Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions

We are excited to announce that Governor Mills has officially proclaimed the last week of September 2025 (Sept. 29 – Oct. 5, 2025) as “Maine Wasted Food Awareness Week”. Please check the Mitchell Center and Food Rescue Maine websites for events celebrating the proclamation.

The Maine Morning Star interviewed Mitchell Center faculty fellow and Food Rescue MAINE team leader Susanne Lee, on Maine’s newly enacted food waste ban. Lee participated in a first-of-its-kind study in 2024, that provided concrete data showing more than 360,000 tons — or about 520 pounds for every person in the state — of food […]

Earlier this year, the Mitchell Center funded three projects focused on increasing UMaine’s capacity for transdisciplinary research. Awards included two, 2-year research projects; one led by Heather Leslie titled, River Stories: Voices of the Damariscotta River Estuary, the other by Reed Miller titled, Uncovering Opportunities for Industrial Circular Economy Exchanges in Maine. The third award […]

The Ellsworth American interviewed Shaleen Jain, professor of civil engineering at the University of Maine and a Mitchell Center Faculty Fellow, on concerns dams can pose to communities and his research, which looked at how historical data on river flow and rainfall is considered in dam design and whether more expansive records could better predict […]

UMaine Ph.D. student Chyanne Yoder seeks to prevent plastic pollution at its source by piloting systems for reusable food containers in Maine coastal communities, reducing the need for single-use foodware. The Ph.D. student in anthropology and environmental policy at the University of Maine is championing this cause through the Marine Debris Project alongside her adviser, […]