President's Message

President Robert A. Kennedy   Links Related to this Story

This issue of UMaine Today includes a wonderful story by David Munson highlighting University of Maine professor Bob Steneck and his research-based perspectives on ocean fisheries management issues. Bob is one of a great many UMaine faculty members with international stature in various academic disciplines, and his work is of extreme significance. His suggestions of new ways to look at managing delicate marine ecosystems put him at the forefront of contemporary academic thinking about the future of the world's oceans.

With its cutting-edge teaching, research and outreach activities, UMaine's School of Marine Sciences is one of the largest academic units of its kind anywhere. Its work is particularly important in Maine, where much of our state's well-being and future prosperity are inextricably linked to the sea. UMaine's high profile in marine sciences is evidenced by the fact that scientists from three other countries and 20 other states spent part of the summer working with UMaine students, staff and faculty members at our Darling Marine Center in Walpole — a UMaine facility that is known worldwide as an outstanding place for scientists to work collaboratively in an environment that supports those who aspire to advance knowledge in these areas.

Marine sciences have a long history at UMaine, and I daresay they will always be an important part of what we are as a land- and sea-grant university. As we look to the future and explore ways to maximize the impact of our work, partnerships like our growing relationship with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute in Portland, where two recently appointed UMaine faculty members will be located, will help to ensure the University of Maine's ongoing, positive effect on the understanding of marine environments. It is no exaggeration to say that the world's environment depends on a healthy, robust system of oceans, and UMaine will make a real difference in helping secure that system's future.