MCS Policy Center Launches Maine Policy Matters Podcast
The Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center is excited to announce its podcast series, Maine Policy Matters. The focus of this podcast is the exploration of policy matters at the local, regional, and national levels as well as to highlight how policy decisions in Maine matter at the local, regional, and national levels. The double play on the title reinforces the mission, vision, and values of the Center to inform public policy processes and promote civil discourse, integrity, and societal decision-making to solve the critical issues facing Maine and the nation. The podcast facilitates open and inclusive communication to advance relationships between policymakers, community leaders, students, faculty, and staff in the University of Maine System.
Maine Policy Matters is hosted and produced by Dr. Daniel S. Soucier, a Research Associate at the Center and a PhD graduate (’19) from the University of Maine’s history department and digital curation program (’16). He explains that “the goal of Maine Policy Matters is to create a space to discuss the political stories unfolding in Maine and the nation through the lens of research and data instead of through pundits and politicians. By taking a nonpartisan approach to exploring policy matters, the podcast facilitates Senator Margaret Chase Smith’s legacy of independent, objective, transparent, and equitable policy processes.”
In the first episode of the podcast, Dr. Linda Silka, the executive editor of Maine Policy Review and Senior Fellow at the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions discusses the emerging and innovative policy research featured in the journal. She emphasizes MPR’s essential role in policymaking and policy education in Maine and discusses the scope and impact of the publication which has been downloaded over 260,000 times in over 203 different countries. This highlights that Maine policy matters to individuals across the globe. Future episodes are planned to discuss the recent passing of the CARES Act, the importance of representation in political processes, the opioid crisis, and Maine’s climate future.
The digital and audio footprint of the Center will also be expanding through this venue in two other directions. The first is the recording of a “journal on tape” podcast for Maine Policy Review, beginning with the most recent issues of the journal and then selecting specific and popular articles from years past. The other is a series of primers for individuals in Maine government or interested in Maine government.
Have an idea for a podcast? Want to be our guest? Visit our website or email our host.
Website: https://mcspolicycenter.umaine.edu/maine-policy-matters/
Email: Daniel.s.soucier@maine.edu