Category: In the news

The US’s Easternmost City Could Be a Model for the Country’s Renewable Future

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In 2021, the city of Eastport, with support from Island Institute, was awarded an Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project grant from the Department of Energy with , which funded work to develop localized energy generation and storage.

Now, a community-driven initiative is developing solar and tidal power to feed a microgrid. It would allow the island community to weather hours of outages, detached from the main electrical grid without the high costs and carbon footprint of diesel. The grant launched the feasibility studies and produced the plans for the transition that Eastport is in the middle of building out.

Working waterfronts discuss storm recovery progress with legislators

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Nine months after damaging storms in January heavily impacted Maine’s coastal communities, recovery is still top of mind. The issue is being put back at the forefront for state legislators. In Bremen on Tuesday, Island Institute hosted a roundtable between leaders from Maine’s working waterfronts, Sen. Angus King, and Rep. Chellie Pingree.

5 Maine communities selected for federal energy transitions initiative

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Five Maine communities have been selected for a federal program designed to support energy transitions in rural coastal and island communities. Brooklin, Chebeague Island, Cranberry Isles, Passamaquoddy Tribe at the Pleasant Point Reservation and Washington County will get technical and planning assistance to make their energy systems more resilient.

Island Institute marks 25 Years of Fellows Program

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Published by National Fisherman on August 27, 2024.  Island Institute proudly celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Fellows Program on August 8th at the Rockport Opera House. The event brought together a vibrant assembly of past, current, and incoming Fellows, advisors, community members, and supporters. All gathered to honor a program that has profoundly shaped… Read more »

Electrifying the fleet: Biddeford company takes aim at converting commercial vessels to electric

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Published by MaineBiz on May 27, 2024.  Maine Electric Boat has installed more than a dozen electric propulsion systems on sailboats and powerboats since the company was formed five years ago. With an eye toward the future, the Biddeford-based company is now taking aim at a new market: commercial work vessels. That sector — lobster… Read more »

Coffee with the Casco Baykeeper and Island Institute

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Scientists and working groups weigh in on all aspects of climate change, from heat waves to soaring pollen counts to sea level rise, to help the Maine Climate Council set new goals for the second installment of Maine Won’t Wait, the state’s climate action plan.

Tales from the Sea Podcast – Working Waterfront

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Scientists and working groups weigh in on all aspects of climate change, from heat waves to soaring pollen counts to sea level rise, to help the Maine Climate Council set new goals for the second installment of Maine Won’t Wait, the state’s climate action plan.

A new connectivity hub will address digital accessibility struggles in Stonington

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n 1999, fresh out of college, two women signed up to be dropped into small island communities as part of the Rockland-based nonprofit Island Institute’s fellowship program. Except that there was no fellowship program, at least not really. The institute’s mission, since its founding 16 years earlier, had been to support the economic and social well-being of coastal towns, but it had never tried this before.