His work in Maine exists at the intersection of different industries, working to understand how Maineā€™s communities interact with one another. In addition to working on the NSF EPSCor Maine-FOREST project, he is also a trainee in the NSF National Research Traineeship: 3D Ecosystem Science program. 

ā€œIā€™ve gained experience in Maineā€™s local industries, first on waterfronts and now in forests. Itā€™s important to understand the differences between coastal and forestry-based communities, and how they interact with each other,ā€ said Colbert Stone. 

Colbert Stone, a self-described ā€œconvener,ā€ focuses on bringing people and organizations together to best support one another and create meaningful change. Originally from Ohio, Colbert Stone began his academic career at Denison University, earning a bachelorā€™s degree in Black Studies and Womenā€™s and Gender studies. He joined 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Anthropology and Environmental Policy Masterā€™s program to merge his past interests with his future career goals in the environmental sector. 

While in Maine, Colbert Stone has been involved with multiple organizations that work to increase environmental stewardship across the state while supporting local communities. As a research assistant with Maine-FOREST, he is currently involved with research on rural communities and youth education. Working with Dr. Lydia Horne and Dr. Sandra De Urioste Stone, he researches rural and tribal communities and how they can educate students for the future. The research team partners with Rural Aspirations Project, a Maine nonprofit that empowers students in rural schools to engage in their communities with place-based projects. 

The goal is to support forest communities by strengthening educational opportunities and student community engagement through the Rural Aspirations Project. He is currently interviewing community partners, teachers and administrators involved with the Rural Aspirations Project and the Maine Forest Collaborative to better understand rural education and environmental stewardship. 

ā€œTheir theory of change is that rural schools are one of the only places that rural communities have left to get together as a community and have real outcomes and change. So using the school as an avenue for rural vitality, empowering kids to know that they have a future here in Maine and donā€™t have to leave to attain their goals. Itā€™s been really nice getting to work with them,ā€ said Colbert Stone. 

Beyond his work as a researcher, Colbert Stone has further contributed to the Rural Aspirations Project through his own connections. As a recipient of a Changemakers Fellowship from the Maine Environmental Education Association, he received funding for a community project of his choice. He directed those funds to support a new school participating in the Maine Forest Collaborative, a program of Rural Aspirations Project. This program allows students to create place-based community projects relating to sustainability and forest management. 

Working with an eighth-grade class at Piscataquis Community Secondary School, he helped expand a project on maple tree awareness. Building on studentsā€™ experience with maple tapping, the class is planning a community event to highlight the cultural and historical significance of maple trees, including connections to Wabanaki traditions.

ā€œIt felt like a win for everybody,ā€ Colbert Stone said. ā€œThe students receive the funding directly and gain experience managing a project themselves.ā€

This work is part of Colbert Stoneā€™s mission to engage with Maineā€™s vital industries, such as the forest and marine sectors. After graduating this spring, Colbert Stone will become a community engagement associate with the Maine Womenā€™s Lobby, focusing on research coordination and community organizing. 

As the countryā€™s most forested state, Maine requires a multifaceted approach to resource management. Forests must be managed to sustain growth while allowing timber and other wood products to be harvested. Weiskittel first became involved with EPSCoR in 2008, when he began his affiliation with the Forest Bioproducts Research Institute (FBRI) at 91±¬ĮĻ. FBRI was established in 2006 as part of an EPSCoR grant to advance Maineā€™s progress in the bio-economy by leveraging forest products. A large part of Weiskittelā€™s work there focused on reframing the narrative on these products. 

ā€œOne of the challenges that we face with the forest sector is just people. People donā€™t really like seeing trees harvested, and I think weā€™re all taught at an early age that cutting a tree is a bad thing. So I think a lot of what we deal with is not necessarily technical issues, but more societal and policy issues,ā€ said Weiskittel. 

More recently, Weiskittel led the multi-institutional NSF EPSCoRTrack-2 INSPIRES project, Leveraging Intelligent Informatics and Smart Data for Improved Understanding of Northern Forest Ecosystem Resilience (Award #OIA-1920908), which laid the groundwork for cross-disciplinary forest management and increased regional capacity. As a Track-2 grant, INSPIRES highlighted the value of collaboration with regional partners, enabling Maine to share expertise and learn from other jurisdictions. Awarded in 2019, INSPIRES fostered collaboration among Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, with a focus on strengthening relationships with similarly forested states that have a vested interest in the forest sector. A key aspect of this work was increasing monitoring efforts by developing new technologies. The INSPIRES project team furthered this task by developing new remote sensing technologies to assess forest conditions in real time and by creating models for future use. Remote sensing is an important tool for forestry, as it provides easier access to data. Many research sites are densely forested and lack cell service, making on-site data collection challenging. The challenge of data collection and the use of new technologies in forestry is part of Weiskittelā€™s current work with Maine-FOREST, an EPSCoR project that began in 2024. This research track, along with his prior work with FBRI, has led Weiskittel to consider how Maine can better conduct research, prepare for changing forests, and optimize output. 

The culmination of Weiskittelā€™s previous work with 91±¬ĮĻ EPSCoR grants is manifested in his role as primary investigator and manager of the NSF E-RISE Maine-FOREST project (Award #OIA-2416915). Maine-FOREST highlights research on emerging technologies in the forestry sector that grow Maineā€™s capacity to measure and manage important aspects of forests. This grant is dedicated to advancing Maineā€™s forest-based economy through four intersecting themes: Environmental AI, Cellulosic Nanomaterials Bioproducts, Rural and Tribal Resilience, and Smart Rural Development. With this project, a diverse team of researchers across the state is working together to increase Maineā€™s position as a leader in forest-sector technology and innovation. 

ā€œThe overarching goal is, how do we do this in Maine? How do we take disruptive technologies like AI and some emerging uses of wood fiber to make new products, and how do we do that within the context of doing that in Maine? Weā€™re dominated by a lot of rural communities, as well as the number one challenge that everyone in the state seems to be having, which is workforce development,ā€ said Weiskittel. 

Currently, Weiskittel is helping 91±¬ĮĻ embark on a new, exciting chapter in forestry. The university is a for place-based development and research under the NSF Engines Initiative. ā€œThis is a bold, new program for NSF, which is very interested in research that is relevant to the local economy and the state itself,ā€ said Weiskittel. The Engine program awards a sizable investment to institutions working to improve their state through economic development and research aligned with a specific theme. 91±¬ĮĻ is one of 15 finalists nationwide to advance to the final round of the program.

The mission of 91±¬ĮĻā€™s engagement in the Engine program continues all of Weiskittelā€™s work, ā€œItā€™s the integration of our emerging new products, technologies, and AI, which are really going to drive the management of our forest, at the same time it’s developing and expanding the use of invaluable tools like LiDAR and other remote sensing platforms,ā€ said Weiskittel. Along with related programs under 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Center for Research on Sustainable Forests and Weiskittelā€™s past work and continued efforts to better Maineā€™s forest sector, the future is bright and growing. 

Researchers at the 91±¬ĮĻ are advancing UAV technology as part of the NSF E-RISE Maine-FOREST project. 91±¬ĮĻ Assistant Professor of Engineering Vikas Dhiman and Electrical Engineering Ph.D. student Arman Kiani are at the forefront of this effort. 

The team assembled custom-ordered drones that encompass a small computer that the AI runs on. Kiani works on the building and programming process, enabling the drones to observe and react to their environments. Guided by Dhiman, Kiani also debugs technical issues so the drones can successfully get off the ground. Once the drones are assembled, they have to learn how to navigate the unpredictable environment under the tree canopy.   

 ā€œInstead, we aim to fly the drones below the tree canopy which is challenging because the drone needs to plan a path around shrubs and thin branches. To accomplish obstacle avoidance, we plan to use AI for detecting trees and placing them in a 3D model around which the drone plans its path,ā€ said Dhiman. 

Once these challenges are addressed, Dhiman and Kiani will be able to collect a wide variety of data that has traditionally been challenging and time-consuming to collect. By combining data from under the tree canopy with previously collected data from above the canopy, researchers can see a complete view of the forest. 

ā€œThe aim is to get a unified picture of a forest, like measuring tree trunk width, the presence of different species and any diseases. Weā€™re trying to get as much forest health data as we can,ā€ said Dhiman. 

While this research is still in the preliminary stages, Dhiman and Kiani are hopeful that these advances in UAV technology will allow for a more streamlined process in capturing forest data. Beyond the forest sector, Dhiman believes that AI-guided UAVs can be applied to many other scenarios. 

ā€œFor example, emergency responders could utilize drones when itā€™s unsafe for them to go inside a building, like in the case of a fire or earthquake. With algorithms for obstacle avoidance and multi-drone collaboration, the research we are doing is fundamental in terms of drone navigation and exploration autonomously with as little human input as possible,ā€ said Dhiman. 

This research was made possible through funding from the NSF EPSCoR RII E-CORE Maine-FOREST award.

Story by Heather Johnson, Graduate Assistant

Q: How did you become involved with Maine-TREE?
A: After graduating with my bachelorā€™s degree, I worked as a land trust steward on trails in southeastern Massachusetts. During that time, I had a phone call with a professor in the School of Forest Resources that changed the trajectory of my career. I hadnā€™t previously considered this path, but that conversation led me to pursue a masterā€™s degree in forestry. While completing my degree, I worked with the Maine Tree Farm Program, where I was first exposed to Maine TREE. I later continued contract work with Maine TREE through its Forest Ecology Research Network and now serve as the full-time Executive Director.

Q: What has your work been like with Maine-TREE?
A: Historically, the Maine TREE Foundation has offered a wide range of programming, from long-term ecological research to its Certified Logging Professionals program, which provides safety and skills training. The organization primarily focuses on K-12 engagement through educator professional development and student programming. Over the past few years, weā€™ve worked to develop a central theme across our programs: preparing people for careers in Maineā€™s forests. For students, that means introducing them to career opportunities in forestry and related fields. We also engage the broader community, highlighting the range of careers connected to Maineā€™s forest economy. Our overall goal is to support the long-term, sustainable stewardship of Maineā€™s forests. 

Q: How have you connected your work to Maine-FOREST?
A: Getting involved with Maine-FOREST was a watershed moment in my career. With support from the grant, weā€™ve expanded the Forest Ecology Research Network, which gives students the opportunity to collect data from forests near their schools, develop research questions, and track changes over time. There has long been a strong interest from educators and the broader community, but funding constraints have limited the programā€™s growth. Maine-FOREST has allowed us to create new resources and pathways that better support educators and students in monitoring forest change. This aligns closely with the mission of EPSCoR by engaging communities in ongoing research.

Q: What are your future goals with Maine-TREE with the support of Maine-FOREST?
A: Through Maine-FOREST, we are continuing to expand the Forest Ecology Research Network and build a platform for student data analysis. Our goal is to help students interpret and analyze data collected across the state and visualize trends in forest change. Organizationally, we are also developing a forest technician curriculum to increase educational pathways and workforce development in the forest products sector. There is currently a gap between formal education and on-the-ground forestry work. We are working with career and technical education centers to equip students with the knowledge and skills needed to work in the woods after graduation. Ultimately, this will evolve into a credential that bridges that gap and provides clear value to employers.

The Maine Forest Collaborative is part of the Rural Aspirations Project, which works to honor the inherent value of rural schools, places and people by collaboratively designing educational opportunities that inspire youth aspirations and strengthen community vitality for students in rural Maine.  They operate in collaboration with educators and school administrators from across the state, providing support to rural schools through professional development, networking and connecting community partners, and designing student programs. The Maine Forest Collaborative student program works with local schools to empower students to create and implement projects in their community related to forest economies and management. The program aims to expose students to the breadth of job opportunities in these fields and awareness of natural resources that is often lacking in traditional education.  

ā€œThese cohort days allow students to see natural resource and forestry sectors from a different perspective. While students do learn about the challenges facing Maine in these sectors today, they also get to experience opportunity, innovation, and real-world problem-solving and research,ā€ said Sara King, the Maine Forest Collaborative Program Coordinator. 

At 91±¬ĮĻ, students were mixed up into groups with students from other schools, allowing them to get to know each other while attending different sessions related to forestry-related technologies, sustainability initiatives, and career pathways in natural resources. One group toured the Process Development Center to learn about cellulose nanofibrils manufacturing. Students learned how this versatile non-toxic bio-product is created and its many uses, and even explored the material hands-on. 

Other students visited the Hudson Museum to learn about brown ash basketmaking in Wabanaki communities. They additionally learned about the invasive emerald ash borer, an insect posing a threat to ash trees. 

In another session, students learned about autonomous drones used for forest management and data collection. They utilized virtual reality to tour a local Maine forest, mimicking the way drones collect data under the tree canopy and the challenges faced in this endeavor. As one student noted, ā€œI loved using the VR and seeing the challenges they face in the building of drones.ā€ Finally, students gained an economic perspective in a session focused on resource allocation. Students used trees as a shared resource and simulated the difficulties in allocating trees for paper, energy, furniture, and construction, obtaining skills in real-world decision making. 

After these sessions, students were given the opportunity to present their own progress on their class project. As part of MFC, and guided by their teachers and Rural Aspirations staff, students at each school develop a place-based project related to a natural resource challenge affecting their school or community.  At Schenk High School, the class is working to design and construct an outdoor classroom for elementary students in their school, utilizing trails behind their school to help younger students connect with nature. At Tri-County Technical Center, students are exploring ways to educate their community on invasive fish species in Maine. At Telstar High School, students are in the process of determining a natural resource challenge in their community, such as flooding, pollution, and lack of recycling options. All students and teachers were then able to share feedback and recommendations for each school. At the end of the school year, students will present their work to the MFC group and local stakeholders at a final cohort day. 

Through this experience, students were able to connect with others from around the state, explore innovative activities and research at 91±¬ĮĻ, learn about careers and post-secondary opportunities, and further their own progress with sustainability and forest management. 

This work was supported in part by the NSF RII E-RISE Maine-FOREST grant.

Story by Heather Johnson, Graduate Assistant

91±¬ĮĻ researchers are working with Colby College to improve Maineā€™s ability to monitor local forests. Professor Dan Hayes in 91±¬ĮĻā€™s School of Forest Resources has partnered with Professor Justin Becknell at Colby College to research how remote sensing tools can be utilized to create high-quality measurements of forests. Remote sensing technology obtains information about objects through drones, planes and satellites in addition to traditional on-the-ground measurements. Hayes explained, ā€œWe can use technology and remote sensing data to fill in the gaps where we havenā€™t measured things on the ground, and then project the data into the future so we can understand what to expect under different scenarios.ā€ The remote sensing data expands upon data previously collected through fieldwork on the ground, adding an extra layer of analysis. Through the partnership, both schools benefit from sharing complementary expertise and resources that creates a fun, collaborative project. The 91±¬ĮĻ team measures forests from above while Colbyā€™s team measures at ground-level. When their data is combined, it creates a complete three-dimensional view of a forest.Ā 

Both teamsā€™ remote sensing work utilizes LiDAR, a technology that uses laser pulses to determine the height of trees and other features of a landscape. The process involves flying an airplane or drone over a forest, shooting out laser pulses, seeing how long it takes for each pulse to leave the plane, bounce off a tree, and return to the plane. Based on altitude of the plane and the speed of light, those laser pulses create a three- dimensional scan of the forest. Terrestrially, the same process is repeated but the pulses are measured from a tri-pod on the ground to capture the terrain. Just like in the air, laser pulses leave a tri-pod fixed on the ground, hit an object and then return to the tri-pod, measuring the time it takes to return. 

While the project is still in the preliminary stages, Hayes is excited by the results so far.

 ā€œWe now have the ability to get high-quality data that allows us to discover and learn all sorts of things,ā€ Hayes remarked. By having access to the 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Cessna airplane and LiDAR scanning equipment, Hayes and his team are able to complete scans whenever they desire new data.

 For example, the presence of leaves in the summer creates different measurements compared to the lack of leaves in the winter, requiring more data. ā€œUsing our own airplane makes things a lot easier, as we can directly create our own data,ā€ said Hayes. With 91±¬ĮĻ and Colbyā€™s ability to collect LiDAR independently, it removes the error present in utilizing secondary sources and other institutions’ data. This information can then be used by stakeholders in the forest industry to help answer questions on the health and composition of forests. 

Both schools rely on diverse teams of experts to make this work possible. At 91±¬ĮĻ, this project would not be possible without the work of Dave Sandilands who flies the airplane that collects data, and Assistant Research Professor in Forest Ecosystem Modeling Xinyuan Wei who analyzes and models the data. 91±¬ĮĻ graduate student Max Wegner works with Becknell in operating the LiDAR technology along with undergraduate students from Colby College. Hayes also recognizes 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Wheatland Geospatial Lab for supporting this project, as well as Professor of Forest Biometrics and Modeling Aaron Weiskittelā€™s role as a PI for Maine-FOREST. 

This collaboration was made possible through funding from the NSF EPSCoR RII E-CORE Maine-FOREST award.

Story by Heather Johnson, Graduate Assistant 

Contact: Daniel Timmermann, daniel.timmerman@maine.edu  

Categories: Maine FOREST

Throughout his academic career, Prince Obosu has been passionate about the diverse applications of geographic information technology (GIS) and how it can be applied to community resilience. With a background in geomatic engineering and geospatial analysis, he joins the 91±¬ĮĻā€™s School of Forest Resources as a Ph.D. student and part of the NSF EPSCoR RII E-RISE Maine-FOREST program.

“This place-based framework aims to assess community resilience across multiple community capitals and provide a clearer understanding of strengths, vulnerabilities and areas for improvement,” said Obosu.  

He is currently reviewing literature as a first step in the process, analyzing preexisting frameworks to see their strengths and weaknesses. ā€œOnce I know the strengths and weaknesses of these frameworks, Iā€™ll know how to integrate them and what data to use going forward,ā€ said Obosu. He then sorts data into groups called community capitals, which splits a communityā€™s resources into different categories. 

This includes a breadth of data ranging from environmental to socioeconomic issues that a community may face. For example, Obosu collects data on responsiveness to natural disasters as well as the impact of Maineā€™s aging population. By combining social science data with data surrounding environmental risks, it creates a more holistic framework for understanding forest-dependent communities.  

By the end of this project, Obosu will have a complete conceptual and digital framework available for anyone to view. The finished product will be available online, where people can view a map of Maine with multiple layers representing different community capitals and overall community resilience of each forest dependent community. This allows filtering the map for specific information, like seeing a communityā€™s social or economic resilience score.

 Obosu hopes that this format will allow the information to be accessible to everyone, not just experts in the field. The framework will serve as a tool for Mainers for years to come, as the data will be updated on a yearly basis to reflect any changes.

This work has an opportunity to positively impact forest-dependent communities, a topic he hopes to further pursue in the future. ā€œMy goal has always been to produce work that benefits society, so being part of this project brings a strong sense of personal and professional fulfillment,ā€ said Obosu. 

He also highlights the collaborative nature of the work and the diverse perspectives it has brought. ā€œThis project is pushing me beyond what I thought I could do, and I am truly appreciating each step of the process,ā€ he remarked. Obosu would like to recognize Professor of Nature-based Tourism Sandra De Urioste-Stone, Associate Professor of Remote Sensing of Natural Resources Parinaz Rahimzadeh-Bajgiran, and Professor of Forest Biometrics and Modeling Aaron Weiskittel for giving him the opportunity to do this project. As he continues his work, Obosuā€™s perseverance keeps him going. 

ā€œAbove all, I live by a simple quote that motivates me: ā€˜The hard is always easyā€™ā€ said Obosu. 

Story by Heather Johnson, Graduate Assistant 

Contact: Daniel Timmermann, daniel.timmerman@maine.edu  

Categories: Maine FOREST

Maineā€™s forests are a vital component of the stateā€™s cultural, historical, economic and social identity. They provide a wide variety of jobs within different industries, offering many unique employment opportunities for local communities. In order for Maineā€™s forests and related industries to continue to grow, students must see a future for themselves in the forest sector.  Additional educational opportunities can provide students with hands-on learning to supplement traditional curriculum helping them better understand the opportunities the forest sector can provide them. 

91±¬ĮĻ researchers have partnered with Rural Aspirations Project to enhance forest sector education for students in rural Maine communities. Rural Aspirations works with educators and school administrators across the state to provide support to rural schools in the form of responsive professional development, connecting with community partners across the state by participating in a number of networks, and designing and implementing collaborative programs. These provide hands-on learning opportunities to students and teachers, focused on real-world applications and solving authentic community challenges. One of their programs is the Maine Forest Collaborative which educates students on the importance of maintaining forest economies and the career opportunities available within them. The programā€™s mission is to empower students to actively contribute to their forest communities now and in the future. The collaborative aims to provide forest sector and natural resource awareness that is often lacking in traditional education, especially regarding the breadth of job opportunities. Exposure is vital for students to see they can make a living in this field, and highlights opportunities for students ranging from forestry and forest product manufacturing, to conservation, recreation, and policy. Faculty from the 91±¬ĮĻā€™s School of Forest Resources are contributing their expertise in social science research, helping Rural Aspirations evaluate the impact their work has on students and communities.

The Maine Forest Collaborative now works with five high schools and three middle schools in the state. In the program, students use the design thinking process to select a challenge relevant to course objectives, community need, and interest with support from Maine Forest Collaborative Program Coordinator Sara King. As the year progresses, students learn about the challenge and develop a prototype that helps to solve that challenge. Students and teachers are supported with classroom visits from the coordinator and meetings and field work with experts that help them iterate their designs before sharing out their project at a culminating presentation at the end of the year. Students are able to explore a wide variety of topics within forestry and natural resources, such as a class in Tremont that designed an experiment to determine the optimal growing conditions of salt marsh grass. Other projects include sowing native plants, invasive species monitoring and removal at the school/community level, student created management plans for school forests, and more. As King explained, ā€œThe big thing is that collaborative projects help engage students in making a positive change in their community and being activated in their communities in a real and meaningful way.ā€ 

Beyond the classroom, Maine Forest Collaborative facilitates cohort days where students from across the state come together for a day of learning, skill building and fun. Last fall, students visited the Maine Local Living School to learn about non-timber forest products and engage in different activities. They rotated in different stations centered around forest caretaking, wood construction, and foraging for edible plants.

Through the Maine Forest Collaborative program, Rural Aspirations hopes that students in Maine will consider all the ways they can have a positive impact on the forest sector and potentially have a career in it. This hope is shared by Lydia Horne, a post doctoral fellow in 91±¬ĮĻā€™s School of Forest Resources and one of the faculty members involved in the partnership. Horne became involved through her research on the human dimensions of natural resources management and passion for STEM education. Her work includes survey development to better understand what needs to be evaluated within the organization and collecting data on projects. 

Horne is particularly interested in helping Rural Aspirations educate students on the importance of forest sector awareness, a passion shared by King. She and her team define this as understanding all of the different career paths that intersect with the forest, such as forest management, outdoor recreation, wood engineering, and more. ā€œWeā€™re hoping that students can be an active part of their community through these types of hands-on learning experiences,ā€ explained Horne. ā€œWeā€™re also enhancing peopleā€™s awareness of why the forest is important from an economical, environmental, social and cultural perspective.ā€    

Horne and King believe that with the additional education provided by the Maine Forest Collaborative, students will be prepared for the future. According to Horne, ā€œThe nature of the work is changing, we want to make sure Mainers at all ages who are interested in working in this industry are prepared for the changes that are happening.ā€ This includes awareness on emerging areas of interest in the forest sector, such as environmental artificial intelligence and new advances in bioproducts. 

Beyond creating opportunities for students, Horne and King hope that their work changes how rural communities in Maine are viewed. King said, ā€œThe dialogue in many rural communities is that thereā€™s no future in the forest industry due to closing paper mills and changing technologiesā€¦our program helps show students there is a future in the forest sector, that it is varied and that it may look different than it used to.ā€

Horne agreed saying ā€œWe talk about rural areas in a deficit model, but should approach rural communities from an uplifting perspective and an asset-based perspective.ā€ Through the partnership of 91±¬ĮĻ and Rural Aspirations, students in Maine are becoming an asset for the future through their education and impact on their communities with forest sector projects. 

This collaboration was made possible through funding from the NSF RII E-CORE Maine-FOREST award (#OIA-2416915). 

Understanding tree and forest health provides resource managers, land owners and researchers with the information needed to make important decisions about one of Maineā€™s most important ecosystems. Over the past three years, Leo Edmiston-Cyr, a scientific and technical computer programmer at the 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Center for Research on Sustainable Forests (CRSF), has led a team of undergraduate students developing a new wireless band dendrometer that supports this effort. These devices measure tree growth, girth and health, and provide crucial data for land managers, foresters and researchers studying ecosystems. With support from the NSF E-RISE Maine-FOREST project and other NSF awards, the team engineered a cost-effective band dendrometer that can transfer data wirelessly, provide immediate results and eliminate frequent trips into the field to retrieve data manually. 

This summer, Edmiston-Cyr and Maine-FOREST partnered with 91±¬ĮĻ at Presque Isleā€™s (UMPI) Mark Royer, assistant professor of computer science, and a group of undergraduate students to create a web interface that pairs with the dendrometers. UMPI second-year students Jason Mantello, studying cybersecurity, and Mayan Pratt, studying computer science, worked to develop a web application that allows researchers to monitor and analyze data from the dendrometers remotely. 

Mantello and Pratt spent their summer coding the foundation for a functional, user-friendly web interface that makes dendrometer data easy to view and download. Moving forward the team is debugging and adding features to the web interface to improve visuals and functionality, which will allow the users to see map views in relation to the data from the dendrometers. These features will increase usability including, dendrometer network status, data formatting, geospatial maps and visual components. Having access to real time data in this way, the web interface is able to provide stakeholders with brand new ways to monitor Maineā€™s forests. 

This research project has offered the opportunity for the students to collaborate as they work through different challenges. ā€œThis project has been a major stepping stone in my understanding of programming as a whole,ā€ said Mantello, who credits this project for shaping his perception of computer science in a real world environment.

Discussing the ultimate goal of this work, Edmiston-Cyr said, ā€œMy passion is making good software and helping people do itā€. This project originally started with the goal to make a wireless band dendrometer that had features that other products on the market did not but has evolved further into making dendrometer data accessible online in real time. Edmiston-Cyr described the goal of the web interface as, ā€œThe cream of the crop. Being able to see all of the data accessible online in real time will be amazing.ā€ This interface will make viewing dendrometer data the easiest it’s ever been. As Edmiston-Cyr puts it, ā€œThis three-year journey has been a long enjoyable path to make something really cool that has the potential to help land managers, foresters and researchers far into the future.ā€ This wireless technology allows hundreds of dendrometers to be in use with data accessible on one web interface.  This research has provided  undergraduate students with opportunities to develop a product that will be directly applied within its field of study. 

Additional funding for this project was provided by the NSF RII Track-2 INSPIRES award and the PERSEUS grant USDA NIFA SAS Award.