate resilience. Community participation in this study finds that trusting relationships with institutions can help rural and Indigenous communities talk about climate change and center local needs in resilience projects. Literature review results support this finding and establish community-based participatory research (CBPR) as a methodology that iteratively engages with community members as equal partners in resilience projects. However, rural populations of Maine and Wabanaki Tribes continue to be underrepresented in current research, which does not sufficiently address nuanced local contexts.
