DAMARISCOTTA, ME — Last Friday, Damariscotta served as a vibrant learning hub with the SEAMaine Educator Summit. This event drew participants from all over the aquaculture sector, providing educators with invaluable insights into Maine’s aquaculture industry, starting with seed sourcing at the upweller, an informative river cruise, and concluding with collaborative meetings among the participants.

Aboard the boat were individuals from various corners of the sector, including representatives from , , , the Aquaculture Research Institute, Lobster Institute, and , and to name a few. The diversity of attendees brought a variety of perspectives and a wealth of knowledge to the discussions, creating a rich and inclusive learning environment.

The day kicked off with a hands-on session at the dock around the upweller – a system used for growing oyster seeds in a controlled environment, optimizing their development – providing foundational knowledge about seed sourcing. This set the stage for the subsequent river cruise on the Damariscotta River, an educational opportunity allowing participants to delve into various aspects of the oyster aquaculture industry. Carter Newell, a seasoned oyster farmer, offered a first-hand experience of oyster harvesting while shedding light on different cultivation methods.

A stop at the workfloat tumbler, a device designed to gently tumble oysters, promoting their growth and forming a desirable shape and thickness of shell, affording participants a closer look at its significant role and operation in oyster aquaculture, enhancing their grasp of industry practices.

Anne Langston Noll, one of SEAMaine’s Co-Chair of the Workforce Development Committee, engaged the attendees with answers to a broad array of questions from lease applications to harvesting techniques, offering insights into the wider scope of aquaculture and underscoring the need for workforce development. The summit underlined the importance of proficiency and skills across all facets of aquaculture, equipping educators to steer their students towards careers in the sector.

As the morning session concluded, educators transitioned to afternoon presentations, moderated by Keri Kaczor, another of SEAMaine’s Co-Chairs of the Workforce Development Committee, showcasing the efforts of grant recipients working to advance workforce curriculum and training modules in Maine’s seafood industry. These grants, strategically designed to bolster Maine’s seafood economy, seek to build capacity for creating new curriculum and training modules, as well as attracting fresh, young talent to the sector.

During the afternoon session, presenters explored a diverse array of topics, ranging from virtual workforce awareness initiatives to hands-on aquaculture education and the creation of mariculture training modules. These initiatives have a dual impact, nurturing talent within specific sectors while contributing to the overall resilience and sustainability of Maine’s seafood economy. 

Each presentation brought a unique perspective on how these initiatives support the growth and sustainability of Maine’s seafood sector as a whole. Educators shared project summaries showcasing successful strategies and discussed valuable lessons learned. Their insights offer actionable knowledge that can be applied across the seafood value chain, from harvest to distribution. The afternoon session served as an incubator for inventive ideas and approaches that will shape the future of Maine’s seafood industry, ensuring its competitiveness on a global scale. 

Throughout the summit, the collaborative spirit among educators and industry experts highlighted SEA Maine’s role in fortifying the seafood value chain, underscoring its significance in the industry’s collective growth and development

The SEAMaine Educator Summit not only provided educators with valuable insights into Maine’s aquaculture and seafood industry but also served as a catalyst for collaboration and innovation across the seafood sector. It exemplified the dedication and passion of individuals and organizations working together to nurture the next generation of seafood professionals in Maine, positioning the state’s seafood industry for ongoing strength and adaptability in an ever-changing global landscape.

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This summer, 91±¬ÁĎ Ph.D. student Chris Noren leads the third year of Atlantic sea scallop data collection in Damian Brady’s lab, an affiliate faculty member of the Aquaculture Research Institute. . The rise of domestic & sustainable seafood as an increasingly desirable and necessary product, naturally compels the scallop industry to develop farmed counterparts as efficiently as possible. Until then, the supply-demand gap increases, leading the Brady Lab to develop sustainable industry practices for an emerging US aquaculture subsector, beginning with culture methods. 

Still, lantern nets have their limitations. Farming shellfish is backbreaking labor, with biofouling, sediment, and gear itself contributing to a weight hovering around 300 lbs. Most days, you can see the process in action, with Noren and his interns Ruth Havener and Gary Moline going between the experimental farm and the processing station on their floating dock (affectionately named Norman). Their routine is a good reminder of why a collaborative team makes all the difference. 

During the off-season, Havener studies at Duke University. However, she comes from a Maine family with multigenerational ties to the lobster industry. Life on the water has always been a cornerstone for her, but she did not realize her passion for Maine aquaculture until she meditated on life outside of the state. Aside from asserting “scallops are the best-tasting seafood,” Havener values their intersection with eDNA research. “I’m doing this internship to learn more about the aquaculture industry and its practices so I can apply it to my future career.” When Moline is away from his marine biology program at the 91±¬ÁĎ, he calls Belfast home. What began as a recreational diving trip in Mexico bloomed into “a whole new world” of possibility. Hands-on experience solidified his pathway during his time in ARI’s Aquatic Animal Health course. Each has a unique aquaculture background, but both Ruth and Gary ultimately share the desire to stay connected to the water.

“It’s work for sure, but it doesn’t feel like it,” according to Moline. Sustained progress on critical work requires a passionate cohort. Through their joint efforts, we can better understand why innovative  research is crucial throughout aquaculture, with scallops as no exception. Noren is taking additional initiative by looking into site optimization and different culture methods using innovative gear. Coupled with unique, strategic technology will solidify upward mobility of the state’s industry.

Noren’s bifurcated interests relate to gear innovation and temperature oscillation. Workability and efficiency are necessary considerations for scallop aquaculture, and lantern nets somewhat contradict the true capacity of suspended culture. Noren looks to contemporary Japanese farms, which serve as a gold standard for scallop operations. Japan employs an innovative growout alternative: ear-hanging. The name paints a unique visual of how the system works;  nets on a longline are replaced by suspended ropes with scallops spaced a few inches apart and secured by a pin positioned by their notch. Decades of implementation abroad indicates this system works well, with reduced biofouling, making the lines easier to handle. This alone contributes to residual benefits, especially in terms of processing and maintenance. Understanding impacts of a scallop farm’s location is of equal importance when it comes to optimizing the sector. The secret to effective site selection is intrinsically tied to the second aspect of Noren’s research: growth implications of oscillating temperature.

Both research foci rely on several tools and key players across the state. Researchers at the Darling Marine Center reference parameters (chlorophyll, temperature, pH, and salinity) provided by the Land/Ocean Biogeochemical Observatory (LOBO) Buoy, maintained by the Brady Lab. Concurrently, commercial growers from (Penobscot Bay) and Acadia Aqua Farm (Frenchman Bay) have been invaluable assets, offering high-value study sites that may be otherwise inaccessible to Noren and his peers. “We get to research under real conditions,” he notes. The team will “often run small trials at our farm and then scale them to commercial farms to get a better understanding of their relevance. Growers are better able to assess whether our research would work at scale. So, we get real world results and the industry gets to alleviate some risk from being an early adopter of new research.”Research like Noren’s, alongside his mentorship for Havener and Moline, is crucial for  Maine’s blue economy as it continues to accelerate. While industry leaders and researchers in the sector are the primary demographic for his work, his reach extends far beyond that. Producing informed and passionate externs is a crucial step in moving the industry forward as well. Their curiosity is contagious, and the impact from their knowledge can be limitless. Like the tide, scallop research moves fast. Keep up with groundbreaking findings in Chris’ upcoming paper: How scallop growth oscillates with temperature and season for sustainable development of the scallop aquaculture sector.

The beginning of May at the Darling Marine Center welcomes us with blooming birches, warmer sun, and the end of another academic year, giving graduate students the opportunity to present their research. This past week, more than 60 School of Marine Sciences graduate students, some affiliated with the Aquaculture Research Institute (ARI), gathered for a symposium in Brooke Hall to highlight innovative work in their fields of study. Presentations covered a wide range of topics, from genetics to environmental monitoring, demonstrating the diversity and depth of research conducted at ARI. Beyond the statistics and data, the research presented by these graduate students has a broader implication for climate change, environmental management, and environmental policy. With both warming waters and a growing aquaculture sector in Maine, it’s critical to understand our coastal ecosystem and the communities reliant upon them.

Shellfish research was the basis for many talks at the symposium as Chris Noren, Jamie Peterson, and Tom Kiffney focused on the future of scallops and oysters. Noren, one of Damian Brady’s students, discussed the importance of understanding how scallop growth oscillates with temperature and season for sustainable development of the sector. Peterson, a student of Paul Rawson and Kiffney, another student of Damain Brady both concentrated on oyster development. Kiffney discussed the difference between diploid and triploid oyster growth in the Damariscotta River. Triploid oysters, containing three sets of chromosomes instead of two (diploidy) are nearly sterile, allowing them to grow faster and larger, as energy is not spent on reproducing. Peterson spoke about oxylipins, looking at the impact they have on early stage development. Oxylipins, produced by marine diatoms, algae, and certain bacteria can cause abnormalities or be toxic to marine organisms. Understanding the detrimental impacts of oxylipins can provide useful information for larval rearing in hatcheries. Bobby Morefield, working in Heather Hamlin’s lab presented his work examining the role that sex pheromones can play in the mitigation of sea lice infestations on Atlantic Salmon. 

Impacts of climate change and aquatic animal health were also presented at the symposium. Kate Liberti and Rene Francolini, both working in the Brady lab, underscored the importance of understanding the ecology and oceanography of Maine’s coastline. Liberti talked about temporal and spatial differences in aragonite saturation in Casco Bay. Aragonite is a form of calcium carbonate, necessary for shellfish growth. Organisms may be stressed and have a harder time forming their shells when aragonite saturation levels fall below one. These lower levels of aragonite saturation are due to increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, so following the processes and changes impacting carbon dioxide can be useful as an indicator to understand how aragonite saturation state is changing in Casco Bay. Francolini spoke about kelp forests and understanding genetic connectivity of different populations along the coast. Genetic information at the population level can provide useful insight into how different populations of kelp will react to changing oceanic conditions. This baseline knowledge is imperative as kelp is an essential nursery habitat for many native species along Maine’s coastline. Another one of Brady’s students, Sydney Greenlee, honed in on early detection of harmful algal blooms (HABs) using environmental DNA (eDNA). Pseudo-nitzschia australis, a marine diatom, can cause the blooms which can result in amnesic shellfish poisoning in humans, as well as pose negative health impacts to marine mammals and seabirds. Prior methods made it challenging to distinguish between toxin and non-toxin producing Pseudo-nitzschia species. eDNA can serve as a rapid detection and quantification tool for these HABs, alerting managers to the presence of diatoms in their samples so they can close shellfish harvesting before toxins are present.

Kazu Temple’s, a student of Ian Bricknell, is looking into the parasitic relationship of Profilicollis botulus, a prevalent parasite in green crabs and the impact this may have on the native eider duck population. The European green crab, an invasive species posing challenges to shellfish growers and harvesters in the intertidal, is the host of the parasite Profilicollis botulus known as a “spiny-headed worm.” When other animals such as the eider duck eat green crabs, they also become infected. Knowledge of this parasitic interaction between green crabs and other organisms is useful, as green crabs have been suggested as bait for the lobster industry and can also provide informative data about the spread of green crabs as an invasive species across different regions in Maine.

The breadth and future impact of the research presented by these graduate students is impressive. This symposium serves as a reminder of the enormous potential this new generation of scientists has to shape the future of our marine ecosystems and coastal economies.

ORONO, Maine – The Aquaculture Research Institute has been awarded $2.25 million per year of congressional programmatic funding from the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) for research on Recirculating Aquaculture Systems at the National Cold Water Marine Aquaculture Center.

Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) represent an increasingly important technology in the field of aquaculture. These land-based culture systems not only boost production and strengthen domestic aquaculture, but also reduce dependence on coastal ecosystems and enhance resilience to changing environmental conditions. With innovative research and effective management, RAS operations have the potential to revolutionize the way we think about sustainable aquaculture. 

In conjunction with an existing USDA-ARS Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (NACA), this new funding will help establish ARI as a nationally recognized RAS research facility, focusing on shellfish and finfish species. Prioritized research includes the development of domestic broodstock, sustainable alternative feeds, the impacts of climate change, innovations in waste processing, reduction of environmental impacts, elimination of off-flavor compounds like geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol (MIB), and overall more energy efficient systems at the Center for Cooperative Aquaculture (CCAR). 

“We’re committed to expanding our knowledge and expertise in RAS to culture fish and shellfish in a way that’s productive and profitable, while ensuring the highest standards of animal well-being. The goal here is to optimize production, efficiency and sustainability”  explains Deborah Bouchard, Director of the Aquaculture Research Institute. 

This $2.25 million in funding represents a significant investment not only for the future of the RAS industry but for workforce development as well. Several new full-time positions have been created through both ARI and USDA-ARS, enhancing infrastructure at CCAR and expanding the facility’s capabilities for cutting-edge research and development. 

“This will allow ARI and USDA to continue work on improving Atlantic salmon reproductive inefficiencies. Low eye-up rates have plagued the salmon industry for the past 15 years. A new reproductive physiologist will be hired that will address these inefficiencies. In addition, a new fisheries biologist will be hired that will address off-flavor and water quality as it relates to salmon grown in RAS,” says Brian Peterson, Director National Cold Water Marine Aquaculture Center.

Ultimately, this will lead to a more sustainable and profitable future for the domestic aquaculture industry while making high-quality protein more accessible. 

Thousands of people made their way to New Orleans last week to celebrate Mardi Gras. While beads and cups filled the streets and the smell of fresh baked beignets warmed the air (though maybe it was just the humidity), representatives of Maine’s aquaculture community gathered in the Crescent City last weekend for a different reason: to highlight sustainable aquaculture in Maine. Aquaculture America, the largest national aquaculture conference, held February 23-26, showcased the incredible research, innovation, and workforce development across Maine’s booming aquaculture sector in a session chaired by Deborah Bouchard and Meggan Dwyer from the Aquaculture Research Institute (ARI). 

Speakers from the 91±¬ÁĎ, Educate Maine, The Gulf of Maine Research Institute, Long Cove Sea Farms, Colby College, and the University of New Hampshire demonstrated the multidisciplinary work from 91±¬ÁĎ’s microcredential pathway, to using pheromones as a means to control sea lice. The take away from the session was clear; the aquaculture sector in Maine is robust, from the detailed innovation and research to the broader engagement of industry and education.

Workforce development strategy is crucial for the future of Maine’s aquaculture sector. “Creating clear and comprehensive occupational standards, standardizing workforce training across the state, and involving industry to align these trainings with workforce needs is something Maine is doing well,” points out Carissa Maurin with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. Projects such as the , , and the Aquaculture Experiential Opportunities for Undergraduate Students (AquEOUS) are excellent examples of creating critical partnerships between industry leaders, educational institutions, and employers with emphasis on experiential learning and diversifying the workforce. 

Understanding Maine’s coastal livelihoods and consumer preferences as they relate to aquaculture are equally as important as workforce development. “Seaweed aquaculture in the United States, particularly in Maine, is expanding. Comprehension of how this industry fits into existing working waterfront communities can provide insight into the potential this industry has to diversify income in rural communities previously reliant on fisheries or other marine jobs,” Jennifer Meredith, Assistant Professor of Economics at Colby College explains. A glimpse into the natural resource economics of seaweed in Maine is part of the larger project with Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, looking at Gulf of Maine Seaweeds as a feed additive to lower methane emissions from dairy and beef production. Economic impact of the seaweed industry is also being looked at from a consumer perspective. Qiujie Zheng, Associate Professor of Business Analytics at the 91±¬ÁĎ presented a novel study telling a compelling story of why understanding consumer attitudes towards seaweed and value-added products is crucial for farmers and . Helping farmers find channels to improve consumer knowledge of seaweed products and educating them on how to prepare seaweed at home easily can begin to break down perceived barriers for those reluctant to experimenting with these value added products. 

Aquaculture as it relates to climate change and environmental impact was a common theme amongst presentations as well. Reduced plastics, carbon capture, ropeless gear, and insect meal highlight the innovation, value, and dedication to sustainable aquaculture throughout the state. As microplastics continuously pop up in news headlines, Abby Barrows of shed a bit of light articulating what aquaculture could look like without plastics. In collaboration with Sue Van Hook at in Pembroke, ME, these women are working to produce environmentally friendly gear that is scalable and comparable in price to what is already available using an unlikely material, mushrooms, to create . Gear innovation was also emphasized in Michael Coogan’s research through the University of New Hampshire, looking into ropeless gear technology for offshore bivalve culture. On the seaweed front, Adam St. Gelais, Aquaculture Innovation Specialist with ARI discussed macroalgae carbon dioxide removal through the first of its kind “Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment,” with the integration of both social and economic analysis. “To achieve full sustainability of the seaweed sector, both social and economic impacts must be well understood,”  Adam explained. Sustainability of fin fish aquaculture in Maine is on the rise as well. Assistant Professor of Fish Nutrition and Nutrigenomics Michael Habtetsion presented successful results from his research looking into sustainable feed development using insects as an alternative to fish meal for Atlantic salmon.

In conjunction with carving the path toward a more sustainable future industry, researchers in Maine are also working on creative solutions to problems that sometimes arise in aquaculture such as “off-flavor” and sea lice. Bobby Harrington and Bobby Morefield both with the 91±¬ÁĎ ARI are working on innovative solutions to address these issues. Harrington, a research associate at ARI has developed a more effective solution than current methods to test for naturally occurring compounds present in recirculating aquaculture systems which can result in an “off-flavor” of the fish tissue. Morefield, a current PhD candidate presented his work looking at pheromones as means for pest management, with the idea of having a drug free and environmentally friendly means to control for sea-lice in aquaculture systems. 

ARI’s session in New Orleans demonstrated Fat Tuesday was not the only thing to be celebrated last week –  the expertise of industry, farmers, and researchers, and the success of innovation and workforce development across Maine is definitely worthy of a couple celebratory beads as well. Congregation of these speakers across the aquaculture sector illustrated how well-poised Maine is to strengthen and support successful growth of this industry in the region and at a national level.

Contact: Corinne Noufi corinne.noufi@maine.edu

Thousands of clams. Mud and sediment everywhere. Hungry, invasive crabs. A constantly changing climate. These are things Andrew Hoffman deals with every day.

Hoffman, a Bates College student from Oak Park, IL, works for the Town of Brunswick Coastal Resources Department on shellfish conservation through 91±¬ÁĎ’s Aquaculture Research Institute (ARI) externship.

The , managed by Dan Devereaux, creates policy and is responsible for the conservation of Brunswick’s shellfish: razor clams, American and European oysters, soft-shelled clams (Mya arenaria) and hard clams/Northern quahogs (Mercenaria mercenaria). Devereaux and Hoffman work together alongside Marine Warden and Harbormaster Dan Sylvain and Community Outreach Representative Ashley Charleson. Together, they find avenues to best conduct ecological restoration to sustain, conserve and enhance Brunswick’s historical and ecologically sensitive areas and species. 

Maine and Massachusetts are the only two states left in the nation where shellfish are managed on a local level. Local management allows for a more closely observed interface with the ecosystem’s health in the face of climate change as shellfish are keystone species in the near-shore ecosystems. 

According to Devereaux, the Coastal Resources Department licenses 65 commercial clam harvesters to dig hard and soft-shelled clams. In the town’s economy, clamming is valued at $13 million and supports 212 jobs including wholesale and retail shellfish dealers, truckers, packers and shuckers.

How does Coastal Resources maintain such a large industry? The department opens and closes mudflats to clammers based on the density and productivity of clam populations. Hoffman’s externship involves mapping mudflats using an interactive website available for anyone interested in harvesting clams. With this website, shellfish farmers and businesses can accurately locate and access open mudflats with high densities of harvestable clams.

“A more fancy and shorter term for what we do is marine spatial planning. Once we get the maps created, it all becomes really useful in terms of what resources are in the area, how we want to develop that area, should we farm

or not farm that area, and which landowners we need to focus on that are part of the solution to climate mitigation. In theory, if we can find those non-productive areas that are consistently non-productive and develop shellfish farms there, it will help wild populations of clams around those areas,” Devereaux says.

To conduct the mapping, Hoffman uses a database called Geographic Information System Mapping, or GIS. GIS helps organize geographical data into maps with software tools for managing, analyzing, and visualizing the data. With GIS, Hoffman can include layers and points of interest on a map based on whether or not the area is open or closed to clamming or if clam productivity and density is high or low. Hoffman hopes to create an interactive map with detailed notes and research similar to the by Casco Bay Regional Shellfish Working Group, but focused on the area surrounding Brunswick. Hoffman hopes to create a story map to show viewers how to interact with the GIS map, explain what each layer is on the map, and why it’s important. 

How does one map clam density? The entire area is surveyed every other year, and roughly half of the maintained 1,600 acres  is open each year for harvest.  To survey such a wide area, Hoffman and coworkers go out into the mudflats via airboat. They collect GPS points along the perimeter of every mudflat containing harvestable  clams. Hoffman makes notes on soft-shell and quahog density. GPS points are imported into GIS to create a map, and Hoffman manually enters all the notes for each point. Using a survey method done for almost 60 years in Brunswick, Hoffman, Devereaux and Sylvain dug 2’ plots on a 200 ft. transects along the mudflat growing areas, providing a random survey of clams and their productivity, measured by size of the shell. 

“Right now, the legal harvesting size of a soft-shell clam is two inches. We want to see what’s actually out here, whether it’s a few millimeters or really big ones. We’ll determine an average of all the sizes, and then we’ll see if it’s worth keeping the mudflat open or closed,” Sylvain says.

However, temperature and predation are threatening clam survival in these mudflats. Soft-shelled clams and quahogs have a very active lifestyle when the water is warm, allowing them to move around and spawn. Unfortunately, warm temperatures rising due to climate change also allow for the invasive green crab (Carcinus maenas) population to thrive and be very detrimental to clam populations. 

Hoffman’s externship also includes monitoring the invasive green crab populations to support shellfish conservation. With traps set out along Brunswick’s coast, Hoffman pulls up roughly 500 green crabs twice a week.“The best thing we can do is leave the crabs in a bucket until they die and then compost them. There’s nothing else to do with them. There’s no demand for them in markets. It’s pretty crazy,” Hoffman says.

To make up for the losses of shellfish, Hoffman and Devereaux are planting 500,000 baby quahog clams raised from the larva stage at where Devereaux is a part owner. “Their survivability increases almost up by 50% if you grow the quahogs over 10mm wide. We float them at the surface in protected nets at one millimeter and we raise them to 10-15mm by the fall. We’ll give them to fishermen and clammers, and they’ll take them out to broadcast them in areas where there needs to be more clam production,” Devereaux says. But the loss of shellfish to crabs is not the only issue Devereaux and Hoffman deal with: citizens of Brunswick need to be open to the idea of clam restoration for the sake of the waterways.

“Productive acres of mudflats could provide more shellfish to the market, and together, they could provide more ecosystem services than, say, 1,000 acres of sub-productive area. It’s important that we try to keep track of that,” Devereaux says. “That’s what scares people particularly when you get out to these dynamic ecosystems because we need to identify activities that can coexist in a fisherman’s world. That’s a delicate balance, and it requires having really hard conversations with fishermen and other users of the bay about what’s best for the bay. The real question is how do we start to engage in that conversation?”

Similar to Devereaux, Hoffman has found a deep interest in conservation and hopes to engage further with it as he enters his senior year at Bates College. “I am definitely interested in coming back to Maine when I graduate. Aquaculture and GIS are subjects I’m really interested in, and Maine is a great spot for that. This externship gives me a lot of different experience in conservation, and I hope to find something like it in the future,” Hoffman says.

Through an Aquaculture Research Institute (ARI) externship, 91±¬ÁĎ Marine Science major Jess Cleary-Reuning is working for the in Rockland, ME. 

After serving as a granite quarry in the 1870’s and a base camp for Outward Bound from 1964 to 2006, Hurricane Island is now the site of the Center for Science and Leadership (HICSL). Since 2009, this educational center has been a home for adventurous students of all ages to learn about the natural world and sustainable, environmental practices. Cleary-Reuning’s mother visited Hurricane Island Outward Bound as a youth in the summer, so  exploring HICSL naturally interested Cleary-Reuning.

HICSL’s summer programs for adults, students and school groups provide participants with tools for leadership and social change. This summer, Cleary-Reuning works alongside Aquaculture Manager Madison Maier on the Island Ecology and Marine Ecology high school education programs. 

“Island Ecology focuses on freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. Marine Ecology focuses o​​n the tidal zone, learning about the fisheries in the area and our aquaculture farm. Our aquaculture farm started as a Limited Purpose Aquaculture lease site (LPA), and in 2019, we expanded into a full, 3.2-acre experimental farm,” Maier says. 

The research farm contains an oyster long line and cages, lantern nets for Atlantic sea scallops, and a wooden platform, referred to as “The Float”, with bolted-down lab tables and a solar panel powering machinery for field work. Students in the Island Ecology and Marine Ecology programs have the opportunity to see the farm, learn how it operates, and observe marine invertebrates. 

These educational experiences gained from the summer programs provide training in multiple skills in aquaculture and marine ecosystems, and these are what Cleary-Reuning is observing for her externship. Working at HICSL, Cleary-Reuning gathers data to help the 91±¬ÁĎ Cooperative Extension create youth micro-credentials. 

To do this, Cleary-Reuning researched adult micro-credentials already being utilized in order to find ways to build youth micro-credentials. Adult micro-credentials involve a three-level program: level one is gaining knowledge and information from an instructor; level two is hands-on experience and applying knowledge; level three is certifying all experiences and knowledge in the real world. The micro-credential itself is a digital badge earned after the program’s completion and can be placed on an individual’s LinkedIn, Gmail, or resume.

“If you click on it, the micro-credential shows a webpage outlining exactly what that individual did to get that micro-credential. Name, date received, what work was completed, and skills learned and shown. I see it more as a personalized resume addition,” Cleary-Reuning says.

To build micro-credentials for youth, Cleary-Reuning is observing programs at HICSL and deciding which skills and knowledge could be applied to a micro-credential.  “I am looking at what we do with the kids and separating the activities between knowledge and skills. The aquaculture tour would be knowledge. Doing scallop measurements and sorting spat would be skills,” Cleary-Reuning says.

Observing education at HICSL has helped Cleary-Reuning define what youth micro-credentials could entail. This summer, students in the High School Marine and Ecology programs did small research projects involving skills such as organizing data, handling invertebrates, creating graphs and charts, writing hypotheses and presenting posters. Each of these skills will be part of a micro-credential for youths who want to study aquaculture or marin

e science in the future. Cleary-Reuning’s time on Hurricane Island allowed a large data set to form and help 91±¬ÁĎ create micro-credentials for youths, all while giving Cleary-Reuning time to herself.

“I’ve been scuba diving and learned how to drive skiffs and tie knots. It’s just a really unique living and learning environment. There’s a lot of personal things that I am learning from living here too. It’s not a traditional internship,” Cleary-Reuning says.