Working Waterfront

Maine’s climate work must aim for equitable impact

When it comes to confronting climate change, how can we design responses to meet the needs of Maine’s rural and natural resource–based communities? How can we expand these considerations to ensure that climate action will serve all Maine people equitably—particularly those who have been excluded in the past, and who… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The Sunbeam holds its course

Built in 1995 and operated now by the Bar Harbor-based Maine Seacoast Mission, the 75-foot long, steel-hulled Sunbeam V clears harbors of ice in the winter months, and in all seasons serves as a place of fellowship and communion for those unbridged islands of Maine that support year-round populations. Douglas Cornman, director of… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Leadership means having the seat with the view

The Passamaquoddy word for leadership is nihkanke. The literal translation of that word is “the one who paddles in the front of the canoe.” I clearly remember when I first heard this word and learned its cultural context. I was at a leadership seminar for island leaders, sponsored by the Island Institute. Linda Cross Godfrey, founder… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Kevin Waters, beloved pilot, dies suddenly

When ferries and private boats fail to deliver, islanders turned to Kevin Waters and his company Penobscot Island Air to get to the mainland or back home. And after Waters’ untimely death of a heart attack at age 62 on July 5, islanders turned to each other to share their… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Outer island schools celebrate decade of connection

What do a two-day old baby boy in Hope, a family in the Bahamas, an Island Fellow on Frenchboro, and a Maine Islands Coalition representative on Cliff Island have in common? They were all among the 50-plus people who attended a virtual party in May to celebrate the 10th anniversary… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Finding yeast on sourdough island

In kitchens across the country, and certainly here on Islesboro, little containers of flour, water, and yeasts bubble away, giving rise to loaves of homemade bread and lots of conversations between experienced sourdough users and newcomers to the craft. A yeast shortage caused this. The world, of course, has lots… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Now, everyone’s an islander

Well, it’s May as I’m writing this, and we’re still staying at home. I’ve got deer fences up around the vegetable gardens for the first time and a greenhouse on the way, and classes are ending a little early for students. Nebo and Calderwood are doing takeout occasionally. So it’s… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Small business survival means building lifeboats

As a small business owner, particularly one whose business resides on an island overlooking the great Atlantic Ocean, thoughts about sinking ships are probably unavoidable just now. I find myself often comparing my efforts to keep New Era Gallery here on Vinalhaven open to those of the musicians on the Titanic—doing… SEE MORE

The view over Lunt Harbor on Frenchboro.

Working Waterfront

Let’s take a break (so we can get back to work)

Reflections is written by Island Fellows, recent college grads who do community service work on Maine islands and in coastal communities through the Island Institute, publisher of The Working Waterfront. By Natalie Hyde-Petersen There are a lot of big and important things going on right now, and at least for me,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

High school seniors undaunted by virus-tinged graduation

By Tom Groening Across the state, high school ended this spring with a whimper. Students graduated at the peak, or perhaps post-peak, of an unprecedented pandemic. And with graduation, they move into an uncertain and unknown future. But for three graduates in coastal communities—Peaks Island, Islesboro, and Eastport—the new normal… SEE MORE