Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Why Is The Depletion Of Our Important Fish Stocks So Persistent?, James A. Wilson

Maine Policy Review

In the 1980s and 1990s, two events changed the fundamental structure of Maine's coastal ecology: inshore herring and then nearshore groundfish stocks were overfished and disappeared. Surprisingly, even without fishing, there has been no recovery. Standard fisheries management assumes that the recovery of any locally overfished place should be quick – fish from other places will 'fill in.'

In contrast, recent scientific work on social learning among animals suggests that fish have communication and learning abilities comparable to other vertebrates. Learning allows groups of fish to adapt to much more local places than possible if adaptation depended on genetics alone. …

Communicating Care In Coastal Fisheries: Restoration, Adaptation, And Collaborative Policy Change, Bridie Mcgreavy, Gabrielle V. Hillyer, Jessica Gribbon Joyce, Emily Farr, B Lauer, Anthony Sutton, Katie Moody, Jessica P. Batchelder, Ishani Jayamaha, Marissa Mcmahan Ph.D.

Maine Policy Review

The soft-shell clam fishery in Maine and Wabanaki homelands is in a state of crisis, or so say most news reports about this fishery. While there is ample evidence that small-scale fisheries and the communities these fisheries support are rapidly changing, the crisis narrative conceals more than it reveals about how communities are actively responding and the longer-term histories to which these changes are connected. In this paper, we describe the dominance of the crisis narrative in news reports about clamming and we connect with critiques in Native American and Indigenous Studies and environmental communication that describe some of the …

Comanagement In Maine: Integrating Fishermen’S Ecological Knowledge Into Government Oversight Of Fisheries, Anne Hayden

Maine Policy Review

Comanagement is the sharing of responsibility for management between fishermen and fisheries agencies. It shifts fishermen’s incentives to include longer term conservation goals, generates fine-scale information for management that would not otherwise be available, and develops fishing strategies that are consistent with conservation. Analysis of comanaged fisheries in Maine, for lobster, clams, river herring, and scallops, indicates that comanagement improves fisheries productivity and is more effective than standard, top-down, broad-scale fisheries management.

Is Aquaculture A Path To Community Resilience In Maine?, Benjamin J. Cotton, Caroline L. Noblet, Bruce Wyatt, Keith S. Evans, Mario F. Teisl

Maine Policy Review

Coastal towns across Maine face a number of challenges maintaining resilience, posing a threat in their response to disaster. Aquaculture has been presented as a potential solution for some coastal communities; however, the question of ‘fit’ is a source of debate within Maine. Decision-makers may seek further understanding of citizens’ perceptions of their community’s resilience and marine aquaculture, including preferences for supporting growth of the sector across the state's coastal region. To provide this information, we analyze data from a survey of Maine citizens. We assess residents’ perceptions of community resilience and whether marine aquaculture supports resiliency goals along the …

Lessons For The Future From 50 Years Of Maine Fisheries, Robin Alden

Maine Policy Review

Fifty years of technological advances in fishing and the differing consequences of state and federal scientific and regulatory methods are examined to discern lessons for the future of Maine’s fisheries. This examination suggests that Maine’s fishery management is consistent with the governance approach recommended from study of social-ecological systems (SES), an adaptive systems approach suitable for an era of climate change. Maine’s regulations have demonstrated a way to break the pattern of overfishing and persistent depletion that has characterized fishing for over 200 years. As the gulf changes, the state’s coastal community fisheries have a strong foundation for incorporating a …

Endangered Whales Still Get Tangled In Fishing Gear: Let’S Change The Way We Approach The Problem, Tora Johnson

Maine Policy Review

The Gulf of Maine lobster industry has been roiled by conflict over whale entanglement for decades. With fewer than 350 North Atlantic right whales remaining, federal regulators are again seeking to implement new measures to protect them from tangling in fishing gear, while the lobster industry faces myriad challenges. My 2005 book Entanglements examined the complex and fraught debate between whale advocates and fishermen. Each side believed the other was inherently evil, greedy, and unduly powerful. Of course, the truth lay somewhere between. Between them were the brave souls who went to sea to wrestle fishing gear off of entangled …

Maine’S Potential To Be A Global Leader In Sustainable Seaweed Harvesting And Management, Hannah M. Webber, Stefan Claesson, Shep Erhart, Catherine V. Schmitt, Jessica F. Muhlin

Maine Policy Review

A multitude of macroalgae (i.e., seaweed) species that are harvested in Maine are economically and ecologically important. Currently, management of these resources in Maine is focused on rockweed (Ascophyllum nodosum). This seaweed grows in abundance along intertidal rocky shores and provides a number of benefits including serving as habitat and nursery for many species including fin-fish, coastal protection from storms and sea level rise, carbon sequestration, and is a harvestable natural resource used primarily in fertilizer and animal feed production. It is critical that these functions and benefits are maintained and harvesting activities managed to ensure a sustainable …

The Promise Of Floating Offshore Wind Power In The Gulf Of Maine: New Developments And New Challenges, Jack Shapiro

Maine Policy Review

Maine has set ambitious climate and clean energy goals in the past few years, requiring an economy-wide transition away from fossil fuels. This includes displacing fossil fuel power generation, as well as electrifying end-uses of energy in heating our buildings and fueling our vehicles. This transition will require significant amounts of new renewable energy. This commentary will explore the key role that floating offshore wind will play in in meeting Maine – and New England’s – climate and clean energy goals, including the challenge and promise of being a leader in newer floating offshore wind technology, floating offshore wind technologies …

Blunt Instruments, Glass Slippers, And Unicorns: Ocean Governance In A Climate-Changed Gulf Of Maine, Susan E. Farady

Maine Policy Review

Management and governance systems should ideally match the nature of the natural environment and the range of human uses. Today’s ocean and coastal governance system is made up of singular laws and government agencies, the product of years of evolution. This system was never intended to reflect the complexities of the marine ecosystem and varied human uses of marine resources. The resulting “silo-ed” management system has never worked particularly well, but as we face a rapidly changing Gulf of Maine, and accompanying changes in uses, this system’s limitations are increasingly obvious. An “ideal” ocean governance system would be comprehensive and …

New Office Supports Maine Climate Action, Parker Gassett, Ivan Fernandez

Maine Policy Review

Expanding and expediting access to climate change information can improve collective action outcomes. Accordingly, the Maine Climate Action Plan called for the creation of an information-coordinating hub, to enable effective and efficient use of climate information in Maine’s climate change response. To aid that need, the University of Maine created the Maine Climate Science Information Exchange (MCSIE) office as a gateway to information about climate-relevant research, the scientists conducting that research, and the most recent data and applied science efforts relating to Maine’s climate change strategies. The office was established in 2023, after a year of developing prototypes of the …

Understanding Occupational Injury And Substance Use Issues Among Workers In The Shellfish And Lobster Industries, Tora Johnson, Katherine Weatherford Darling, Debra Kantor, Joseph Spiller, Oliver G. Jones, Lois-Ann Kuntz, Tara Casimir, Amy Dowley, Greyson Kurtz, Lauren Sachs, Linda Silka, Bridie Mcgreavy

Maine Policy Review

In 2022, American lobster (Homarus americanus) and softshell clam (Mya arenaria) harvests contributed $283 million to Downeast Maine’s economy, employing thousands of harvesters. Harvesting is grueling work. Pain from work-related injuries precedes most opioid deaths, and workers in fisheries are disproportionately at risk. Harvesters are typically self-employed and often uninsured or underinsured, complicating access to care. Prior studies have focused on injury risk or drug use among harvesters without revealing how injury, pain and substance use intertwine with cultural, social and regulatory factors. This study examined the socio-ecologically embedded injury/ pain/ substance use process with surveys of harvesters (n=106) and …

What Gives Me Hope, Heather M. Leslie

Maine Policy Review

The commentary focuses on the author's experiences over the last several years in Maine where she has conducted research, mentored students, and collaboratde with diverse community partners on a number of projects focused on shellfish fisheries co-management and other community-led resilience projects in coastal Maine.

Harnessing The Power Of Storytelling And Storylistening: Fostering Challenging Conversations In Coastal Communities, Holly E. Parker Phd

Maine Policy Review

As sustainability practitioners we often spend our time in vibrant echo chambers. We’re invigorated by debates about how to support just and sustainable communities and environments. But what happens outside that echo chamber? What happens when we meet a neighbor, a colleague or a decisionmaker who doesn’t share our urgency for action? Do we go it alone as we seek to make change? Or do we need to build new, unexpected partnerships? In a time when technology and political and social divisiveness make it easy to dismiss the other, it is vital that we build pathways to understanding opposing points …

Attracting, Training, And Retaining A Skilled And Ready Workforce To Support Maine’S Seafood Economy, Keri Kaczor, Anne Langston Noll

Maine Policy Review

Despite the many challenges, the entirety of Maine’s seafood economy—from harvesting, transportation and logistics, marketing, and food service—still offers valuable employment and career opportunities. Understanding training needs and career aspirations, as well as how they align to available training and career opportunities is key to addressing the challenges of recruiting, training and retaining a skilled and ready workforce. Findings from recent projects assessing workforce training needs, preferred training formats, existing workforce barriers, and incentives will be shared as well as input from educators and others who support the industry. Recommendations for investment and new programs to support the industry include: …

Home In The Dawnland: Sense Of Place And Eco-Cultural Relations In The Penobscot River Valley, Kate Kemper

Honors College

In a world where a deep disconnect between humans and nature is commonplace, this thesis is motivated by a personal interest in reconnecting with the more-than-human world. The purpose of this project is to explore my own sense of place and lived experience on the land we’ve called Maine and the Dawnland, and to strengthen my relationship to this land through a co-creative artistic practice. It draws on the historic context of the land, as it has been stewarded by Penobscot people, to investigate existing human-land relationships in the area, and attempts to honor Indigenous perspectives. The praxis for the …

Maine Monsters: How Indigenous And Non-Indigenous People Perceive Environmental Monstrosity, Cheyenne Hebert

Honors College

Wilderness is a creation of the human mind. Wilderness reflects our desires, fears, and truest selves—therefore within it we often find monsters. The application of monstrosity to the natural world is an act of projection and an accumulation of the cultural and historical influences that shape the perceiver. It’s often a reflection of religion—e.g. European gods associated with agriculture, while their monsters and demons roam the woods—and varies across peoples. This thesis seeks to understand how people create and assign monstrosity from their own mind to the environment around them, and in turn how they perceive it. Specifically, it explores …

Religious Self-Identity And Racism, Alexandria Morgan

Honors College

This project is a replication of a study by Johnson, Rowatt, and LaBouff (2010) that subliminally primed American Christian participants to think about Christianity subconsciously and found increased prejudice towards Black Americans. This study is often cited to support the claim that “thinking about religion makes people more prejudiced,” despite not having been replicated effectively. Replicability is crucial to make appropriate claims. We replicated the original study with updated explicit priming methods as well as updated racial prejudice scales with a recruited national sample of 500 white American Christians through Prolific.ac. Participants were randomly assigned to a priming condition, where …

Landings, Vol. 31, No. 11, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance, Rebecca Nuzzi, Amber-Jean Nickel, Bob Steneck, Melissa Waterman, Patrice Mccarron, Kevin Kelley, Marcus Wolf, Paul Molyneaux

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to Maine's lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

For more information, please visit the Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) website.

Is There Less Restraint And Isolation Of Students After Tci Quality Improvement And Fidelity Assessment?, Alan Cobo-Lewis, Alan Kurtz

Poster Presentations

Cobo-Lewis and Kurtz tested the Quality Improvement and Fidelity Assessment Process (QIFAP) in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention (TCI) at residential and school settings to see whether QIFAP was associated with a drop in restraint and isolation of students.

The Histories We Inherit: Concordia's Reckoning With The Pasts Of Its Founding Institutions, University Of Maine Canadian-American Center

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

A University of Maine alumnus, Professor Graham Carr is president and vice-chancellor of Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. A historian by training and a long-time leader in higher education in Canada, Carr returns to his alma mater to explore the role universities can and should play in addressing the legacy of colonialism and anti-Black racism on campuses and in greater society. He will explore two case studies from Concordia’s recent history: a formal apology it issued for the role systemic racism played in student protests and their aftermath in 1969 as well as its response to the role two religious …

2023 Robert Talbot Civil Rights Speaker Series, University Of Maine Alumni Association, Greater Bangor Area Branch Naacp

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Promotional email for "Maine's Path to Inclusion and Equity: Navigating the Challenges and Opportunities Ahead." The 2023 Robert Talbot Civil Rights Speaker is Rachel Talbot Ross, a highly respected, Maine-based Civil Rights advocate and leader. Talbot Ross is the first Black woman to serve in the Maine Legislature, and has been the Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives since December 2022, making her the highest ranking African-American politician in Maine history.

Fogler Library Workshop: How To Do A Literature Review, Lindsay Decker

UMaine Video

This recorded online workshop, How to Do a Literature Review, discusses tools and strategies to help graduate students make literature searches more efficient, including strategic searching, organizational methods, and synthesizing information. Presented by Lindsay Decker, Fogler Library Science Reference Librarian, University of Maine, Orono.

Fogler Library Salon Series: Protecting Acadia National Park Through Public-Private Partnerships, Daisy Domínguez Singh, John Daigle, Kevin Schneider, Ken Olson

UMaine Video

University of Maine Professor of Forest Recreation Management John Daigle conducts an armchair conversation about the operational, philosophical and political realities of running Acadia National Park, Maine’s most visited natural destination. Acadia faces challenges ranging from climate change to increasing diversity of its visitors to managing congestion and crowding. Acadia Superintendent Kevin Schneider will speak to the National Park Service mission of providing for visitor enjoyment, education, and inspiration while meeting the legal imperative to leave the parks unimpaired for future generations. Retired President and CEO of Friends of Acadia Ken Olson will lay out the part nonprofits perform in …

Landings, Vol. 31, No. 10, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance, Melissa Waterman, Amber-Jean Nickel, Kristan Porter, Brie Weisman, Kevin Kelley

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to Maine's lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

For more information, please visit the Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) website.

Indigenous Research Methodologies Conference, Wabanaki Center, Native American Programs

Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Flyer promoting the October 24, 2024, Indigenous Research Methodologies Conference on the University of Maine campus. The conference features keynote speaker, Dr. Elizabeth Sumida Huaman, an indigenous scholar focusing on indigenous knowledge systems and place-based education, indigenous rights, and decolonial research design.

Fogler Library Workshop: Staying On Top Of Literature [In Your Field], Lindsay Decker

UMaine Video

Fogler Library Workshop: Staying on Top of Literature, presented by Lindsay Decker, includes tools and strategies for staying current in your field of research, including the use of search alerts, citation alerts, and working with subject specialist librarians.

Fogler Library Workshop: Staying On Top Of Literature [In Your Field], Christopher Clark

UMaine Video

Fogler Library Workshop: Staying on Top of Literature presented by Christopher Clark, includes tools and strategies for staying current in your field of research, including the use of search alerts, citation alerts, and working with subject specialist librarians.

Landings, Vol. 31, No. 9, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance, Rebecca Nuzzi, Amber-Jean Nickel, Patrick Keliher, Melissa Waterman, Kevin Kelley

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to Maine's lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

For more information, please visit the Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) website.

Massachusetts Politics In 2023: Democratic Trifectas Ain't All What They're Cracked Up To Be, Jerold J. Duquette

New England Journal of Political Science

No abstract provided.

Petroglyphs In Context: Another Look At The Chillihuay Archaeological Complex In Southern Peru, Danny Zborover, Alex Elvis Badillo, Maria Cecilia Lozada, Erika Simborth Lozada, Damaso Wile Huashuayo Chávez

Andean Past

No abstract provided.