Learn how Mercy University Professor Meghan Marrero’s childhood love of the sea helped pave the way for the creation of the Long Island Sound Schools network with CT Sea Grant Education Coordinator Diana Payne.
Author: Judy Benson
Connecticut Sea Grant Arts Support Awards Program
Connecticut Sea Grant, through its Arts Support Awards Program, will award up to $1000 to an artist or group of artists. The winning submission will be selected on the basis of aesthetic quality, relevance to coastal and marine environments and Connecticut Sea Grant themes, as well as its potential impact on the wider public and new audiences.
Associate Director Nancy Balcom receives national award
Connecticut Sea Grant Associate Director Nancy Balcom received the William Q. Wick Visionary Career Leadership Award from the Sea Grant Extension Assembly, given “in recognition of outstanding career achievement, leadership, vision and contribution to Sea Grant Extension through administration.”
‘Flyway of Life’ film by CTSG-supported artist to be shown
Following two sold-out screenings this past spring in Fairfield and Glastonbury, “Flyway of Life”—an awe-inspiring documentary celebrating the Atlantic Flyway and the incredible migratory journey of North America’s birds—returns to Connecticut with two special events this October.
Two great marine science events offered at Sound School
Registration is open for two workshops in September at The Sound School co-sponsored by Maryland Sea Grant, “Aquaculture in Action,” and “Biofilms, Biodiversity & Microplastics.”
CT, NY Sea Grant funded flounder research makes news
Two CT media outlets featured a current research project titled “Bottoming Out? Testing Hypothesis on Why Long Island Sound Flatfishes Are Disappearing,” funded as part of the 2025-2027 collaborative between the CT and NY Sea Grant programs and the EPA’s Long Island Sound Partnership.
CTSG shellfish training course spotlighted on CT public radio
Connecticut Public Radio broadcast “Aspiring shellfish farmers get a boost from CT training program,” on Sept. 3, 2025, about the oysterman Samuel Tucker and the training he received in the CT Sea Grant aquaculture course.
406 pounds of trash uplifted along with volunteers’ spirits
For Amanda Kostalis of Wallingford, spending a Saturday morning extracting plastic cups, food wrappers and other garbage from the rocks along the New Haven shoreline is a kind of public service therapy. “I try to volunteer as much as I can,” she said. “It helps to combat those feelings of hopelessness.”
Help yourself and the environment by curtailing plastic use
This op-ed article, published in Connecticut newspapers, announced the kickoff of the 2025 #DontTrashLISound campaign and focuses on reducing plastic use and new research about how plastics are getting into food.
Survey shows most view LIS positively, but lack awareness
A survey of more than 3,700 CT and NY residents shows the majority view Long Island Sound as a major asset to the region’s quality of life and economy. The survey by CT Sea Grant on behalf of the Long Island Sound Partnership was conducted in 2024, 18 years after the first public perceptions survey.