Working Waterfront

Brenna Cohen makes electrical connections

Name: Brenna Cohen Title: Community development officer in Island Institute's Center for Climate and Community Focus: The Energy Transitions Team collaborates with state and national experts to help island and coastal communities build energy resilience. We work to reduce power outages, boost the local energy supply to support electrification and… SEE MORE

The Fox Islands Thorofare in winter. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

A community recovers by realignment

I’m thinking about how communities cultivate collective endurance for longer-term issues like the risk of saltwater intrusion, aging infrastructure in low-lying areas, and supporting livelihoods affected by climate. SEE MORE

Ice on the streets of Gardiner, approximately where the Hannaford grocery store currently stands. PHOTO: MAINE MARITIME MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Ice made historic floods worse

During flooding events, ice floes can collide with structures, causing additional damage. This was notably the case during the historic Great Flood of 1936. SEE MORE

Harvested rockweed on the shore in Hancock Point. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Court got rockweed case wrong

Commercial rockweed harvesting in Maine is not “unfettered.” This is a scare tactic. All rockweed harvesting in Maine is licensed by the Department of Marine Resources on location, frequency, and technology. SEE MORE

PHOTO: BRIAN SKERRY/COURTESY BIGELOW LABORATORY

Working Waterfront

Kelp collapsing on Southern Maine coast

The researchers combined several dive surveys of sea urchin and kelp populations with data on ocean temperature to model how and why kelp forests are changing—and how that varies along different parts of the coast. They found that temperatures have become inhospitable... SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Climate plan: What you need to know

Ultimately, the "Maine Won’t Wait" plan is essential because it guides the state’s approach to critical issues like climate change, economic resilience, and community well-being. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Being a messenger is risky business

I’ve been thinking about a play I saw on public TV many years ago, and believe it or not, my thoughts had nothing to do with the election. An Enemy of the People, written in 1882 by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, had been adapted by Arthur Miller, best known… SEE MORE

Lia Morris, center, on a mussel farm in Penobscot Bay. PHOTO: JACK SULLIVAN

Working Waterfront

At the mussel farm with Island Institute’s Lia Morris

I spent the day on the water with members of local and state government and staff from Sunrise County Economic Council touring Marshall Cove mussel farm off Islesboro. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

In the face of change, towns must plan

As a multi-generational Mainer, I believe what makes this state special is that there has been such little change. I’ve had the opportunity to work with several local historians who share photos of their town and it’s amazing how recognizable places still are. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Our ocean’s troubling plastic problem

As I stood on the Rockland breakwater, trying to pry a piece of Styrofoam from between two boulders, my Island Institute co-workers scoured the beach, picking up trash as part of the Maine Coastal Cleanup Program. With teamwork, we finally freed that stubborn piece of plastic and I felt a… SEE MORE