Coastal Conversations: Young Mariners go to College/Graduate School

Coastal Conversations show: August 26, 2016
WERU 89.9 in Blue Hill and 99.9 in Bangor
Host: Natalie Springuel, Maine Sea Grant

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The coast of Maine is a laboratory for college and graduate students to immerse in marine studies outside the classroom. From undergraduates to PhD candidates, students are using the Maine coast to develop the knowledge and critical thinking skills needed to be the next generation of marine leaders.

On the August 26, 2016 Coastal Conversations, join host Natalie Springuel as she talks with students at the University of Maine, Bowdoin College, College of the Atlantic, and the University of New Brunswick about their research in the Gulf of Maine.

We’ll hear from a Caitlin Cleaver, a PhD student at UMaine looking at the impact of scallop fishing closures and the potential for aquaculture on Maine’s coast; Bailey Moritz ,a 2016 graduate of Bowdoin College who has discovered a special aptitude for identifying marine species; Tyler Quiring, a PhD student at UMaine studying how innovative communications tools can help inform the public and managers about the experience of clam fishermen; and Kate Schlepr, a College of the Atlantic alumna and current graduate student at the University of New Brunswick in Canada and Caroline Brown and Mikey Cornish, students at College of the Atlantic all studying seabirds at Great Duck Island.

“Young Mariners go to College and Graduate School,” is the second in a three part series on youth on the Maine coast. Final installment will occur on September 23.

Only on WERU community radio, 89.9 FM in Blue Hill and 99.9 in Bangor, and online at WERU.org.

More information about our guests and their research

Caitlin Cleaver, Hurricane Island Center For Science and Leadership
Caitlin’s research at UMaine is under the guidance of Teresa Johnson at the University of Maine and also part of the Sustainable Ecological Aquaculture Network (SEANET).
For more on the details on the scallop fisheries, listen to the December 2015 Coastal Conversations show “Maine Scallops, what makes them so great?”

Bailey Moritz is a recent graduate from Bowdoin College.

Tyler Quiring
Tyler’s research at UMaine is under the guidance of Dr. Bridie McGreavy and is a part of the New England Sustainability Consortium (NEST). As part of his master’s work, Tyler created the NEST storytelling website. Tyler was featured in a recent Mitchell Center article.
View a “clam cam” dig

Emma Fox 
Emma’s research at UMaine is under the guidance of Caroline Noblet and is part of the New England Sustainability Consortium (NEST). In her interview, Emma mentioned the following: Safe Beaches & ShellfishThe Data Discovery Center (the coastal resident portal is forthcoming). Emma was featured in a recent Mitchell Center article: Great Duck Island

Kate Shlepr
Kate is a College of the Atlantic Alumna and is currently working on her masters at the University of New Brunswick’s Atlantic Laboratory for Avian Research.

Caroline Brown and Mikey Cornish are undergraduate students at College of the Atlantic Their work took place at College of the Atlantic’s Great Duck Island Research Station under the guidance of Dr. John Anderson.

For more details about the work on Great Duck Island and the decline of gull populations in the Gulf of Maine, listen to the April 2016 Coastal Conversations program “Gulls and Seabirds in the Gulf of Maine, How are They Doing?” and John Anderson’s February 2015 Blog post “Of What Value is a Gull?”

Special feature: Patagonia volunteers help count scallop spat

When we spent a day on Hurricane Island in Penobscot Bay, we met with volunteers from the Patagonia Freeport store who had made the trek to the island as volunteers, to help in the scallop reserach project. We interviewed Bree Simmons, who is the Freeport Patagonia’s Environmental Coordinator, about the company’s grants program, which has helped fund both this research project and others in Maine.

Hear more from about Patagonia grants and support of projects in Maine in this 3.40 minute clip with Bree Simmons:


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More information about Coastal Conversations Radio Program