Hosted by Essex National Heritage Area, join three Essex County agriculture experts to learn about the history of sustainable growing and the future of healthy soils.
Essex County has a long history of agriculture, with some of the oldest working farms in the country still operating today. There is also a deep-rooted tradition of individual and community gardening that has seen a rise in interest during the social isolation of the current pandemic. Creating healthy soils and sustainable landscapes not only for large, established farms, but for backyard gardeners is essential, and something that the speakers in this session will focus on. Join Jennifer Core, Director of Agriculture for The Trustees, Andrew Brousseau, Partner and Compost Manager for Black Earth Compost, and Lara Lepionka, Founder and Executive Director of Backyard Growers, to learn the history of farming in Essex County, the science of soil, and how those interested in starting their own sustainable garden can begin.
Following the presentation, there will be a moderated Q&A. Live captions are available during this presentation.
Join Backyard Growers for this online training to learn how to plan your own vegetable garden according to what you like to eat, the space you have for growing, and the amount of time you have to spend tending to it. In this training, attendees will be introduced to the square-foot gardening method to help them make the most of their garden this year. It includes an interactive Q&A, so come with any and all veggie-growing questions! This is the final occurence of this training for the 2021 growing season.
🙌🏽 FREE to Backyard Growers Program participants (e.g., Community Garden Program and 2020 & 2021 Backyard Garden Program)
These monthly updates give us the opportunity to report on the wonderful progress being made across GMGI. We are grateful not only to have consistent and positive updates to share, but also for the engaged and supportive community that shares in our excitement.
This month, you can read about: the stellar Class of 2021 as they continue their internships; the addition of a new team member who will lead the biomanufacturing curriculum in the soon-to-be-completed lab space at the Academy; details on an exciting research collaboration with a neighbor across the harbor; and a sneak peak of some good news to come on sequencing the lobster genome!
Please continue to send us your thoughts, comments and feedback – this communication is valued and appreciated by all of us.
Chris Bolzan Executive Director
Photo credit: Ocean Alliance
Partnership with GMGI and Ocean Alliance Continues For the past three years, GMGI has been partnering with Ocean Alliance to study whale microbiomes to better understand whale health.
The microbiome is the collection of microorganisms that reside on or within tissues and bodily fluids. It plays a very important role in health and disease. Like humans and other mammals, whales are susceptible to infections in their lungs. Understanding the prevalence and severity of such infections is key to assessing individual and population health — as well as developing informed management plans. Since we can’t bring a whale to the doctor’s office, one way to assess their health is to collect their exhaled breath condensate (or blow) and to look at their lung microbiome.
Using Ocean Alliance’s non-invasive SnotBot® drone, we can safely and harmlessly collect a sample of whale blow. Extracting and sequencing the DNA in this sample provides a preview of the microorganisms inhabiting a whale’s respiratory tract, including those associated with a healthy microbiome and potential pathogens. Merging this with other visual markers of whale health, we are developing a means of remotely assessing the health of our most charismatic marine mammals. GMGI is excited to continue to expand this partnership. We look forward to another season of sampling with Ocean Alliance.
Introducing Stephen F. Anderson, the Academy’s Biomanufacturing Lead Teacher
We are thrilled to introduce Stephen F. Anderson, PhD as the newest member of the GMGI team.
A protein chemist with over 20 years of industry experience and a strong teaching background, Dr. Anderson joins GMGI as Gloucester Biotechnology Academy’s Biomanufacturing Lead Teacher. He holds a B.S. in biochemistry from Michigan State University, and a Ph.D. in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale University. Before getting started in Boston-area industry, he did postdoctoral work in mammalian transcription biology at Harvard Medical School.
After decades of experience running core protein production and analytical labs in both startups and Big Pharma — as well as supporting projects from discovery to manufacturing — Steve is looking forward to getting back to his teaching roots.
“Since leaving the academic track in 1999, I have missed the opportunities to make a difference in students’ lives,” Steve said. “I’m thrilled to have the chance to get back to it.” He sees a stark, but incredibly valuable, difference in the way Academy operates compared to the traditional college model. “In a university, the students spend years learning things they will never use in an entry-level position; this program gives students the basics and gets them into the workforce ASAP, benefitting them and their community.”
With the construction of the Academy’s new biomanufacturing learning environment fully underway, the addition of Steve’s skillset comes at an optimal time. The incoming Class of 2022 will be the first cohort to utilize the new space, and they will have Steve’s experience and knowledge to optimize the hands-on curriculum. “I’ve built up a lot of experience in bioprocessing and I feel that the time has come to share it with a new generation,” he said.
The Class of 2021 is in week eight of their internships – check out a few students in action, putting their newfound skills to use in the lab.
These monthly updates give us the opportunity to report on the wonderful progress being made across GMGI. We are grateful not only to have consistent and positive updates to share, but also for the engaged and supportive community that shares in our excitement.
This month, you can read about: the stellar Class of 2021 as they continue their internships; the addition of a new team member who will lead the biomanufacturing curriculum in the soon-to-be-completed lab space at the Academy; details on an exciting research collaboration with a neighbor across the harbor; and a sneak peak of some good news to come on sequencing the lobster genome!
Please continue to send us your thoughts, comments and feedback – this communication is valued and appreciated by all of us.
Chris Bolzan Executive DirectorPhoto credit: Ocean Alliance
Partnership with GMGI and Ocean Alliance Continues For the past three years, GMGI has been partnering with Ocean Alliance to study whale microbiomes to better understand whale health.
The microbiome is the collection of microorganisms that reside on or within tissues and bodily fluids. It plays a very important role in health and disease. Like humans and other mammals, whales are susceptible to infections in their lungs. Understanding the prevalence and severity of such infections is key to assessing individual and population health — as well as developing informed management plans. Since we can’t bring a whale to the doctor’s office, one way to assess their health is to collect their exhaled breath condensate (or blow) and to look at their lung microbiome.
Using Ocean Alliance’s non-invasive SnotBot® drone, we can safely and harmlessly collect a sample of whale blow. Extracting and sequencing the DNA in this sample provides a preview of the microorganisms inhabiting a whale’s respiratory tract, including those associated with a healthy microbiome and potential pathogens. Merging this with other visual markers of whale health, we are developing a means of remotely assessing the health of our most charismatic marine mammals. GMGI is excited to continue to expand this partnership. We look forward to another season of sampling with Ocean Alliance.Introducing Stephen F. Anderson, the Academy’s Biomanufacturing Lead Teacher
We are thrilled to introduce Stephen F. Anderson, PhD as the newest member of the GMGI team.
A protein chemist with over 20 years of industry experience and a strong teaching background, Dr. Anderson joins GMGI as Gloucester Biotechnology Academy’s Biomanufacturing Lead Teacher. He holds a B.S. in biochemistry from Michigan State University, and a Ph.D. in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale University. Before getting started in Boston-area industry, he did postdoctoral work in mammalian transcription biology at Harvard Medical School.
After decades of experience running core protein production and analytical labs in both startups and Big Pharma — as well as supporting projects from discovery to manufacturing — Steve is looking forward to getting back to his teaching roots.
“Since leaving the academic track in 1999, I have missed the opportunities to make a difference in students’ lives,” Steve said. “I’m thrilled to have the chance to get back to it.” He sees a stark, but incredibly valuable, difference in the way Academy operates compared to the traditional college model. “In a university, the students spend years learning things they will never use in an entry-level position; this program gives students the basics and gets them into the workforce ASAP, benefitting them and their community.”
With the construction of the Academy’s new biomanufacturing learning environment fully underway, the addition of Steve’s skillset comes at an optimal time. The incoming Class of 2022 will be the first cohort to utilize the new space, and they will have Steve’s experience and knowledge to optimize the hands-on curriculum. “I’ve built up a lot of experience in bioprocessing and I feel that the time has come to share it with a new generation,” he said.
The Class of 2021 is in week eight of their internships – check out a few students in action, putting their newfound skills to use in the lab.
GMGI Science Hour Talks Continue with Dr. Nadia Rosenthal Register now! On May 13th, Nadia Rosenthal, PhD delivers our final Science Hour before a short summer hiatus.
Dr. Rosenthal is the Scientific Director of The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor (ME), whose research focuses on regenerative medicine. She has recently begun a new program to develop animal models of COVID-19 through humanizing JAX’s genetically diverse mouse strains to reflect different patient responses to the virus. Dr. Rosenthal’s talk “Exploring COVID-19 host genetics with mice” is on Thursday, May 13th at 7:30p on Zoom. Click here to register.
GMGI Researcher Dylan Comb collects samples in Ipswich for an ongoing research project focusing on soft-shell clams.
Enrolling now: SummerSTEM and Academy Class of 2022 GMGI is currently enrolling for BOTH of our Education programs — the Biotechnology Certificate Program and our SummerSTEM program. If you are interested in joining our Class of 2022, please visit our website to learn more about how to apply. If you know a middle or high school student who would be interested in participating in our week-long SummerSTEM program, please click here to learn more about this exciting summer opportunity.
The GMGI Science Minute
Have you ever wondered what means to ‘sequence a genome’? GMGI Senior Research Associate Jennifer Polinski has been hard at work for the past few years creating the reference genome for the American Lobster, and is here to explain how it’s done.
Join the Sawyer Free Library on Thursday, May 6, from 6:30-9 p.m. for a free virtual screening of a new adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s classic novelJane Eyre. Adapted by Salem, Mass., resident Julie Butters and performed by Flock Theatre of New London, Conn., the production was filmed over Zoom during the COVID pandemic and supplements live-action performances with shadow puppetry. Butters, who also plays adult Jane, will discuss making the film following the screening alongside director Derron Wood and actor Eric Michaelian (Mr. Rochester) to share the film’s details.
Jane Eyre, an orphan in early nineteenth-century England, overcomes a loveless childhood to become a governess to the ward of the enigmatic Mr. Rochester. Jane soon believes she’s found the home and the love she’s always yearned for, but Mr. Rochester’s dark secrets threaten to keep them apart. Blending gothic romance with a powerful story of personal growth, Jane Eyre explores one woman’s struggle to find love and independence despite barriers of gender, class, and circumstance.
The Cape Ann Climate Coalition met with our local astrophysicist, Dr. Bill Waller of Rockport, to ask him a few questions. Is there a Planet B? And what do we need to do to save this big rocky ball of planet (Earth) that we call home?
Gloucester Education Foundation (GEF), along with volunteers from Gloucester Parent Teacher Organizations are showing their appreciation for all teachers and staff members in the Gloucester Public School district with visits to each school by the Whoo(pie) Wagon to deliver individually wrapped whoopie pies, courtesy of GEF.
“Our teachers, administration and staff members have worked incredibly hard this year and we wanted to do something fun and lighthearted to show how much we appreciate them,” said Aria McElhenny, Executive Director of Gloucester Education Foundation. “The whoopie pies are a token of our gratitude for the time, effort and heart that the entire team at Gloucester Public Schools has put into teaching and caring for our kids during this challenging year.”
The Whoo(pie) Wagon along with PTO volunteers and Gloucester Education Foundation board members will be on hand to deliver whoopie pies at the following locations and times:
Monday, May 3- 10:30- 11:30 Gloucester High School, 32 Leslie O Johnson Rd
11:45-12:30 East Gloucester Elementary, 8 Davis Street
12:30-1:00 Veterans Memorial Elementary, 11 Webster Street
1:15 Gloucester Public School Admin Office and Gloucester Preschool, 2 Blackburn Drive
Tuesday, May 4- 11:00-11:45 West Parish Elementary School, 10 Concord Street
12:15-1:00 Plum Cove Elementary, 15 Hickory Street
1:15-2:00 Beeman Memorial Elementary, 138 Cherry Street
This Thursday, April 29th, Dr. Mandë Holford joins the GMGI Science Hour to talk about her fascinating research on the power of venom. Dr. Holford and her team are working to harness the incredible power of venom into safe, effective drug therapies that benefit human health.
Don’t forget to submit your Derby hat photos, guys and gals. Post your photo of yourself with your fancy Derby Hat to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with the hashtag #runfortherosesraffle or email your submission to info@manchesteressexrotary.org. Best woman’s hat wins a dozen roses and a bottle of Kentucky Bourbon, best men’s hat wins just the Bourbon. Contest deadline is noon on the day of the Kentucky Derby and our Run for the Roses Raffle drawing, 6:00 PM Saturday May 1. Entrants must be 21 years of age.
It is a big cause for a shellabration at the Sawyer Free Library as they announce their newest staff member, CLAWDIA THE LIBRARY LOBSTER!
Patrons should be on the lookout for Clawdia sharing the latest Library news and program updates and even helping out at the service desk! So swing by the Sawyer Free Library and give her a wave one day soon!
For more information about the Sawyer Free Library and its programs, visit sawyerfreelibrary.org
The Sawyer Free Library is pleased to announce the launch of “Technology on the Horizon,” an informative series that spotlights individuals and organizations on the North Shore working with critical or emerging technologies.
Throughout the year, the Library will be hosting local industry leaders who will share their knowledge, insight, and the economic implications of their work in a way that is accessible to all. The series is intended to inspire and inform individuals about new and exciting innovations happening in our community and the possibilities of new career paths in Technology. The live virtual presentations are free and open to the public with advance registration through the Sawyer Free Library’s website.
The series will kick off with “Big Data in Small Slices” on Thursday, April 29, at 7 pm. Data analysis and visualization expert, author, journalist, and resident of Rockport, Dianne Finch-Claydon, will share how data visualization can be used to combat climate change, better our world, and even help your career. Her newly published book, Big Data in Small Slices: Data Visualization for Communicators, which has been called an invaluable resource for anyone interested in storytelling using data, is available now to checkout at Sawyer Free Library. Click here to register and to receive the Zoom link.
For more information about the “Technology on the Horizon” series and the Library’s other programs and offerings, please visit sawyerfreelibray.org.
