Integrating research and outreach education from UMass Amherst
The northeast region of Massachusetts is composed of Essex, Middlesex and Suffolk counties. The largest city in the region is Boston.
At a public event held at UMass Amherst’s Mount Ida campus, Stephen Rich, microbiology, presented information about TickReport, a service his lab runs that allows people to mail in ticks and receive a report about disease-causing microbes the tick may be carrying. (Boston 25 News, 5/14/19; News Office release)
Wednesday, March 27 was Agriculture Day on Beacon Hill. It’s a day when legislators and legislative staff get to meet with farmers and other members of the agricultural community to hear about the issues important to them. It’s also a day when everyone gets to eat a delicious meal made from locally-grown ingredients (and cooked by students from one of the state’s agricultural-vocational high schools) and sample Massachusetts’ specialty food items, including but not limited to maple candy, cranberries, cheeses, apple pie (very popular!), oysters, ice cream and more.
Nonprofit organizations operating on the grounds of a Waltham farm owned by the University of Massachusetts Amherst face eviction by year’s end because of the age and declining condition of the building housing the groups, a school spokesman said. (Globe 3/1/19)
Going beyond traditional Chamber of Commerce activities, the 900-member Cape Ann Chamber is teaming with UMass Amherst’s Gloucester Marine Station and UMass Dartmouth to grow the region’s maritime economy. (Gloucestertimes.com 1/31/19)
Katie Kahl, UMass Amherst assistant professor who heads the school's Gloucester Marine Station, facilitated a discussion about the 'blue economy" with Cape Ann Innovators Collaborative and a panel of local and regional entrepreneurs. Legislators attending included Senator Bruce Tarr and Representative Ann Ferrante along with local business leaders. Blue economy refers to a sustainable, high-technology marine-based economy that experts say requires a regional approach.
Gloucester resident Katie Kahl was named to a newly created position, extension assistant professor in sustainable fisheries and coastal resilience, at UMass Amherst’s School of Earth and Sustainability at the Gloucester Marine Station. Kahl will serve as a contact between community interests and the university’s research resources.
UMass Amherst has pared the applicant pool to three finalists for the extension faculty position to be located at its Gloucester Marine Laboratory. It has established a special seminar series in Gloucester for local stakeholders to meet the three candidates and listen to presentations on their vision for the laboratory. (Newburyport News, 1/18/2017)
An educator from the UMass nutrition program is stationed at Fall River farmer’s market each week. Sue Loughlin,an educator at the UMass Extension Nutrition Education Program, offered free samples of garbanzo summer salad, recipes, and answers questions about nutrition. (Herald News 8/22/16)
It’s official: eating local vegetables all winter has become popular—and easy.
A four-year UMass Extension project has just wrapped up that aimed to support New England farmers as they expanded their vegetable production and sales into the winter months in response to the increasing public desire for year-round access to local food. The project was supported by a grant from USDA’s Sustainable Agricultural Research and Education program (SARE).
A new, detailed report on the proposed Tennessee Gas Pipeline route through western Massachusetts points to its impact on protected open space dedicated to agriculture and conservation, and especially on Franklin County’s primary habitat for rare species habitat, wetlands wildlife habitat and communities of biodiversity. (4/22/15 The Recorder; 5/13/15 Hampshire Gazette)
Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment
Stockbridge Hall,
Civil Rights and Non-Discrimination Information
Mass. Agricultural Experiment Station
UMass Research and Education Center Farms
Water Resources Research Center