This episode features a one-on-one interview with Charlene Virgilio, executive director of Four Directions. Then, you’ll hear a panel discussion with Tracy Michaud, Steve Lyons, and Rauni Kew on Maine’s tourism trends and hospitality. Tracy Michaud's coauthored Maine Policy Review article: "The Role of Aquatourism in Sustaining Maine’s Working Waterfronts" https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1940&context=mpr  Steve Lyons's Maine Policy Review article: "Coastal Tourism in Maine" https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol32/iss2/38/ Our ..read more

On this episode, we interview David Vail, Caroline Paras, and Stuart Kestenbaum on Maine’s Tourism Sectors. Article on Maine's outdoor recreation economy: https://www.pressherald.com/2023/11/20/commerce-report-says-maines-outdoor-recreation-economy-grew-16-5-in-2022/ Caroline Paras's coauthored Maine Policy Review article "The Role of Aquatourism in Sustaining Maine’s Working Waterfronts" https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1940&context=mpr Our Website: https://mcspolicycenter.umaine.edu/maine-policy-matters/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/umainep ..read more

This episode is part 2 of a two-part series on Maine’s offshore wind efforts. In this episode, we’ll be following up on our interview with Dr. Habib Dagher, Executive Director of the University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center, by interviewing Celina Cunningham, Nicholas Lund, and Jack Shapiro on the environmental and policy implications of Maine’s offshore wind efforts. If you haven’t listened to our interview with Dr. Dagher and would like an introduction to Maine’s offshore wind efforts, make sure to listen to Season 5 Episode 2: Habib Dagher & Leading Energy: Maine ..read more

On this episode, the first of a two-part series, we interview Habib Dagher, the founding Executive Director of the University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center. In two weeks, we’ll be featuring a discussion with Celina Cunningham, Nicholas Lund, and Jack Shapiro on the environmental and policy implications of Maine’s offshore wind efforts. Dr. Habib Dagher is the founding Executive Director of the University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center (ASCC).  Advanced Structures & Composites Center: https://composites.umaine.edu/why-offshore-wind-2/ Advanc ..read more

In this episode, we interview Lee Kantar and Griffin Dill on the impacts of ticks on Maine wildlife and communities. Lee Kantar is a moose biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. He was awarded the Distinguished Moose Biologist Award by his peers at the 53rd North American Moose Conference. Griffin Dill manages the Tick Lab within the Diagnostic and Research Laboratory.  Resources: https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/vector-borne/#ticks https://www.maine.gov/ifw/ https://extension.umaine.edu/ticks/ Our Website: https://mcspolicycenter.umai ..read more

On this episode, we interview Mikayla Reynolds, Tamra Benson, Santiago Tijerina, and Caroline Paras, winners of UMaine’s 2023 Student Symposium. The mission of the UMaine Student Symposium is to give graduate and undergraduate student researchers the opportunity to showcase their work, research, and creative activities to the greater community, fostering conversations and collaborations that will benefit the future of Maine and beyond. Mikayla graduated as Salutatorian in May 2023 and earned her B.S.B.A with majors in management and marketing. She is currently a graduate student pursuing her M ..read more

On this episode, we discuss the Maine League of Women Voters, and this organization’s ties to the Margaret Chase Smith Library and most notably, Margaret Chase Smith herself.  First is an introduction by Dr. David Richards, the director of the Margaret Chase Smith Library on Margaret Chase Smith’s lifelong connection to the League of Women Voters, how she won the League’s Carrie Chapman Catt Award, and the significance of this honor. Then we talk with Anna Kellar, executive director of the League Of Women Voters of Maine, about what it truly means to make democracy work, their essay ..read more

On this episode, we talk with Caroline Noblet, Jean MacRae, Dianne Kopec, and Caleb Goossen about PFAS (Per- and Polyfluorinated Substances) and their effects on the environment, Maine’s efforts to combat it, the public’s understanding of the issue, and how PFAS affects agricultural systems and interstate commerce. Caroline Noblet's MPR article: “Forever Chemicals Needing Immediate Solutions: Mainers’ Preferences for Addressing PFAS Contamination Jean Macrae's MPR article: “Estimated Greenhouse Gas Emissions from PFAS Treatment of Maine Drinking Water” Our website: https://mcspolicycenter ..read more

On this episode, we talk with Rebecca Schaffner, Chris O. Yoder, Brian Kavanah, and David L. Courtemanch about the Clean Water Act, in celebration of Maine Policy Review’s special section titled “50 Years of the Clean Water Act.” This significant milestone of half a century since the passage of the Clean Water Act, we are bringing in a panel of experts to highlight Maine’s efforts to improve water quality and the need to maintain and strengthen water quality protections. You can find the articles discussed in this episode by following this link: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/ O ..read more

On this episode of Maine Policy Matters, we talk with Ali Abedi, Salimeh Sekeh, and Peter Schilling about navigating AI in research and education. More from Ali Abedi: https://cugr.umaine.edu/people/director-ali-abedi/ More from Salimeh Sekeh: https://umaine.edu/scis/people/salimeh-yasaei-sekeh/ More from Peter Schilling: https://umaine.edu/citl/people/peter-schilling-ph-d/ Our website: https://mcspolicycenter.umaine.edu/maine-policy-matters/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/umainepolicycenter/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/umainepolicy Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mcs.policy.center ..read more