UNITY, Maine (AP) _ Unity College has a crucial role in educating a new generation in environmental protection, the college's new president said Sunday at his inauguration.

Mitchell Thomashow, 56, became the school's ninth president at a ceremony attended by academic leaders from throughout Maine and New England, faculty, student leaders and others.

"We are jointly engaged in building, sustaining, and growing an environmental college, a place of learning that supports ecological appreciation and awareness," Thomashow said. "That is our common ground."

Thomashow came to Unity from Antioch New England Graduate School at Keene, N.H., where he served as chairman of the environmental studies department and associate dean for international advancement.

He arrived at Unity last summer and was installed formally as college president on Sunday.