Aquaponics Food Production Digital Badge
University of New England
University of New England’s (UNE) aquaculture faculty offers a co-curricular Aquaponic Food Production digital badge that supports students in developing skills in how to design and maintain an aquaponics system and recirculating aquaculture system. Undergraduate students apply concrete skills learned through the digital badge curriculum to apply aquaponics and recirculating aquaculture knowledge and critique to real-world situations, in collaboration with local employer partners within Maine’s aquaculture sector. In addition, aquaculture faculty in collaboration with the UNE Office of Career Services and College of Arts & Sciences Internship Office are actively engaged in collaborative efforts with Educate Maine/Focus Maine Internship Experience and Boothbay Sea and Science Center to expand experiential learning activities with the goal to develop trained, skilled and workforce ready graduates in the aquaculture industry. Skill areas include growers (shellfish, finfish, sea vegetables), processing, and distribution and sales.