Signature and Emerging Areas

Aerial image of Orono, Maine

UMaine economist co-authors report guiding U.S. toward carbon-neutral economy 

The director of the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center co-authored a strategic plan to guide the U.S. toward a carbon-neutral economy by 2050 as a member of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN USA).  University of Maine economist Jonathan Rubin and other members of SDSN USA, which was launched to implement the United Nations’ sustainable […]

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Media write about UMaine-led study involving seabirds, climate change and Falkland Islands

Cosmos, Vice, Eurasia Review, Courthouse News Service, Mirage and the Natural History Museum wrote about a University of Maine-led study exploring how seabird responses to climate change 5,000 years ago transformed the Falkland Islands. A 14,000-year paleoecological reconstruction of the sub-Antarctic islands created by researchers found that seabird establishment occurred during a period of regional cooling 5,000 years ago. Their populations, in […]

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Black-browed albatross

New study finds seabird response to abrupt climate change 5,000 years ago transformed island ecosystems in the Falklands

The Falkland Islands are a South Atlantic refuge for some of the world’s most important seabird species, including five species of penguins, Great Shearwaters, and White-chinned Petrels. In recent years, their breeding grounds in the coastal tussac (Poa flabellata) grasslands have come under increasing pressure from sheep grazing and erosion. And unlike other regions of […]

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BDN reports on climate change, winter recreation talk featuring Birkel, Leahy

The Bangor Daily News published answers to the biggest questions posed during its webinar on how climate change affects winter recreation in Maine. The online talk, which was part of the Bangor Daily News Climate Conversation series, featured a panel of researchers that included Sean Birkel, University of Maine research assistant professor with the Climate […]

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Springuel to share stories from the sea Nov. 2

The Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at the University of Maine will host a talk on stories from the sea and what they reveal about today’s Maine fishing communities 3–4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2.   Scattered among Maine’s coastal communities in historical societies, museums, libraries, community radio stations and schools, the voices […]

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Sabrina Sultana

Sabrina Sultana: Green solvents, recyclable materials can sustain Maine’s forest industry 

Doctoral student Sabrina Sultana understands how Maine’s forests contribute to the state’s economic health. With her adviser, Carl Tripp, she is working to develop innovative industrial materials that can sustain Maine’s forestry industries while advancing bio-based, recyclable materials. Read more about Sabrina’s research on the Advanced Structures and Composites Center website.  Contact: Meghan Collins, mc@maine.edu

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WVII talks with Hahmann about using AI to predict urban flood damage

WVII (Channel 7) interviewed Torsten Hahmann, associate professor of spatial informatics, about research that seeks to predict the impact of flooding on specific neighborhoods, roads, municipal service sites and infrastructure. The project, Urban Flooding Open Knowledge Network (UF-OKN), is funded by the National Science Foundation. “So it’s a big project. The vision is really like to […]

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BDN editorial on climate change cites Leahy, Birkel

A Bangor Daily News editorial cited the participation of Jessica Leahy, a University of Maine professor of human dimensions of natural resources, and Sean Birkel, Maine state climatologist and research assistant professor with UMaine’s Climate Change Institute, in an online forum sponsored by the newspaper. The discussion, one in an ongoing conversation focused on climate […]

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