Author: jheim

Maine Policy Matters logo with a microphone.

Season 5, Episode 1 of Maine Policy Matters is Available Now

The Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center at the University of Maine has launched Season 5 of their podcast, Maine Policy Matters. Created to make public policy information more accessible to policymakers; government, business and nonprofit leaders; and the general public, Maine Policy Matters features interviews with experts on timely topics relevant to the state of Maine. Season 5 […]

Read more

Daniel Soucier stands at Boston University podium during a presentation.

Staff Member Dr. Daniel S. Soucier Presents at PAARI

On December 5th, Dr. Daniel S. Soucier of the MCSPC, Robert Porter from the Maine Office of Behavioral Health, and David Bilodeau from Tri-County Mental Health Services presented together at the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative at Boston University about the importance of organizational partnerships to save lives from drug-related overdoses.

Read more

Student presenting at symposium to President Joan Ferinni-Mundi to represent the Maine Policy Matters podcast episode topic of UMaine student winners of the research symposium.

S4E7 Impactful Research: Discussions with Award-Winning Student Researchers

On this episode, we interview Mikayla Reynolds, Tamra Benson, Santiago Tijerina, and Caroline Paras, winners of UMaine’s 2023 Student Symposium. The mission of the UMaine Student Symposium is to give graduate and undergraduate student researchers the opportunity to showcase their work, research, and creative activities to the greater community, fostering conversations and collaborations that will […]

Read more

Margaret Chase Smith waving from car.

S4E6 Democracy: Margaret Chase Smith and the League of Women Voters

On this episode, we discuss the Maine League of Women Voters, and this organization’s ties to the Margaret Chase Smith Library and most notably, Margaret Chase Smith herself. First is an introduction by Dr. David Richards, the director of the Margaret Chase Smith Library on Margaret Chase Smith’s lifelong connection to the League of Women Voters, […]

Read more

Children holding up a globe to represent the Maine Policy Matters podcast episode topic of Maine's youth perspectives on climate change.

S4E5 The Future of Our Planet: Maine’s Youth Perspectives on Climate Change

In this episode, we talk with Edgelynn Venuti and Victoria Leavitt about their winning essays in the Margaret Chase Smith Library Essay Contest on the government’s role in combating climate change. You can find the essays discussed in this episode in Volume 32, Issue 1 (2023) of Maine Policy Review. [00:00:00] Eric Miller: Hello and welcome back to Maine Policy Matters, […]

Read more

PFAS chemical bond diagram highlighting hydrogen, oxygen, fluorine, and carbon to represent the Maine Policy Matters podcast episode topic of PFAS.

S4E4 PFAS: The Forever Chemicals We Need to Know About

On this episode, we talk with Caroline Noblet, Jean MacRae, Dianne Kopec, and Caleb Goossen about PFAS (Per- and Polyfluorinated Substances) and their effects on the environment, Maine’s efforts to combat it, the public’s understanding of the issue, and how PFAS affects agricultural systems and interstate commerce. [00:00:00] Eric Miller: Hello and welcome back to Maine Policy […]

Read more

MPR 32(1) cover of a boy drinking water from a faucet to represent the Maine Policy Matters podcast episode topic of Maine's Clean Water Act.

S4E3 Maine’s Clean Water Act: A Celebration of Progress

On this episode, we talk with Rebecca Schaffner, Chris O. Yoder, Brian Kavanah, and David L. Courtemanch about the Clean Water Act, in celebration of Maine Policy Review’s special section titled “50 Years of the Clean Water Act.” To commemorate this significant milestone of half a century since the passage of the Clean Water Act, we brought in a panel […]

Read more

Two robot heads facing away from each other, one brown and one blue to represent the Maine Policy Matters topic of AI in research and higher education.

S4E2 AI: A New Paradigm for Research and Higher Education

On this episode of Maine Policy Matters, we talk with Ali Abedi, Salimeh Sekeh, and Peter Schilling about navigating AI in research and education. [00:00:00] Eric Miller: Hello and welcome back to Maine Policy Matters, the official podcast of the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center at the University of Maine, where we discuss the policy matters that […]

Read more