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We are thrilled to announce that Paulina Murray has joined Maine TREE as our first-ever Holt Research Forest Fellow!
The Holt Research Forest Fellow will manage and analyze five decades of data collected at the Holt Research Forest, including supervising ongoing data collection this summer. She will conduct a fundamental analysis of coastal oak-pine ecosystem responses to variable retention harvest, focusing on canopy composition and regeneration. These efforts will help to inform landowner management and provide a foundation for continued ecological monitoring and future research at the site.
Paulina was born and raised in New York and earned a BS in environmental sciences with a concentration in conservation from Siena College. She recently graduated from the University of Vermont with her MS in natural resources, where her research focused on understanding the effects of disturbance on forest ecosystem functions.
Before joining Maine TREE, Paulina was an Arthur V. Savage intern for Parks & Trails NY and also spent time as a non-voting member of the Green Mountain Club Board of Directors. Her time spent in these roles deepened her commitment to driving positive social and environmental change through non-profit initiatives and reinforced her beliefs in making science and data accessible to all as it fosters informed decision-making.
Outside of work, Paulina can be found wandering the woods, trying new foods, and finding novel and creative ways to entertain her energetic cat, Buko. She looks forward to utilizing her analytical skills and contributing to Maine Tree’s forest-based education and research efforts.
and Grown…
Join us in welcoming Hope Light, our communications coordinator, who joined our team last November.
Hope holds a BA in Food Systems, Policy, and Social Change from Empire State University and an MA in Social Justice and Community Organizing from Prescott College. Having had a successful career as a Chef, she has since turned her attention to the most pressing issue of our time, climate change, working as a social impact communication strategist with organizations like Maine TREE to help educate the public.
As the daughter of a (late) conventional logger, Hope recognizes the economic and ecological value of Maine’s working forests and has enjoyed helping us get our message out to a larger audience these past few months. When she is not working, Hope can be found cooking, camping, or enjoying live music with her husband and their two children.
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