ORONO – The National Sea Grant Program announced Amanda Leland, a master’s degree student in marine biology at the University of Maine, has received a Dean John A. Knauss Policy Fellowship to pursue her work in the halls of Congress in Washington, D.C.

More than 100 graduate students throughout the country competed for 10 positions available in the U.S. Congress and 28 in the Executive Branch. Leland was chosen for a Legislative Branch position for the next year. She is sponsored by the Maine Sea Grant Program.

For three years, Leland has pursued a research project with the sea urchin industry. Intense harvesting the last 15 years has decimated urchin populations. Evidence suggests they will not recover naturally. Harvesters, managers and scientists have been exploring ways to restore stocks. Leland’s research could help determine whether replanting urchins in depleted areas is a viable option.

In 2000, Leland received a marine studies fellowship from the Maine Department of Marine Resources and the University of Maine. She worked as a liaison, bridging the gap between science, industry and policy by translating science to harvesters and resource managers.

“My time in Maine has given me a unique understanding of how science can involve, affect and be disseminated to stakeholders,” She said. “I hope to bring this perspective to the federal level where direct communication between policy makers and stakeholders is far more limited.”