An educational program led by Maine Sea Grant at the University of Maine bridges the gap between inland and coastal Maine, giving students from rural communities hands-on access to the state’s vital marine ecosystems. Since its launch in fall 2023, the “Bringing the Sea to Inland and Rural Youth” initiative connected nearly 400 middle and […]
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Maine’s lobster fishery — one that supports thousands of jobs statewide — is extensively monitored. Management efforts are informed by biological monitoring surveys observing changes in abundance and distribution of the lobster population, and dealer and harvester reporting from the industry. Yet these statistics don’t tell the whole story of an industry shaken by supply […]
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The Bangor Daily News and WABI (CBS 5 in Bangor) interviewed Damian Brady, professor of marine sciences at the University of Maine, on the threats climate change presents to the aquaculture industry. Brady said challenges to the industry extend beyond the Gulf of Maine’s warming waters — which he explained also presents new opportunities — […]
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The Maine Morning Star interviewed Theresa Burnham, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Maine School of Marine Sciences, on how the fishery industry is changing and the broader impact of those changes on the economy. “There are fewer variable professional fishermen than there were 20 years ago, but there are more fishermen fishing […]
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National Fisherman interviewed Joshua Stoll, associate professor of marine policy at the University of Maine, on the disparity in available funding between the seafood sector and terrestrial agriculture. Stoll’s research analyzed grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture from the last six years and found that seafood-related grants made up 0.5% of the total.
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News Center Maine highlighted research led by Lisa Kerr, associate professor in the University of Maine School of Marine Sciences, to develop new tools that will help fisheries respond to climate change. Populations of different species, including Atlantic cod, are impacted by the warming waters in the Gulf of Maine. Research also extends to bluefin […]
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News Center Maine reported on a University of Maine program titled Science Education Addressing the Blue Economy and Rural Success (SEA BEaRS). A joint effort between the School of Marine Sciences and University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the program intends to bolster the next generation of marine scientists and industry leaders, equipping students with skills […]
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In her first year of full-time employment with University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Leah McCluskey taught youth how to make miniature lava lamps. She led the students through an experiment that combines sodium alginate, a compound derived from seaweed, and calcium chloride inside a test tube to form the familiar funky bubbles. The experiment gave […]
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The Portland Press Herald, Mainebiz, Maine Public, Earth.com, News Center Maine, Penobscot Bay Pilot, WGME (CBS 13 in Portland) and Seacoastonline highlighted a new study by researchers at the University of Maine that revealed lobsters in the Gulf of Maine are abandoning their traditional rocky habitats for open areas. This significant behavioral shift, potentially driven […]
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The ocean, the plants and animals that reside in it and the coastline it formed are integral to Maine’s economy and culture. While heritage industries like fishing and shipbuilding have persisted for centuries, they and other coastal industries are changing. Climate change and the loss of working waterfront threaten their viability, but new fisheries, products, […]
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