Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Grower Risk And Community Perception: Impediments To Growing Maine's Aquaculture Industry, Avery W. Cole

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Maine has a long and proud history of working waterfronts and commercial fishing. However, in recent decades, aquaculture, or the harvesting or growing of aquatic life, has emerged as another player in the coastal economy. Globally, aquaculture is experiencing the fastest growth of any food sector in the world as it subsidizes floundering wild-capture fisheries (FAO, 2014). Maine and the rest of the United States have not yet participated in this growth, which has led stakeholders and policymakers like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to advocate for massive improvements to the sector by 2020 (NOAA, 2016). To ensure …

Citizen Preferences For Marine Environmental Policy, Amy Bainbridge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The growing global population, combined with increased land use, has emphasized the demand for sustainable ocean management strategies. Among suggestions for these strategies is a closer examination of the visual impact that aquaculture sites may have on coastal homes, as well as perception and preferences on coastal issues including coastal hazards, impacts of development, and marine debris. Maine’s unique and extensive history, as well as geographic location makes it an ideal setting to study these vital coastal issues, as well as to assist decision makers with informed options for management and policy.

This research explores various coastal usages and issues …

Local Food Policy & Consumer Food Cooperatives: Evolutionary Case Studies, Afton Hupper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Darwin’s theory of natural selection has played a central role in the development of the biological sciences, but evolution can also explain change in human culture. Institutions, mechanisms that govern behavior and social order, are important subjects of cultural evolution. Institutions can help stabilize cooperation, defined as behavior that benefits others, often at a personal cost. Cooperation is important for solving social dilemmas, scenarios in which the interests of the individual conflict with those of the group. A number of mechanisms by which institutions evolve to support cooperation have been identified, yet theoretical models of institutional change have rarely been …