This spring, the 91���� Portland Gateway will host a series of short courses and interactive talks on timely topics important to Maine people.  Speakers and topics include:

March 19: Tips for Aging Well in Maine: What The Research Tells Us – Lenard Kaye, D.S.W./Ph.D., Professor & Director of the Center on Aging. .

April 2: Aquaculture Advancements in Maine – Steve Eddy, Ph.D.,  Director, Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research. 

April 16: Advanced Materials for Hydrogen Energy Technologies–  Sharmila M. Mukhopadhyay, Ph.D.,   Professor & Director of the Frontier Institute for Research in Sensor Technologies (FIRST). .

May 7: Sampling Life’s Alphabet Soup: Your Guide to Environmental DNA Monitoring, Maine e-DNA. .

May 21: PFAS: New Research and Impacts for Maine – Manisha Choudhary, Ph.D.,  Postdoctoral Researcher in Civil and Environmental Engineering. .

June 4:  Think Like AI:  Unlocking Smarter Decision-Making in an Uncertain World – Yonggang “Tim” Lu, Ph.D.  Harold Alfond Associate Professor of Business Analytics in the Maine Business School.  . 

Participation is limited to 24 people to create a personalized experience. 

Questions about the series can be directed to gateway@maine.edu

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CleanTech Open 2024: Maine Launch | February 29, 2024 5-7 pm

Join E2Tech and NECEC at the Maine Center for an evening of food, drink, celebration,  and opportunity!  

Learn how the CleanTech Open accelerator program can help you develop your venture and how to apply to participate. Since 2005, more than 70% of Cleantech Open’s reporting alumni companies nationwide are still active and have collectively raised over $2B in external funding.

We welcome entrepreneurs, students, investors, savvy technologists, and those interested in joining our growing cleantech community in Maine. E2Tech has been a partner in this initiative since 2013, and participation fees for Mainers in CleanTech Open Northeast can be covered by Maine Technology Institute!  Click here for more information and to register

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Save the Dates:  Maine Impact Week April 8-12 2024

Maine Impact Week showcases the variety of ways the University of Maine’s research and innovation activities contribute to the education, workforce, and economic development of the State.  Watch the Maine Impact Week website for online and in-person events in Orono, Portland, and elsewhere.  From tours to talks, there’s a little something for everyone. 

/impactweek/

The University of Maine has been designated an R1 university by the prestigious Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The R1 designation signifies “very high research activity” in recent years and it is the highest possible tier a doctoral research university can achieve in the Carnegie Classification. Updates are completed every three years.

As of February 2021, only 146 of the nation’s 3,982 degree-granting postsecondary institutions in the United States are classified as top-tier doctoral research universities. This places 91���� among the top 3.7% in research institutions in the country.

“The research enterprise at the University of Maine is a vital state economic and educational asset,” said University of Maine System Chancellor Dannel Malloy. “The R1 designation is the world standard for research universities. With it, we will attract more talent, investment and innovation to Maine. Thanks to the dedication of our research faculty and staff at our flagship university, and the strategic leadership of President Ferrini-Mundy, Vice President for Research Kody Varahramyan, and their teams, Maine is becoming a global destination for discovery and innovation.”

91����’s research enterprise spans the entire state, including the newly launched 91���� Portland Gateway. And in the University of Maine System’s unified accreditation environment, faculty at other UMS universities have the opportunity to partner with 91���� researchers, allowing them to expand their own research along with the reach and impact of the flagship’s well-established research infrastructure.

Over the last five years, research and development expenditures at 91���� have grown 80.2% to an all-time high of $179.3 million for 2021. External funding in support of R&D increased 135% to $133.6 million, and 91���� has achieved record graduate and doctoral student enrollments. See 91����’s 2021 Research Report online.

“The R1 designation affirms that 91���� has reached the highest Carnegie Classification that identifies top doctoral-granting national universities with very high research activity,” said Kody Varahramyan, 91���� Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School. “This is also in recognition that at 91����, we have been creating a modern 21st-century research university, with nationally and internationally recognized programs of global impact and local relevance that address the workforce needs and advance the social and economic development of Maine and beyond.”

Pips Veazey weighs in on the historic achievement. “The R1 research designation affirms the great work being done by faculty, staff, students and administrators to collectively achieve this national recognition. By working together, we can do great things, and the 91���� Portland Gateway is focused on amplifying the impacts of our research across the state and beyond.”

Read the full story on 91���� News.

Three interdisciplinary projects focused on meeting Maine needs have been awarded competitive seed grants through 91����’s Portland Gateway. Funded projects facilitate convergent research across the University of Maine System.

The CONVERGE Maine program brings together UMS experts with an interest in transdisciplinary work, developing and strengthening partnerships with other institutions and organizations within the state, and addressing a societal challenge or scientific question facing Maine today.

This is the first round of awards through the program, which satisfies Portland Gateway’s goal of preparing the knowledge and innovation workforce, contributing to societal advancement and propelling economic development.

Faculty and professional research staff and scientists were invited to submit proposals in late 2021. Proposals that engage community members in a meaningful manner were given special consideration. Brief summaries of the funded projects follow.

Building Sustainable Transdisciplinary Networks to Support Just and Equitable Energy Transitions

This project will establish a cross-campus network to advance research on energy transformation, with a particular focus on inclusive, equitable and just approaches to that process.

Collaborators from 91���� include Jessica Jansujwicz, research assistant professor in the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology; Linda Silka, a senior fellow at the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions; and Sandra De Urioste-Stone, assistant vice president for research and an associate professor in the School of Forest Resources.

Transdisciplinary One Health Approach to Zoonotic Canid Parasites in Maine

The primary goal of this research is to better understand the risk of parasites to wild and domestic canid health, as well as to human health.

Collaborators from 91���� include Pauline Kamath, assistant professor of animal health, and Sue Ishaq, assistant professor of animal and veterinary sciences, both in the School of Food and Agriculture; and Darren Ranco, associate professor of anthropology and chair of Native American Programs. External collaborators include Michele Walsh, state veterinarian for the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry.

The following University of Maine One Health National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) graduate students also are participating in this project: Elizabeth Pellecer Rivera, Alaina Woods and Tegwin Taylor, Ph.D. candidates in ecology and environmental sciences; and Remy Babich, a Ph.D. candidate in biochemistry and biomedical sciences.

Farm-to-Product: Creating Sustainable Kelp-Based Bioplastics

The project researches how to create fully vertically integrated kelp-based bioplastic production in Maine, propelling development in the blue economy by leveraging the plastics and aquaculture expertise in the area.

Collaborators from the University of Southern Maine include Asheesh Lanba, assistant professor of mechanical engineering and director of the Composites Engineering Research Laboratory, and Eklou Amendah, an assistant professor of marketing. Collaborator Adam St. Gelais is an aquaculture innovation specialist at the 91���� Aquaculture Research Institute. External collaborators include Katie Weiler, founder and CEO of Viable Gear Company; Davis Lee, chief technology officer at Clocktower Engineering; and Andrew Schoenberg, serving as technical advisor.

For more information on the CONVERGE Maine seed grants, contact Pips Veazey; alice.veazey@maine.edu or gateway@maine.edu.

The 91���� Arctic initiative is one of the most interdisciplinary projects at 91����, with membership spanning 20 different departments and schools.

The initiative is based on a program launched at the University of New Hampshire and funded through a planning grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The result was the New England Arctic Network (NEAN), which 91���� researchers joined.

“At the time, 91���� did not have an umbrella initiative that covered Arctic research. Jason Charland, director of the Office of Research Development along with Chris Gerbi, professor at the School of Earth and Climate Sciences and associate dean for research in the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture created a place where researchers from across campus could come together. The effort received early support from our office,” says Kody Varahramyan, the Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School

The Arctic is a unique place with great importance. It plays a critical role in regulating the Earth’s climate and is a place of deep cultural and ecological significance. It has also increasingly become a region of economic and strategic advantage. The National Science Foundation (NSF) recognizes the importance of this region and includes Navigating the New Arctic as one of its current 10 Big Ideas.

The 91���� Arctic initiative has come a long way from the Summer of 2018, when faculty members with interests in the Arctic gathered and gave brief presentations to introduce themselves and their work. Following the success of these meetings and continued interest in the further development of an Arctic research group, Kristin Schild was named the coordinator of 91���� Arctic.

She, and others in the initiative, support grant writing, networking, and host a speaker series providing a platform for researchers to share their findings and interests within the community.

“The 91���� Arctic Initiative got its start as a grassroots group: ‘let’s start a seminar series once a month’ to bring people together and get people talking on campus. From there, researchers began to connect and realize that we actually have people on campus, within our own university, and the university system, who fill exactly the void in our individual projects,” says Schild.

As one of the most interdisciplinary initiatives on campus, with a sprawling membership, Arctic research from 91���� attacks problems from a variety of angles and viewpoints. Researchers look at how climate change is affecting coastal communities, ocean circulation, ecosystem services, and much more.

“I think one of the cool things is that the Arctic sounds like it’s so far away, and in some respects it is. But there are changes that are happening in the Arctic that are impacting the state of Maine and the Gulf of Maine specifically,” says Charland.

By creating 91���� Arctic, the university has brought together people working across campus and provided a platform for communication, finding synergy, and expanding interdisciplinary impact.

Gerbi reflects on its progress. “91���� Arctic was not cut out of whole cloth, but rather is possible because of the strong history and current engagement of 91���� faculty, staff, and students in high latitude research, education, and outreach: from the changing climate to glacier mechanics, lake ecology, environmental health, the carbon cycle, oceanography, fisheries, and transportation. Work in these areas also has a direct benefit to the state, consistent with our land- and sea-grant missions.”

This coming year the 91���� Arctic initiative will continue its valuable work, bringing together researchers across campus, supporting innovative interdisciplinary research, hosting events, and further expanding engagement through regional conferences.

Contact: gateway@maine.edu