Coastal Conversations 3/22/24: Changing Acadia

Producer/Host: Catherine Devine

Coastal Conversations: Conversations with people who live, work, and play on the Maine coast, hosted by the University of Maine Sea Grant Program.

This month:
Acadia is changing, and quickly. While its beauty endures, its forests, lakes and coasts are being altered by people through land uses, pollution, tourism, invasive species, and climate change. In this episode we’ll take an in depth look at two of the ways in which Acadia may change over the course of the next few decades. First we’ll talk to Caroline Kanaskie about her research on the southern pine beetle and how its northern progression threatens Acadia’s pitch pine trees. Then, we’ll talk to Jay Wason about how extreme heat might change the composition of Maine’s forests.

Guest/s:

Jay Wason III, Assistant Professor of Forest Ecosystem Physiology at UMaine

Caroline Kanaskie,  Natural Resources & Earth Systems Science Ph.D. Candidate at UNH

About the hosts:

Natalie Springuel has hosted Coastal Conversation’s since 2015, with support from the University of Maine Sea Grant where she has served as a marine extension associate for 20 years. In 2019, Springuel received an award for Public Affairs programming from the Maine Association of Broadcasters for the Coastal Conversations show called “Portland’s Working Waterfront.” Springuel is passionate about translating science, sharing stories, and offering a platform for multiple voices to weigh in on complex coastal and ocean issues. She has recently enrolled in audio production training at Maine Media Workshop to dive deeper into making great community radio.

Catherine Devine is the recipient of the 2023-2024 Cathy and Jim Gero Acadia Early Career Fellowship in Science Communication at Schoodic Institute. She is the producer of season 2 of Schoodic’s Sea to Trees podcast and a graduate of New York University.