The Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries (MCCF) has named Paul Anderson as its new executive director. Anderson will begin working at the Stonington nonprofit in September and will fully assume executive director duties Jan. 1. Anderson will succeed founder Robin Alden as executive director, who is stepping down after 14 years at the helm of MCCF, formerly known as Penobscot East Resource Center.
Anderson is currently director of the Maine Sea Grant College Program at the University of Maine where he has been for the last 16 years. The Sea Grant portfolio includes commercial fisheries, aquaculture, coastal community development, ecosystem health, and coastal resiliency. He also serves in national leadership with the Sea Grant Association, and is co-leader for the new state-bond-funded Alliance for Maine’s Marine Economy. At the University, Anderson holds two additional positions: he is Research Network Director of the Sustainable Ecological Aquaculture Network (“SEANET”), and Director of the Aquaculture Research Network.
Anderson holds bachelors and masters degrees in microbiology from the University of Maine and has served in numerous key positions, at the Maine Department of Marine Resources and elsewhere. He was, for a number of years, chairman of the Maine Fishermen’s Forum Board.
MCCF has received national and international recognition during the last two years for its work securing a future for Maine fishing communities. Its work is an investment in co-management of Maine’s marine resources, investing in people through education and leadership, in collaborative science and in advocacy for coastal fishermen and their communities.
For more information, please contact board chairman Dennis Damon at 367-2708 or info@coastalfisheries.org.
