Talk Archive

Where available, links to video recordings are provided beneath each talk listing.

Fall 2017

September 11
Damming Decisions: Searching for sustainable solutions in New England rivers
Sam Roy, Postdoctoral Researcher, NEST Future of Dams Project, Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions
Link to video

September 18
Protecting Maine’s Greatest Resource
Melanie Loyzim, Deputy Commissioner, Maine Department of Environmental Protection
Link to video

Thursday, September 21 at 1pm, Hauck Auditorium
2017 Senator George J. Mitchell Lecture on Sustainability
Facts vs. Values: How can we make better decisions?
Thomas Dietz, Michigan State University
Link to video

September 25
The Sustainable Plate – Reflections of a US Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee Member
Miriam Nelson, Director, Sustainability Institute, University of New Hampshire
Link to video

Friday, September 29 at 11am, 107 Norman Smith Hall
Sustainability Success through Community Conservation
Anthony Charles, School of the Environment and School of Business, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Co-sponsored by the School of Marine Sciences
Link to video

October 2
Putting human population growth and attendant consumption back on the radar screen: A fisheries perspective
Karin Limburg, Professor, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Link to video

October 16
The Politics of a Sustainable Coast: Money, Science, Democracy, and Climate in Southeastern Louisiana
Michael Haedicke, Associate Professor of Sociology, Drake University
Co-sponsored by the Department of Sociology and the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center
Link to video

October 23
Build it and they will come
Tony Grassi, sustainability entrepreneur
Link to video

October 30 (rescheduled for February 5, 2018)
The Puzzle of Making the Local Food Movement Sustainable: The Challenge of the Supply Chain
UMaine Food to Institution Team: Mark Haggerty, Linda Silka, Stephanie Welcomer, Melissa Ladenheim and Michaela Murray

November 6
A Conversation About Decision Support Tools
 What are they? When are they useful? What problems might they solve?
Interdisciplinary panel discussion
Link to video

November 13
Sustainability Lightning talks
Eight students will present five-minute talks on their sustainability research in Maine.
Link to video

November 20
Using Cooperation Science to Strengthen Local Food Systems
UMaine Local Food Lab: Afton Hupper, Taylor Lange, Tim Waring
Link to video

November 27
Dirty Weeds Done Dirt Cheap: Coupling weed ecology and economics to aid farmer decision-making
Sonja K. Birthisel, PhD Student, Ecology & Environmental Sciences, UMaine
Link to video

December 7
The Gill-Oxygen Limitation Theory
Daniel Pauly, Univ. of British Columbia
Link to video

Spring 2017

May 1
The Long Road from Pollution to Protection: History in the Making
Matt Scott, Aquatic Biologist
Link to video

April 24
Let’s get emotional about wildlife conservation!
Carly Sponarski, Assistant Professor, Wildlife, Fisheries, & Conservation Biology
Link to video

April 20
Valuing internal and external learning in natural resources decision making (see Video on Demand page)
Byron Kenneth Williams, Executive Director, The Wildlife Society
Link to video

April 17
Taking an integrative view of the Mexico City sustainability challenge
Timothy Downs, Associate Professor, Environmental Science and Policy, Clark University
Link to video

April 10
From magnifying glass to microscope: the new National Water Model
David Maidement, Hussein M. Alharthy Centennial Chair in Civil Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
Link to video

April 3
Dams and Fish: Understanding our impounded legacy
Joseph Zydlewski, Professor, Wildlife, Fisheries, & Conservation Biology; Assistant Unit Leader, USGS Maine Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
Link to video

March 27
Enhancing Biodiversity in the Corn Belt to Improve Environmental Quality and Crop Production
Matt Liebman, Professor of agronomy, H.A. Wallace Endowed Chair for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State University
Co-sponsored: School of Food & Agriculture
Link to video

March 20
Frankenfood or Farm Fresh? Communicating Aquaculture’s Promises and Perils
Laura Rickard, Assistant Professor, Communication & Journalism, UMaine
Link to video

February 27
Shifting Mindset: The Importance of Systems Thinking to Sustainability Leadership and Education
Betty J. Woodman, Maine Business School, UMaine
Link to video

February 20
Food and Water Go Well Together – Pairing Stakeholder Engagement with Agriculture and Water Quality Management in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Kelly Shenk, Agricultural Advisor, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region III
Gary Shenk, Hydrologist, USGS at the Chesapeake Bay Program Office
To view the video of this talk, please contact Carol Hamel

February 6
George Mitchell: Building Consensus on Taxes, the Environment, and War
Douglas Rooks, author, “Statesman: George Mitchell and the Art of the Possible”
Link to video

January 30
Can Maine Prosper? Research, Leadership & Partnership for Economic Growth
Yellow Light Breen, Maine Development Foundation
Link to video

January 23
From Frog Fungus to Smashed Dams; Maine science journalism and the (messed up) food chain of news
Murray Carpenter, author and journalist
Co-sponsored: Dept. of Communication & Journalism
Link to video

Fall 2016

December 5
Damned If You Do, Dammed If You Don’t: The Evolution of Pro-Active Dam Removal over the Last Quarter Century
Speaker: Laura Wildman, Director, New England Regional Office, Princeton Hydro
Link to video

November 21
Sustainability Lightning Talks
Lightning talks will focus on sustainability research by students in Maine. Click on the link for a list of students and talk titles.
Link to video

November 14
Scaling Conservation: Translating Local Success into Global Impact
Speaker: Kate Dempsey, State Director of The Nature Conservancy in Maine
Link to video

November 7
Resilient Communities and Fisheries Arise from Resilient Ecosystems
Speaker: Richard Merrick, Director, Scientific Programs and Chief Science Advisor, NOAA Fisheries
Link to video

October 31
Bridging Political and Social Divides: Stories from a Civic Engagement Project
Bruce Mallory and Michele Holt-Shannon, New Hampshire Listens, Carsey School of Public Policy, University of New Hampshire
Link to video

October 24
Maine’s Energy Planning Roadmap – An Opportunity for Collaboration
Jeff Marks, Executive Director, E2Tech
Video not available.

October 17
Creating a Decision Support Toolbox for Safe Beaches & Shellfish Harvests
Speakers: Kate Beard, Damian Brady, Brian McGill, Bridie McGreavy, Sam Roy, Sean Smith; Decision Support Systems Team, NEST Safe Beaches & Shellfish
Link to video

October 3
Conserving Small Natural Features with Large Ecological Importance
Speakers: Aram Calhoun and Malcolm ‘Mac’ Hunter, Professors, Wildlife, Fisheries & Conservation Biology, UMaine
Link to video

September 26
Indicators of Community Well-Being for Maine’s Coast and Islands: Initial Results and Opportunities for Collaborative Research
Speaker: Heather Deese, Vice President, Research & Strategy, Island Institute
Link to video

September 19
Banning the Bag: Local Government Opportunities in Sustainable Materials
Speaker: Travis Wagner, Professor, Dept. of Environmental Science and Policy, University of Southern Maine
Link to video

September 12
Does the value of nature depend on whom you ask? Should it?
Speaker: Aaron Strong, Assistant Professor, School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine
Link to video

September 2
Disturbance and Restoration in Streams
Speaker: Sam Lake, Emeritus Professor, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
Co-sponsored by the School of Biology & Ecology
Audio only

Spring 2016

May 2
A World Upside Down: Charting climate and biodiversity futures in Africa and the global south
Phoebe Barnard, South African National Biodiversity Institute
Link to video

May 18
Engaging in Sustainability Debates: The Role of Universities, Experts, and Journalists in Promoting Collaboration and Innovation
Matthew C. Nisbet, Associate Professor of Communication, Northeastern University
Video not available

April 18
Frederick Law Olmsted: Saving, Creating and Sustaining America’s Natural World
Gerry Wright
Link to video

April 11
When Stories Leave the NEST: Online Archives for Stakeholder Engagement in Sustainability Science
Tyler Quiring, New England Sustainability Consortium, UMaine
Bridie McGreavy, Communication & Journalism, UMaine
Link to video

April 4
Social and Environmental Impacts of Forest Management Certification: Insights from Indonesia
Daniela Miteva, The Nature Conservancy
Link to video

March 28
Bridging the Gap between Science and Policy: Lessons Learned from the Delaware River Watershed
Carol Collier, Senior Advisor for Watershed Management and Policy, Drexel University Academy of Natural Sciences
Link to video

March 21
Anticipating Surprises: The Role of Winter Weather-Climate Variability on Lake Ice Regimes in Maine
Mussie Beyene, PhD Candidate, Civil & Environmental Engineering, UMaine
Link to video

February 29
Maine Lakes…Living on the Edge?
Aria Amirbahman, Stephen Norton (UMaine), Firooza Pavri (USM), Scott Williams (VLMP), and Linda Bacon (Maine DEP)
Link to video

February 22
Second Nature: A historian’s search for sustainability in New England
Richard Judd, Dept. of History, UMaine
Link to video

February 15
When Farming is like Fishing: Helping Farmers Understand Landscape Effects, Lessons from the Bee Mapper
Sam Hanes, Dept. of Anthropology, UMaine and Brianne Du Clos, PhD student, Ecology & Environmental Sciences, UMaine
Link to video

February 8
Changing the Narrative: How Do We Make Sustainable Food Systems Sustainable?
Melissa Ladenheim, Mark Haggerty, François Amar, Danielle Walczak (fellow), Stephanie Welcomer, Linda Silka, John Jemison (Sustainable Food Systems Research Collaborative, UMaine) and Tim Waring, Ethan Tremblay (School of Economics, UMaine)
Link to video

February 1
Keystone Pipeline and Low Carbon Fuels: An Update on Transportation Energy Policy
Jonathan Rubin, Professor, Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center and School of Economics, UMaine
Link to video

January 25
From Anthropogenic Ecosystems to Zoonoses: Emerging Issues in Conservation
EES 590 Course Presentations. Instructors: Aram Calhoun, Malcolm Hunter
Link to video

Fall 2015

November 30
Community Solar: Harnessing the Power of the People
Sharon Klein, Assistant Professor, School of Economics
Link to video

November 23
When water quality is the easy problem: An untold story of sustainability and human well-being
Bridie McGreavy, Assistant Professor, Communication & Journalism
Link to video

November 16
Fish, Dams and Resilience: Dam(ned) tradeoffs between nature and technology
Karen Wilson, University of Southern Maine
Link to video

November 9
Adaptive Management: So You Say It’s a Key to Resilience?
Josh Stoll, Doctoral Candidate, School of Marine Sciences
Video not available

November 2
Talking Trash: The Sustainability Challenge Hiding in Plain Sight
Materials Management Team
Video not available

October 26
Where service learning meets sustainability: Connecting classrooms with communities for stewardship and civic engagement
UMaine Environmental Stewardship Service-Learning Group (Claire Sullivan, Dan Dixon, Cindy Isenhour, Sandra DeUrioste-Stone, Bridie McGreavy, Sharon Klein)
Link to video

October 19
Climate Change and Agriculture: Views from the Farm
Meredith T. Niles, University of Vermont
Link to video

October 15
2015 Senator George J. Mitchell Lecture on Sustainability
When Science Meets Politics: Symphony or Slugfest?
Roger Pielke Jr., University of Colorado
Link to video

October 5
Restoring the Rio Grande and Colorado Rivers: the visionary and the practical
Jack Schmidt, Utah State
Link to video

September 28
Adapting before it gets here: Forest Pests, Basketmaking, and Sustainability Science
Darren Ranco, Director, Native American Research, Associate Professor, Dept. of Anthropology & Senator George J. Mitchell Center
Link to video

September 21
Got fish? Reflections on scientists’ roles in sustaining small-scale marine fisheries
Heather Leslie, Director, Darling Marine Center
Link to video

September 14
Competing Visions of Sustainability: Scarcity or Abundance?
Bill Sheehan, Executive Director, UPSTREAM Policy Institute
Link to video

Spring 2015

April 27
Back to the Future: Can we change our sustainability futures by looking at our past?
Mark Anderson, School of Economics, UMaine
Link to video

April 20
Building Capacity for Socio-Environmental Problem Solving: A Design for Learning and Adaptation at SESYNC
Jonathan Kramer, SESYNC
Video not available

April 13
Making Sense of Place in Maine
Carol Toner, Maine Studies Director
Link to video

April 6
Synthesizing Theories of Environmental Governance
Michael Cox, Dartmouth College
Link to video

April 3
Sustaining Coupled Social-ecological Marine Systems
Heather Leslie, Brown University
Video not available

March 23
How Maine Blueberry Growers Use Wild Bees: Learning from a Sustainability Transition in Progress
Sam Hanes, Dept. of Anthropology and Brianne Du Clos, Ecology & Environmental Sciences
Video not available

March 16, 2015
Decision Support Systems and Stakeholder Engagement
Brian McGill, School of Biology & Ecology and Senator George J. Mitchell Center
Video not available

February 23, 2015
The Science of When Science Doesn’t Matter (and What to Do About It)
John M. Hagan, Manomet Ctr. for Conservation Sciences
Video not available

February 16
Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Beach and Shellfish Bed Water Quality Data
Kate Beard and Frank Xu
Link to video

February 9
Materials Management through Sustainable Consumption: Research, Policy and Practice
Cindy Isenhour, Dept. of Anthropology, UMaine
Link to video

Fall 2014

Monday, November 17
Collaborative Interdisciplinary Research for Understanding Bycatch in the Maine Lobster Fishery
Yong Chen and Christine Beitl
School of Marine Sciences, Dept. of Anthropology, University of Maine
Link to video

Thursday, November 13
Sediment, scale, and stakeholders – clearing the muddy waters of the Minnesota River Watershed
Peter Wilcock, Johns Hopkins University; Utah State
Video not available

Monday, November 10
Ecosystem management in a changing climate: What do fishermen have to do with it?
Robin Alden, Executive Director, Penobscot East Resource Center
Link to video

Monday, November 3
Building Capacity for Socio-Environmental Problem Solving: A Design for Learning and Adaptation at SESYNC
Jonathan Kramer, National Socio-environmental Synthesis Center
Video not available

Monday, October 27
We All Swim Downstream: Policy Solutions to Beach Water Pollution
Jon Devine, Senior Attorney, Water Program, Natural Resources Defense Council
Link to video

Monday, October 20
Trading Dams: The Penobscot River Restoration Project and the Future of Dam Law
Dave Owen, University of Maine School of Law
Link to video

Monday, October 6
Using virtual reality as a tool for improving wind energy visualization
Nicholas Giudice, School of Computing and Information Science, University of Maine
Link to video

October 2
2014 Mitchell Lecture on Sustainability
Mobilizing Knowledge to Shape a Sustainable Future
William Clark, Harvard University
Link to video

September 26
Engaging Future Vulnerability and Adaptation Using Landscape-scale Iterative Scenario-Building
Dan Murphy, University of Cincinnati
Link to video

September 22
Development of Citizen Science Programs and Evaluation of Outcomes
Rebecca Jordan, Rutgers University
Video not available

September 19
Potential effects of climate change on stream organisms
Bobbi Peckarsky, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Video not available

September 15
How Models Influence Environmental Policy Decision-Making: Lessons Learned from Models of Nutrient Loading and Hypoxia
Damian Brady, School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine
Video not available

Spring 2014

February 24, 2014
Keri Kaczor, Maine Healthy Beaches Program, UMaine Cooperative Extension
Video Link: Turbulence: Healthy Beaches, Watersheds and Tourist Economies
Presentation slides (pdf)

Fall 2013

December 3, 2013
Kohl Kanwit, Maine Dept. of Marine Resources
Video link: Clean Clams: Assessing Human Impacts and Protecting Public Health

November 15, 2013
Mark Lapping, University of Southern Maine
Video Link: Can Food Become an Economic Driver for the Maine Economy?

November 19, 2013
Frank Drummond, University of Maine
Video Link: Two Years in…or Even Cowgirls Get the Blues…or the Unhappy Tea Party…or a Glimpse at a Multidisciplinary, Multi-State Pollination Project

October 29, 2013
Barry Costa-Pierce, Marine Science Center at UNE
Video Link: Ecological Aquaculture: The Evolution of the Blue Revolution

October 3, 2013
Dr. Jordan Karubian
Video link: Can Community-Based Partnership Improve the Way We Do Science: A Case Study from a Conservation Hotspot in Ecuador

September 25, 2013
2013 Mitchell Lecture on Sustainability
Jane Lubchenco
Video Link: Science Serving Society: Achieving Real-World Solutions

Spring 2013

April 10, 2013
Robert J. Johnston, Clark University
Video link: Integrating Biophysical and Economic Data for Ecosystem Service Valuation: From Cooling Water to Coastal Flooding

April 2, 2013
Vic Sher, Vic Sher Law
Video Link: Communicating Science in the Courtroom: What Scientists Need to Know

February 18, 2013
AAAS Annual Meeting, Boston, MA
Video link: What are the Roles of Knowledge Institutions in Sustainability?

Fall 2012

November 13, 2012
Tom Schueler, Chesapeake Stormwater Network
Video link: Can Urban Watersheds Be Sustainable?

November 6, 2012
David Secord
Video link: From Academia to Philanthropy: Ruminations on the Journey

October 25, 2012
Michael Fotos, Yale University
Video link: Operational Polycentricity: Sustainable Governance and Governance for Sustainability

September 25, 2012
2012 Mitchell Lecture on Sustainability
Keynote speaker: Pamela Matson
Video Link: A Call to Arms for a Transition to Sustainability

Spring 2012

March 29, 2012
David Sloan Wilson, SUNY
Video link: Using Evolution to Improve the Quality of Life

February 23, 2012
Robert Jacobson
Link to video 1: Conceptualizing and Communicating Ecological River Restoration
Link to video 2: Re-Engineering the Lower Missouri River For Ecosystem Recovery: A Long Strange Trip

October 13, 2011
2011 Mitchell Lecture on Sustainability
Keynote speaker: Baruch Fischhoff
Link to video: Helping Science Speak for Itself: Improving Communication Between Scientists and Citizens

September 21, 2011
Phil Nyden
Link to video: Do We Know it All? Combining Community and University Knowledge in Research

June 2011
Dr. Robert Kates
Keynote address at the Institute of Resource Assessment
Link to video: Sustainability Science: Ideas & Practice

Maine Sustainability & Water Conference

2015 – Safe Beaches & Shellfish Session (video link)

2013 – Maine Water Conference Plenary

  • Craig Williamson, Miami University, OH
    Managing Water Resources in a Changing Climate: Deciphering the Sentinel Responses of Lakes in a Warmer and Wetter World
  • Timothy Ford, University of New England, ME
    Global Studies in Water and Health: Implications for Maine