The Maine Question

University of Maine research and education have ascended beyond Earth’s atmosphere since the 1990s. For example, UMaine scientists have tested the latest hypervelocity decelerators for NASA space travel and created a wireless leak detection system for the International Space Station. Through its latest inventions and studies, and scholarship and fellowship programs, UMaine plays a critical role in...

The nation’s first multi- and inter-disciplinary research institute to study Earth’s recent and long-term climate variability was founded in 1972 at the University of Maine. That institute, now known as the Climate Change Institute, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, a milestone that honors the many groundbreaking discoveries its scientists have made in the field of climate science. CC...

Like opening any business, starting and operating a farm can be challenging without any in-depth entrepreneurial knowledge or skills. To help strengthen support for farmers' business skills, University of Maine faculty members Erin Percival Carter and Stephanie Welcomer established the Business, Agriculture, and Rural Development (BARD) technical assistance training program in the Maine Business S...

There are about 3,500 students living on the University of Maine campus, many of whom have spent much of their high school or early college years learning remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the transition to in-person learning and socializing has been daunting to some first-year and returning students. In recent years, the Division of Student Life has retooled and doubled down on...

How can studying the humanities benefit society? by The Maine Question

In recent years, communities across Maine and the U.S. have discovered the presence of toxic chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in their land and water. Also known as forever chemicals because they are difficult to destroy, PFAS have been incorporated in various products, including food containers, clothing, rugs, teflon pans, fabrics and dental floss, for decades. Emer...

Daniel Sandweiss’s archaelogy career doesn’t mirror depictions of those in movies like “Indiana Jones,” but for him, it’s been equally as exciting. Over the years, Sandweiss, a University of Maine professor in the Anthropology Department and Climate Change Institute, has uncovered extensive evidence into how ancient civilization dealt with natural disasters, such as climate change, and how they ad...

Dana Humphrey has hung up his hard hat after 36 years of serving the University of Maine as a faculty member and dean of the College of Engineering. During his tenure, the college has undergone tremendous growth, most recently with the opening of the Ferland Engineering Education and Design Center on Aug. 24. The $78 million facility — the largest project of its kind in UMaine history — has the ca...

The average school day today looks different than in years past. K–12 educators face a myriad of challenges this year, including teacher and other staffing shortages, distance learning, the politicization of curricula, calls for book bans and the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. In the first episode of Season 7 of “The Maine Question,” we speak with Penny Bishop, dean of the University of Maine...

Innovation fuels entrepreneurship in Maine. In recent years, several small business startups with novel ideas for products have created and sold them at a global scale. For more than a decade, the University of Maine Foster Center for Innovation has collaborated with students, faculty, staff, startups and established organizations, and offered courses and other resources on how to innovate. It als...

Allen and Sally Fernald of Camden, Maine have long been advocates for the University of Maine. Since graduating in 1954 and 1955, the owners and publishers of Down East Magazine have donated to various capital campaigns, sponsored art galleries and poetry readings, and led alumni groups and fundraising drives. In this week’s episode of “The Maine Question,” the Fernalds discuss their lifelong rela...

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Maine will require a broader adoption of electric vehicles, according to University of Maine economist Jonathan Rubin. Officials from the Maine Department of Transportation and other state agencies have a role to play in fueling the transition away from gas-powered cars and trucks. To guide them, Rubin, professor of economics and director of the Margaret Chase...

In 2018, Joan Ferrini-Mundy became the 21st president of the University of Maine and its regional campus, the University of Maine at Machias. In 2021, she was appointed vice chancellor for research and innovation for the University of Maine System. Among her many leadership initiatives: the appointment of the President’s Council on Diversity Equity and Inclusion to ensure foundational inclusive ex...

In February, the University of Maine received an R1 designation from the prestigious Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. This rank serves as the highest possible tier a doctoral research university can achieve in the Carnegie Classification, and it places UMaine among the top 4% of research universities nationwide. In this episode of “The Maine Question” podcast, UMaine Pr...

Changes in the Arctic affect Maine, despite them being separated by more than 1,000 miles. Several scientists from the University of Maine study these shifting conditions of the climate and environment in the region and their impacts. In 2018, the UMaine Arctic Initiative was formed to build on their work and enhance collaboration in the campus community and with outside stakeholders. In this epis...

Maple syrup is a staple product in Maine, and many rejoice when the sugaring season returns each year. At the end of winter when the temperatures are just right, producers harvest gallons of sap to transform into sweet syrup inside their sugar shacks. In this episode of “The Maine Question” podcast, Jason Lilley, a sustainable agriculture professional with University of Maine Cooperative Extension...

Aquaculture is a growing industry in Maine. It yields more than $100 million in overall economic impact each year, nearly three times as much as the $50 million it contributed in 2007. Farmers and businesses in working waterfronts support themselves and the economy by cultivating Atlantic salmon, oysters, seaweed and many other aquatic flora and fauna. Despite the increased consumption of seafood...

Much of the knowledge about Native Americans comes from people who are not Indigenous. Euro-American archaeologists in particular have held notable influence on how people think about Native Americans’ past and present. A team of Wabanaki researchers and students is looking to change that dynamic. They aim to reframe how their ancestors' stories are told. In this episode of “The Maine Question,” B...

Maine faces many complex entrepreneurial, economic, environmental and educational challenges. To help tackle them, the University of Maine created the Portland Gateway, a one-stop connection to UMaine’s vast resources. True to its name, the gateway provides companies and municipalities across Maine access to the university research, resources and personnel to help solve problems and support initia...

No place on earth can escape the effects of climate change, not even Mount Everest. The highest glacier on the world’s tallest mountain — the South Col Glacier — is rapidly disappearing. A new University of Maine-led study found that the glacier is losing several decades of ice and snow accumulation annually due to human-induced climate change. These findings are the latest from the 2019 National...

Maine may lose two tidal marsh songbird species in the next few decades. Salt marsh sparrows face extinction, while Acadian Nelson’s sparrows are threatened with extirpation — localized eradication with the possibility of survival elsewhere. Their populations along the Eastern Seaboard have been declining as sea level rise destroys their habitats and, according to a new University of Maine-led stu...

Supply chain problems are occupying many people’s minds, especially with the holidays around the corner. Numerous newspaper stories and TV segments have featured images of cargo ships waiting for days or weeks to unload their goods from Asia into ports up and down the West Coast. Americans are witnessing shortages of many products they once took for granted, including lumber, various food items an...

Training to become a nurse has always been rigorous. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the stress and workload for nursing students and the medical professionals under whom they train, but it also provided a new opportunity for experiential learning. The School of Nursing at the University of Maine decided early in the pandemic to lend a hand wherever possible — training virtually every studen...

The moose has become so synonymous with Maine that it serves as the state animal. Residents and tourists alike scout the forests and mountains to catch at least a glimpse of this majestic mammal, and their odds aren’t too slim. Maine has the highest wild moose population in the lower 48 states, with 60,000–80,000 roaming the woods. Their population is considered stable, but it faces a tiny, yet le...

Maine is known as Vacationland to lovers of outdoor recreation from around the world. An industry grew out of Mainers’ and tourists’ passion for hiking, biking, kayaking, skiing and other outside pastimes, and it generates $3 billion in economic activity for the state. The Outdoor Leadership program at UMaine was created to take advantage of this opportunity. Working with an existing program at th...