Lecture on 10/24: How Citizen Science Can Make a Difference in a Changing Environment

The fifth annual Roque Island Lecture on Environmental Conservation will be presented on October 24th at the University of Maine at Machias.  Dr. Abe Miller-Rushing will present a lecture entitled “Can Citizen Science and Collaboration Change the World? Or At Least Make Our Part of It a Little Better?” The lecture, sponsored by the Eastern Maine Conservation Initiative and the University of Maine at Machias, will take place at 6:30 pm in room 102 of the Science Building at UMM. The presentation is free and open to the public.

Dr. Miller-Rushing describes his talk by saying, “Citizen science and new regional collaborations are helping us to understand how our environment is changing and how we (as individuals, organizations, and communities) can respond to those changes.” He will highlight examples from here in Downeast Maine–e.g., Signs of the Seasons, Downeast Conservation Network–and will describe how they are contributing to and leading national and international efforts. He will also talk about how people can get involved in this work.

Dr. Miller-Rushing is currently Science Coordinator at Acadia National Park. He received his PhD in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior from Boston University and his Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. His research focuses on understanding environmental change and how we can best respond to those changes. He specializes in citizen science, phenology (the timing of natural events like flowering, fall foliage, and migrations), and translating science to management plans and actions.

The lecture series will continue on November 15 with Dr. Nick Fisichelle, and on April 17 with Dr. Elizabeth Farnsworth.