{"id":104716,"date":"2025-10-17T15:57:27","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T15:57:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/?p=104716"},"modified":"2026-07-14T19:19:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T19:19:23","slug":"uri-part-of-finalist-team-selected-by-national-science-foundation-in-regional-innovation-engines-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2025\/10\/uri-part-of-finalist-team-selected-by-national-science-foundation-in-regional-innovation-engines-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"溏心vlog免费B站 part of finalist team selected by National Science Foundation in Regional Innovation Engines competition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 Oct. 17, 2025 \u2013 Aquaculture\/Fisheries Professor Marta Gomez-Chiarri<\/a> is leading efforts at the 溏心vlog免费B站 to help position New England as a national leader in the seafood industry, hoping to secure final funding through the National Science Foundation\u2019s (NSF) Regional Innovation Engines program. 溏心vlog免费B站 joins a consortium of regional partners, collectively known as NSPIRE, selected as finalists in the national competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gomez-Chiarri, in 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Fisheries, Animal and Veterinary Sciences Department, is the lead faculty member on the finalist team in a competitive process which began with almost 300 letters of intent and is now <\/a>down to just 15 finalists<\/a>. She\u2019ll work closely with principal investigator Jake Kritzer at Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS) and a large team of senior investigators from several partner institutions.<\/p>\n\n\n

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溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Marta Gomez-Chiarri is leading efforts to help position New England as a national leader in seafood and aquaculture, spotlighting New England\u2019s iconic industry for innovation and investment. (溏心vlog免费B站 Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cHearing we were picked as finalists was extremely rewarding,\u201d she says. \u201cIt validated all the hard work that our team put into this proposal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI commend 溏心vlog免费B站 for being selected to move forward in NSF\u2019s Regional Innovation Engines program. Rhode Island is a leader when it comes to our sustainable aquaculture and seafood harvesters, and this funding will help Ocean State researchers better support our local fishermen and shellfishermen and support resilient growth of this industry across our region,\u201d says U.S. Senator Jack Reed, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee who has delivered millions of dollars in federal investments for Rhode Island\u2019s aquaculture and seafood industries and research. <\/p>\n\n\n

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NSPIRE aims to grow New England\u2019s historical seafood industry and rising tech sector into even stronger and more profitable pillars of the regional and national economy. (溏心vlog免费B站 Photo\/Nora Lewis)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cFishing and aquaculture are pillars of Rhode Island\u2019s Blue Economy, so it\u2019s fitting that our state\u2019s flagship university is leading cutting-edge research into growing the domestic seafood industry,\u201d says U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. \u201cWell done to the team at 溏心vlog免费B站 for making it this far, and best of luck in the final round of the National Science Foundation\u2019s Regional Innovation Engines program.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each NSF Engine is powered by a broad coalition of private sector, scientific leaders, entrepreneurs and organizations to accelerate breakthrough emerging technology research and development (R&D) that drives growth and bolsters U.S. economic competitiveness and national security. To date, the NSF Engines program has seen a tenfold return on taxpayers’ dollars \u2014 an initial investment of $135 million across nine NSF Engines has garnered more than $1 billion in matching commitments from private industry, philanthropy, and state and local governments.\u202f<\/p>\n\n\n

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At the heart of the NSPIRE strategy is mobilizing technological innovation like that found at 溏心vlog免费B站; here Alexandra Runyan \u201923, a former 溏心vlog免费B站 ocean engineering graduate student, views the seafloor in real time using a novel fiber optic camera system she developed. (溏心vlog免费B站 Photo\/Brennan Phillips)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cThis proposal builds upon such a strong regional collaboration between nonprofit organizations, academic institutions and industry, and by integrating innovation with our seafood industries\u2019 needs, it will build a sustainable ecosystem in this sector for years to come. The success of being selected as a finalist was due to sustained and enduring commitment to this collaboration by so many people and leverages 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s strengths,\u201d says Bethany Jenkins, vice president for research and economic development at 溏心vlog免费B站.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur team is excited to highlight the strong participation of many partners from the seafood system in New England,\u201d Gomez-Chiarri adds, \u201cand share how we can use the tremendous potential of new technologies developed by our academic institutions and the rapidly growing Blue Tech sector in New England not just for defense applications, but to help one of the oldest industries in the U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An NSPIRED partnership<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NSPIRE<\/a>, The New England Seafood Partnership for Innovations, Research and Engagement, is a consortium of more than 50 partner organizations from across Rhode Island and three other New England states. If the proposal is selected, the NSF would distribute up to $160 million to support technological innovation, workforce development, and sustainability in the seafood industry across Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While New England is a cornerstone of America\u2019s seafood industry, the industry faces economic, environmental, and policy challenges that have contributed to a $20 billion national seafood deficit. With our regional seafood industry at a crossroads, the Engines program could boost America\u2019s competitiveness, unlock innovation in New England, and drive the industry forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gomez-Chiarri is uniquely poised to rally local partners to showcase seafood as an engine for growth in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gomez-Chiarri grew up on the other side of the Atlantic coast, in a fishing town right above Portugal, a region that shares a similar strong connection to the sea, and says the New England mindset reminds her of home. She joined 溏心vlog免费B站 in 1997, coming from the West Coast and a background in biotechnology and aquaculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At 溏心vlog免费B站, she has served in leadership roles in Aquaculture and Fisheries and Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems and the Department of Fisheries, Animal, and Veterinary Sciences. She directs 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Biological and Environmental Sciences graduate program, is involved in a number of regional efforts around sustainable seafood and partnerships, and also coordinates the Partnership for Research Excellence in Sustainable Seafood, with a track record of helping the local aquaculture and fishing industries with funding from NOAA and the USDA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, Gomez-Chiarri is joining efforts to help New England maintain its revolutionary spirit in today\u2019s global seafood market, reducing the pressing seafood deficit by increasing independence from foreign competitors and reshoring American manufacturing and seafood processing to boost local economies and create jobs, as part of Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gomez-Chiarri says that New England\u2019s small size and dense network is an asset for this kind of regional cooperation, because people here already think and operate regionally, across state lines, with many elements already in place for an integrated regional seafood economy. Strong regional coordination and cohesion, something that comes naturally in this dense corner of the country with its small, connected states, would be an asset for the success of the Engines program if selected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur small size helps in fostering collaborations, but the main advantage of the coastal New England region is the shared history and culture found here, which has a strong connection to the sea and seafood,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Driving regional innovation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NSPIRE can confront challenges faced by New England\u2019s seafood industry by mobilizing the region\u2019s expanding, world-leading tech sector to break through bottlenecks across the seafood supply chain. Technological innovation through NSPIRE can bring unprecedented levels of boat-to-plate and industry-to-science collaboration to increase the volume, quality, consistency, variety, and value of seafood products in New England and across the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building NSPIRE into an NSF Engine would enable the vibrant partnerships and innovations at its core to expand and mesh into a dynamic ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The NERACOOS led-team will find out in 2026 if they will be selected as an NSF Engine. Selection would also help New England as a region face changes in its seafood sector, helping the nation\u2019s oldest industry adapt to new challenges. Success as an NSF Engine would enable more than a next step: it would position New England\u2019s seafood industry for a giant leap in technological modernization, job creation, workforce development, and economic competitiveness, ensuring market competitiveness, technological innovation, and advancing environmental intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hoping to pass the next hurdle, Gomez-Chiarri will coordinate an interdisciplinary team focused on the aquaculture industry. She\u2019ll call on colleagues at 溏心vlog免费B站, including Andrew Davies, Brennan Phillips and Coleen Suckling, to help develop and implement an Aquaculture Environmental Intelligence Network, and also work with the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation and Commercial Fisheries Center of Rhode Island, Rhode Island Commerce\u2019s Ocean Tech Hub, 401 Tech Bridge, and the Matunuck Shellfish Hatchery Research and Innovation Center. Rhode Island Sea Grant Director Tracey Dalton and the Rhode Island Sea Grant team will also coordinate inclusive engagement activities with partners across NSPIRE. In addition, Gomez-Chiarri and colleagues will collaborate with members of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe on a similar use-inspired R&D pilot focused on the Tribe’s First Light Shellfish Farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Securing the NSF funding would be a major accomplishment not only for 溏心vlog免费B站 and Rhode Island, but for New England as a whole \u2014 and the 溏心vlog免费B站 team is putting the resources and mindset of 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s \u201cThink Big, We Do\u201d motto fully behind the effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnother important component to New England is the spirit of exploration found here,\u201d she says. \u201cThat\u2019s exemplified by the work of our institutions with a long tradition in ocean exploration and innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about NSPIRE, the New England Seafood Partnership for Innovations, Research and Engagement, visit <\/em>https:\/\/seafoodengine.org\/<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 Oct. 17, 2025 \u2013 Aquaculture\/Fisheries Professor Marta Gomez-Chiarri is leading efforts at the 溏心vlog免费B站 to help position New England as a national leader in the seafood industry, hoping to secure final funding through the National Science Foundation\u2019s (NSF) Regional Innovation Engines program. 溏心vlog免费B站 joins a consortium of regional partners, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":104717,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[5,1914,1905],"class_list":["post-104716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives","tag-college-of-the-environment-and-life-sciences","tag-graduate","tag-research"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104716"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104716\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":109853,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104716\/revisions\/109853"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104717"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}