The cohort is implementing ReuseME, a pilot program in partnership with the coastal towns of Bar Harbor, Bath and South Portland. Participating eateries include Cafe This Way and Coffee Matter/Motherā€™s Kitchen in Bar Harbor, Solo Pane in Bath, and Second Rodeo Coffee and Verbena in South Portland.

By testing the viability of reusable takeout packaging in participating restaurants, students are at the forefront of developing a model that reduces waste, prevents plastic pollution and saves local businesses and municipalities money on the purchase and disposal of single-use food and beverage packaging.

Throughout this project, 91±¬ĮĻ student researchers are working directly with these businesses to track results and analyze usage patterns to refine the returnable model.

ā€œThe driver for this project has been a focus on wanting to maintain and protect Maineā€™s coastal environment because itā€™s a very important part of the stateā€™s culture,ā€ said Ryan Kennedy, a 91±¬ĮĻ senior in the Department of Anthropology.

Kennedy, an undergraduate research assistant on the project, has been involved since the initial baseline surveys last June. They noted that the team met with restaurant owners to discuss their establishmentsā€™ capabilities and customer habits.

ā€œI want to help bring cost savings to the frontline because that drives most business decisions,ā€ Kennedy said. ā€œOn the commercial side, choosing between the wallet and the planet can be difficult. With the cost of everything going up, people want to know if a change will save them money. By providing hard data to businesses and a simple message to its customers, we can show that sustainable swaps donā€™t have to be a complicated transition.ā€

These five local eateries now offer diners the option of having their food and/or beverage packaged in returnable stainless steel containers. Customers can check out these containers by signing up for a free account in the Recirclable app. After enjoying their takeout meals, customers can return the containers to any of the participating establishments.

ā€œI think weā€™re starting to see people realize how easy it is to make more sustainable swaps,ā€ Kennedy said. 

In just a little over a month since the Reuse Maine pilot project launched, more than 100 customers across the state have borrowed nearly 500 reusable containers. 

Other student researchers involved in the project include Chyanne Yoder, Catherine Segada, Gianna DeJoy, William Brenneman and Alejandro Snell. They are joined by project advisor Cindy Isenhour, a professor in the Department of Anthropology and the Climate Change Institute.

As part of an extensive, interdisciplinary effort to mitigate marine pollution, the project is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Maine Sea Grant and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The support allows the team to tackle environmental challenges while providing student researchers with the resources needed to develop scalable, real-world solutions.

ā€œI think the hard data and transparency between the businesses, their customers and our team is whatā€™s really driving the success and the happiness with this project,ā€ Kennedy said. ā€œIt helps people feel like theyā€™re making a difference without having to go out of their way. Itā€™s just a part of their routine when they pick up a coffee or grab lunch.ā€

Story by Alexa Rose Perocillo, news intern

Contact: Marcus Wolf, marcus.wolf@maine.edu; Cindy Isenhour, cynthia.isenhour@maine.edu

The visit was part of a 10-day trip across Iceland in May 2025 that brought students not only to a volcano but also a geyser, a glacier, mountains, and the rugged coastline. They even trekked through a lava tube created by an eruption through a fissure in the surface, their hard hats with headlamps lighting up the dark cavern shaped by jagged walls of hardened lava. 

ā€œIā€™m going to remember this for the rest of my life,ā€ Hall said. 

The experience is a central component of an upper-level travel study course called ā€œERS410: Sea-to-Sky Experience,ā€ in which students explore dynamic landscapes and conduct real-world research on the oceanic, geologic, atmospheric and ecological processes that shaped them.

In Iceland, students drilled ice cores, obtained water samples, conducted isotope and radiocarbon dating and used ground-and ice-penetrating radar to gather a wide range of data. 

The faculty also coordinated opportunities for students to meet and interview local residents affected by the natural processes they were studying for qualitative data and personal context.   

ā€œI have been quite interested in natural disaster sciences and mitigation since I began my undergraduate career and seeing the ways that the recent volcanic events have impacted both the landscape and the surrounding communities was extremely interesting,ā€ Hall said. ā€œHaving the opportunity to connect with people who were affected first hand by these tragedies was eye-opening and gave me a further sense of direction in my career planning.ā€

Unlike similar programs at other universities, ā€œSea-to-Skyā€ also trains students to become effective science communicators by teaching them how to translate complex research into more accessible formats for a general audience, including drawings, paintings and creative writing. 

Karl Kreutz, course instructor and director of the School of Earth and Climate Sciences, said what sets the program apart is the internationally recognized researchers who teach it ā€”Ģż Seth Campbell, associate professor of glaciology, and Aaron Putnam, George H. Denton Professor of Earth Sciences; Daniel Dixon, director of 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Sustainability Office; and renown environmental artist and alumna ā€™15, ā€™18G.

ā€œOur students are exposed to real-world problems that they help solve, and they work with some of the best scientists in the world,ā€ Kreutz said.  

ā€œSea-to-Skyā€ has been offered four times over the past decade ā€” once in Iceland and three times in Alaska. The idea took shape while Kreutz and Campbell were stranded on a glacier mountain during a five-day storm, where they began brainstorming a program that would immerse students in real-world field experiences in unique environments. 

Open to students in earth and climate sciences, environmental science, engineering or other programs, ā€œSea-to-Skyā€ prepares participants to become future scientists by engaging them in independent research projects and faculty-led work in the field. 

As a capstone course for Earth and climate science students, ā€œSea-to-Skyā€ requires participants to present their findings through presentations or posters at public events like the 91±¬ĮĻ Student Symposium. By contributing to faculty research, students may also receive credit in peer-reviewed journal publications, helping launch their professional scientific careers. 

The next ā€œSea-to-Skyā€ experience is scheduled for May, when faculty will once again bring students to Iceland for continued research. The program is supported by a gift endowment from the Golden family in honor of Nicholas Golden, an Earth and climate science student who passed away.

Contact: Marcus Wolf, 207.581.3721; marcus.wolf@maine.edu 

The two-day symposium, sponsored by the Maine International Trade Center, the 91±¬ĮĻ’s School of Policy and International Affairs and the World Affairs Council of Maine, will highlight how Maine contributes to Arctic research, economic development, diplomacy and security cooperation. Through panel discussions and networking sessions, participants will explore topics such as North Atlantic geopolitics, maritime and port operations, trade and supply chains, climate, the environment, emergency management and partnerships with Indigenous and circumpolar communities.

The event will feature a keynote address by Svanhildur Holm Valsdottir, ambassador of Iceland to the United States. Speakers will include representatives from 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Climate Change Institute, Bowdoin Collegeā€™s John & Lile Gibbons Center for Arctic Studies and the University of New Englandā€™s Center for North Atlantic Studies, as well as leaders from Maineā€™s economic development, policy and security communities.

Biguita Hernandez-Smith, economic development officer for the city of Bangor, will moderate a panel on economic opportunities connected to Arctic activity.

The symposium is open to both high school and college students, faculty, policymakers, practitioners and members of the public interested in Arctic issues. Registration is $50, and students presenting research posters may attend at no cost.

The deadline for students to submit abstracts is March 22 and April 10 for final posters. 

For additional information, contact Tyler Lissy, a graduate student at 91±¬ĮĻā€™s School of Policy and International Affairs, at tyler.lissy@maine.edu.

“Our work follows the rhythm of the weather,ā€ said Lisa Hanscom, co-owner and manager at Welch Farm in Roque Bluffs. ā€œThe Jonesboro station helps us know the right time to tend our wild blueberries, and with the Maine Mesonet, weā€™ll have the real-time data we need to protect our crop and keep our farm thriving.”

The project stems from a 2020 needs assessment led by Extension wild blueberry specialist Lily Calderwood. Only 34% of surveyed growers reported using weather-based decision tools at the time, but 86% said they wanted to in the future. Existing networks, like Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) for aviation, NOAAā€™s Cooperative Observer Program, Maine Forest Service fire weather sites and various personal stations, offer valuable data. However, maintenance can be uneven, access and quality of the data vary and most lack soil temperature, moisture sensors or the ability to detect temperature inversions, measurements that are critical for crop management.

ā€œThe right data at the right moment turns guesswork into good decisions,ā€ said Calderwood, who is co-leading the project along with Maine State Climatologist Sean Birkel. ā€œA farm-level network will help growers decide when to irrigate, when a spray is justified and when to protect against frost. That improves yields, decreases inputs and saves time during the most stressful parts of the season.ā€

The Maine Mesonet project is installing a total of 26 ten- and three-meter stations across all 16 counties, prioritizing agricultural hubs. Three stations are planned each for Washington (wild blueberry) and Aroostook (potato) counties and other areas of high agricultural production, especially where gaps in weather data exist. Sites are also planned for 91±¬ĮĻ Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station (MAFES) farms and cooperating private and public lands.

Detailed weather and environmental data from the network will be accessible on the Maine Climate Office website, overseen by co-principal investigator and Maine State Climatologist Sean Birkel. The networkā€™s localized measurements are expected to improve short-term forecasting, enhance Integrated Pest Management (IPM) decision models, guide irrigation and frost protection, and sharpen the timing of pesticide applications. Project leaders expect the wild blueberry and potato sectors to see measurable benefits within two growing seasons of deployment.

ā€œMaine is seeing warmer temperatures, and in the past decade the state has also been variously impacted by drought,ā€ said Birkel. ā€œA Mesonet gives us high-resolution, real-time observations to track these shifts in the field throughout each season. Additional observations can improve local forecasts, making them more useful to farmers. These observations will also help statewide drought monitoring and planning.ā€

The effort also supports statewide priorities to expand outreach and enhance weather monitoring. Soil-moisture data from the network will be used by the Maine Drought Task Force and the U.S. Drought Monitor. The information will also be distributed to national companies that use weather data to predict larger trends in weather and storms, resulting in more accurate models.

The budget for the project is $3.5 million, which includes funding for 26 stations and software, plus one full-time technician to install, maintain and manage the system and decision-support tools. Funding for the Maine Mesonet was secured for the 91±¬ĮĻ System in Fiscal Year 2024 through the Congressionally Directed Spending process by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, now chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, with support from U.S. Sen. Angus King.

Maine is collaborating with the New York State Mesonet, operated by the University at Albany, to manage the large amount of data generated by the 26 stations. New York specialists will ensure the quality and accuracy of the data before sending it back to Maine. This collaboration highlights the growing trend of mesonet networks across the country working together to share knowledge, standardize practices and deliver better weather information to the public.

ā€œWeā€™re excited to launch this first-of-its-kind partnership between two statewide mesonet networks,ā€ said New York State Mesonet Director June Wang. ā€œOur team is proud to demonstrate how we can make sharing data easier, more efficient and more valuable for end users. We look forward to extending these services to additional weather networks in the future.ā€

For Maine farmers facing meteorological volatility, the Mesonet promises something simple but powerful: timely, trustworthy, farm-level weather intelligence.

Contact: Lily Calderwood, lily.calderwood@maine.edu

More frequent heat waves, drought, heavy rain and other extreme weather events are threatening Greenlandic communities’ access to clean water by impacting lake levels and reducing their quality through polluted runoff. Thatā€™s why Gavin, a 91±¬ĮĻ Ph.D. student in ecology and environmental sciences, is studying contemporary changes in lakes, particularly those in south Greenland, and how the lakes were impacted by past climate events. By studying the past and present, Gavinā€™s research can offer insight into the future of water quality and quantity in the region.

To support her work, the National Science Foundation awarded Gavin an Arctic Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant. Gavin also earned an American Dissertation Fellowship from the American Association of University Women, which recognizes doctoral candidates who serve women and girls in their communities, professions or fields of research.

ā€œThe lakes are a really big part of sheep farming. South Greenland is a lake rich landscape, and lakes are used for irrigation,ā€ Gavin said. ā€œThese lakes in south Greenland, they are used for drinking water for humans and for sheep, so it’s important to know that the headwaters to drinking water sources are clean.ā€

When the ancient Norse arrived in south Greenland hundreds of years ago, they introduced sheep farming ā€” the first recorded instance of the practice in the Arctic. Gavin said the Norse also changed the landscape by planting grass, plowing the land and building dams. In the 15th century, however, they disappeared and so did sheep farming. 

Inuit reintroduced sheep farming in the 1700s, and it has since become a crucial part of south Greenlandā€™s economy and provided food sovereignty to their communities. 

ā€œI went to south Greenland for the first time with a basic understanding of how the climate was changing and the types of freshwater resources. But my specific research questions were really something that came out of preliminary conversations with sheep farmers and learning about what they are concerned with,ā€ Gavin said. 

In those conversations, farmers told Gavin about their concerns with drought ā€” the uncertainty it brings and how it can impact hayfield management ā€” and changes in water quality and access. 

Community engagement plays a key role in Gavinā€™s efforts to ascertain how Arctic freshwater lakes respond to environmental change across different periods of time. 

She also harvests sediment cores from the bottom of lakes that provide a record of past conditions. In particular, she examines diatoms, a group of algae with cell walls made of silica that leave behind fossils in lake sediments. Because diatoms are extremely sensitive to environmental change, they provide insight into changes in lake level over the past 200 years. Additionally, Gavin has deployed and gathered data from sensors to determine how lake water levels are responding to periods without rain and the recovery time after an extreme event.

ā€œAmandaā€™s research is advancing more holistic approaches to lake science by crossing time scales ā€” from seasons to centuries ā€” and by practicing early engagement with communities affected by environmental change. I am so pleased that her great work is being recognized by various prestigious funding sources,ā€ said Jasmine Saros, associate director of 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Climate Change Institute and professor of lake ecology.

Gavin is among dozens of graduate students working in Greenland to help address socio-environmental challenges in the Arctic, the worldā€™s most rapidly changing environment. Their work is made possible through a $3 million NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) grant awarded in 2020 to 91±¬ĮĻ, an internationally-recognized leader in polar science, for an initiative called Systems Approaches to Understanding and Navigating the New Arctic (SAUNNA), led by Saros. 

ā€œJasmine is an excellent scientist, and she really supports her students in a way that gives them what they need to become the best scientists that they can be,ā€ Gavin said. ā€œAnd so I feel like I’ve really grown as a scientist and had the support behind me to ask really interesting questions and have the tools I need to to do that research.ā€

SAUNNA is what encouraged Gavin, who earned a masterā€™s degree from 91±¬ĮĻ in 2018, to pursue her Ph.D. at the same place, as it would allow her to work with top-tier scientists from a variety of disciplines. Since joining the Ph.D. program, Gavin has taught undergraduate courses in lake ecology and facilitated a research forum course that examined the roles of environmental science, policy and Indigenous knowledge in the Arctic research.

ā€œI really love teaching, and I love research, and I would like to continue being able to teach and do research, work in the Arctic and work in lakes in general,ā€ Gavin said.ā€œMy experience at 91±¬ĮĻ as a Ph.D. student has been wonderful.ā€

Contact: Marcus Wolf, 207.581.3721; marcus.wolf@maine.edu 

Maine maple sugar producers, like Mark Prentiss and Kim Roberts, are already at work preparing for next yearā€™s sap-collecting season. Prentiss and Roberts, who are married, are co-owners of True Mountain Maple, a small maple sugar production facility in the western Maine town of Industry, just north of Farmington. 

Prentiss said that during late winter, sap that has been stored and frozen in tree trunks and roots rises and begins the process of emerging from dormancy. When the trees experience enough warm weather, buds use energy from the sap to form new leaves. 

In order for good sap to flow, temperatures have to be below freezing overnight and around 40-50 F during the day. But over the past couple of decades, Prentiss and Roberts, as well as other maple industry stakeholders, have observed that the time period has become increasingly varied from year to year. It affects the profitability and success of a maple season and is completely beyond the control of sugarmakers.

Researchers at the 91±¬ĮĻ, including Jason Lilley, a maple industry educator and assistant extension professor with 91±¬ĮĻ Cooperative Extension, and Jessica Leahy, Henry W. Saunders Distinguished Professor of Forestry in the School of Forest Resources, are launching a research and outreach program to help the industry adapt to stressors enhanced by Earthā€™s changing climate.

ā€œThe difference between 37, overcast and windy and 39 and sunny, that’s the difference between sap running and not running,ā€ Lilley said. ā€œSo it’s these very minor differences that are influencing what our year is going to be like.ā€

Lilley works with Sean Birkel, Maine state climatologist and assistant professor with a joint appointment to 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Climate Change Institute and 91±¬ĮĻ Extension, to get a sense of general trends in upcoming maple seasons. On average, sap is collected for about four-to-eight weeks every year. The season is over when high temperatures reduce the quality of sap or when nighttime temperatures stay above freezing and stop sap from flowing. 

ā€œMany of Maineā€™s forests are facing challenges like pests and diseases, droughts, extreme rainfall events and wind storms,ā€ said Leahy, Lilleyā€™s research colleague. ā€œWe want to help sugarmakers and sugarbush managers respond to these, because maple is not only an important industry within Maineā€™s forest economy, itā€™s a part of our stateā€™s culture.ā€

Maineā€™s maple industry employs over 800 people in part and full time positions and has an estimated annual statewide economic contribution of $82.5 million ā€” $55.6 million in output and $26.6 million in labor income. The stateā€™s 500 licensed producers have been in business for an average of 21 years.

Prentiss and Roberts started True Mountain Maple eight years ago as a small-scale passion project. Now they have nearly two miles of tubing lines and around 3,600 taps. Every sugar maple on the property is tapped and connected, except ā€œSawyerā€™s treesā€ at the front, where a bucket collects sap for Prentissā€™ grandson.

Prentiss, whose family purchased the property in 1930, and Roberts knew when they commercialized and opened True Mountain Maple that production would be different every year, but Roberts said it is getting more unpredictable. Their 2025 season started weeks later than usual, which Roberts attributed to a cold February. However, they processed 1,250 gallons of maple syrup in just over a four-week period compared to 1,240 gallons over seven weeks last year.

Lilley said this yearā€™s season lasted just four weeks for most Maine producers, yet resulted in record yields. Despite the late start, temperatures stayed in the ideal production zone with just a few days that were too warm. Typically, extended periods of freezing temperatures stall midseason production, but producers collected sap nearly every day this year. 

Roberts said productive, short windows for processing sap puts added stress on operations like True Mountain Maple, in which just two or three people are working.

In addition, Prentiss has noticed areas of the sugarbush where trees are stressed or dying. These patches increased after the abnormally dry years of 2020-22. Heavy rainfall has also damaged access roads on their mountainside sugarbush. 

To minimize stress and enhance the ecosystem, Prentiss and Roberts have worked with a forester to develop a forest management plan and have implemented those plans to thin the trees and increase diversity of tree species.

ā€œBasswoods are really good trees to have in your forest because bees love them,ā€ Prentiss said. ā€œTheyā€™re good diversity. You donā€™t want to make it a monoculture.ā€ 

Lilley first toured True Mountain in 2023 to learn about Prentissā€™s and Robertsā€™s management approaches and provide insights on additional best practices. He and Leahy are planning an in-depth, three-part micro-credential course to train sugarbush managers, consulting foresters and other technical advisors about some of the sustainable practices used at True Mountain Maple, which can help create more resilient forests. 

ā€œWhen there’s a big wind storm that comes through, as an example, if there are other types of trees in the woods that are more deeply rooted, that can withstand those winds, versus these shallow rooted sugar maples, they are all going to have a higher chance of not getting knocked over,ā€ Lilley said.

A severe hurricane in Nova Scotia in 2019 destroyed an estimated 25% of the provinceā€™s maple trees and caused maple businesses to default. While this hasnā€™t happened to this extreme in Maine, Lilley said that over the past several years, extended periods of drought and flooding, ice storms and strong wind have damaged forest health. 

As part of their research and outreach, Lilley and Leahy will record the perceptions and experiences of Maine maple producers regarding how the weather in recent years has impacted their sugarbushes, which will help establish a baseline for management strategies. This program, funded by a $481,691 grant through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is a collaboration with two faculty from the University of Vermont Cooperative Extension, an assistant Extension professor of forestry and a maple specialist, and is an educational opportunity for anyone ā€” business owners, students, consulting foresters or backyard sugarmakers.

In addition to the micro-credential course, which is curricula focused on workforce development and offered to students and professionals, Lilley and Leahy will host a series of public workshops on sugarbush management strategies.

This grant is one of several from the USDA in the past decade to support maple syrup production through 91±¬ĮĻ research. A separate project from Leahy aimed to strengthen rural communities by addressing beekeeping and maple production challenges, and research from the School of Food and Agriculture aims to expand the domestic market for maple products.

Contact: Ashley Yates; ashley.depew@maine.edu

Established just after the American Revolution by Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton and 60 others, the Academy honors excellence and convenes leaders from every field of human endeavor to examine new ideas and address issues of importance to the nation and the world.  Steneck, professor emeritus of oceanography, marine biology and marine policy who retired in 2023, is among nearly 250 new members who will be inducted this October in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

ā€œI was shocked when I learned I had been elected to the Academy of Arts and Sciences,ā€ Steneck said. ā€œI didn’t see this coming, but I think arts and sciences pair very well. We all live on the same planet; we see similar things but integrate our experiences in new ways that sometimes shines a new light where it belongs or opens someone’s mind to something new.ā€ 

Steneck is the first 91±¬ĮĻ faculty researcher to join the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He stands alongside a long list of renowned scientists, including Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Jonas Salk, E.O. Wilson and Barbara McClintock. 

ā€œWe congratulate Bob on this incredible, well-earned recognition and are thrilled that his transformative impact on marine science and conservation has been recognized by this prestigious organization,ā€ said 91±¬ĮĻ President Joan Ferrini-Mundy. ā€œThe honor is a testament to the lasting benefits of Bobā€™s legacy, which include changing our understanding of Maineā€™s most lucrative fishery, establishing a multidecadal relationship with our fishermen and coastal communities and helping preserve vital ecosystems across the Western hemisphere. Many of todayā€™s top-tier scientists and conservation leaders also benefited from his tutelage. I was pleased to award Bob with the 2020 91±¬ĮĻ’s Presidential Research and Creative Achievement Award, which is our top honor for faculty research.ā€ 

When Steneck joined 91±¬ĮĻ in 1982, he was among the first marine ecologists to work with lobstermen on research and share findings with them. His larger goal was to develop multiple indicators of the health of the lobster fishery. His work and that of his students and colleagues propelled an expansion of, and change in, how lobster fishery research is conducted in Maine.  Today, 91±¬ĮĻ researchers and students collaborate on studies not only with lobstermen but also with fishermen and other industries that contribute to the stateā€™s blue economy. 

A few years ago, Steneck and his colleagues published a study warning against relying on the lobster fishery to sustain Maineā€™s coastal communities, adding that the crustaceanā€™s abundance and high value at that time may have created a false sense of security. While it remains immensely profitable, the fishery has become more susceptible to disruptions threatening Maineā€™s blue economy. Other fisheries in New England have faced similar problems, such as the collapse of southern New Englandā€™s once thriving lobster fishery because of disease. 

Over the past half century, Steneck has also conducted research on coral reefs world-wide, including the Great Barrier Reef, French Polynesia, Micronesia, but by far most of his research has been in the Caribbean. Since the 1980s, he and 91±¬ĮĻ students have traveled to coral reefs in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Mexico, Belize, Bonaire and the Dominican Republic. Based on their research, Steneck and his students helped devise management strategies to improve the resilience of coral reefs. Specifically, Steneckā€™s long-term research in Bonaire, located in the Dutch Caribbean near Venezuela, suggested regulations that helped its coral reefs bounce back after a sudden coral bleaching event.

Former students of Steneck include Carl Wilson, Maineā€™s newest commissioner of marine resources; Richard Wahle, former director of 91±¬ĮĻā€™s Lobster Institute; Elizabeth Stephenson, director of the Marine Conservation Action Fund; Amanda Leland, executive director of the Environmental Defense Fund; Susie Arnold, senior ocean scientist and director of the Center for Climate and Community for The Island Institute; Ruleo Camacho, marine ecologist for the National Park Authority for Antigua and Barbuda; Jeanne Brown, communications and outreach coordinator for the Northeast Climate Science Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst; Sally Hacker, a professor of coastal ecology at Oregon State University; and Kirt Moody, a professor of biology and environmental science at Columbia College. 

In his retirement, Steneck continues to conduct marine science research. He is an editor for Sciences Advances, one of the journals published by the American Academy of Sciences, and is writing a textbook on coral reefs. He also serves on the Hurricane Island for Science and Leadership Board of Directors.

Learn more about Steneckā€™s career and contributions to marine science on 91±¬ĮĻ News.  

Contact: Marcus Wolf, 207.581.3721; marcus.wolf@maine.eduĢż

A sophomore in the College of Earth, Life, and Health Sciences and Honors College at the 91±¬ĮĻ, Mo has built a unique path that blends scientific research and creative writing, using both as tools for advocacy.

While attending Bangor High School, Drammeh wrote their first novel, ā€œWhere the Cryptids Fledā€ through The Telling Roomā€™s Young Emerging Authors Fellowship, a year-long afterschool program that provides young writers with mentorship and support to develop, revise and publish a full-length work. Their book critiques how the news portrays marginalized groups. While the book has multiple themes, its central focus is on exposing and analyzing the ways media representation can shape public perception in biased or misleading ways.

In 2022, they entered their book into a writing contest for the Crime Flash Competition. Much to their surprise, Drammeh won the contest, leading to them being invited to participate in the Telling Room’s Young Emerging Authors program, which ultimately resulted in the publication of their book.

“I was absolutely bewildered that it happened,ā€ Drammeh said. ā€œBut I think it really cemented in my mind that this is something I am good at and something I can actually pursue to a meaningful end.”

Drammeh is currently working on a few other writing projects while also studying and conducting research at 91±¬ĮĻ. Drammeh is researching isotope hydrology, and their work involves looking at the isotopes of water and using them as proxies for various climatological processes, such as precipitation and temperature. Last year, they worked on a similar project comparing isotopic values with instances of extreme precipitation.

Drammehā€™s passion for environmental research ignited from the STEM program at Bangor High School, where they were introduced to climate science. During their time there, they participated in the Maine State Science Fair and won a full tuition scholarship to 91±¬ĮĻ, where they decided to pursue their interest in climate science. 

In addition to their writing, Drammeh is a peer mentor for the Honors College, allowing them to meet and work with some extraordinary students. 

ā€œThey have really motivated me to try harder and make sure to live up to my own expectations,ā€ Drammeh said.

With their aspirations to continue graduate studies in environmental studies, Drammeh is determined to advance their career in the field of climate science. However, they are not closed off to the fact that they could write full-time, if their writing career becomes a success. 

Whatever route they take, one thing is clear ā€” Mo will keep using their voice, in the form of data or conversation, to change the way people look at the world.

Story by Christina Wallace, news intern. 

Contact: Marcus Wolf, 207.581.3721; marcus.wolf@maine.edu

ā€œNo one is more deserving of this yearā€™s honorary doctorate than our very own George Denton. He has been a valuable asset to the School of Earth and Climate Sciences since he helped establish what is now known as the Climate Change Institute in 1973,ā€ said 91±¬ĮĻ President Joan Ferrini-Mundy. ā€œHis expertise in the temporal and geological study of glaciers has inspired many young climate scientists in Maine and beyond, and his groundbreaking research has laid the framework that helps us all understand the changes happening to our planet.ā€

Since he began his career in the 1960s, Dentonā€™s environmental research has been cited over 29,000 times. He has traveled to Antartica over 30 times and has two landmarks named in his honor: the Denton Hills and the Denton Glacier.

With Dentonā€™s participation, the Climate Change Institute, first established as the Institute for Quaternary Studies, investigated climate change ā€” a phenomenon that Denton has spent half a century studying in relation to glaciers. He was the director of the institute for four years. A graduate of Yale Universityā€™s masterā€™s and doctoral program in geology, Denton focuses on the geological history of large ice sheets and smaller mountain glaciers. The only aspect of his career that Denton values more than research has been inspiring generations of climate students. He is a proponent of student-led research, which has resulted in his students becoming faculty members at universities in the U.S. and Europe.

In 2002, Denton was elected as a member of the U.S. National Academy of the Sciences. He was previously elected as a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in 1996. He received the Vega Medal from the Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography in 1990 for his studies in physical geography and a Distinguished Career Award from the Geological Society of America in 2015.

Contact: Ashley Yates; ashley.depew@maine.edu