Smoke, Fog, and Blueberries
Jul 18, 2023
Hello again. Camden is hazy, smokey, and moist—all at once. We’re hanging on as best we can through our summer weather weirdness. We’re grateful for the green grass, the water in our wells, the shade provided by our massive hardwoods and softwoods. And the blueberries, already ripe on our mountaintop ledges.
And we’re grateful for each other. There are neighbors, business people, town and regional staff working hard to grapple with the effects of climate change here in Camden and beyond. Below you’ll find some links to area endeavors—there is hope, and much work to be done.
With that in mind we hope you’ll join us tomorrow night at 530 pm at Laite Beach. We’ll share hellos, eat some food, gaze at our incredible sea- and landscape, converse about climate change and ways to get informed and involved. We don’t have any set answers—just a willingness to see what happens. Come join us as we grapple with our changing world.
“[The Climate crisis] is the ultimate collective problem with only collective solutions.” —Bill McKibben
Upcoming Events/Local Resources
- Two worthwhile events in Rockland next week:
—Recharge Rockland is cohosting an evening talk called “Energy Efficiency and Electrification in Maine: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How”, A Talk by Ross Anthony at the Rockland Library, 7/25 at 6pm;
—Electric Boat Launch Party, 7/27 at 430 PM at Steel House. (And by the way, did you know you could take a FREE course on electric boats courtesy the Island Institute? Check out the link, here.) - Downtown Camden has a store that plants trees when you shop. Check out Symmetree Maine—over 105,000 trees have been planted since the store’s opening. And you’ll find a LOT of climate change resources there.
- Midcoast Climate, Energy, and Green Building Happy Hour, Thursday, August 17th from 5-7pm at Waterman’s Beach Brewery in South Thomaston. It’s cosponsored by The Hatchery—so go and check it out—read this article in Pen Bay Pilot to learn more about The Hatchery’s emphasis on teaching reuse of building materials.
- Blueberries: the harvest is early this year (July 25-30)—we suspect climate change. Get yours for free (well, you’l have to pick them) on beautiful Beech Hill. Sign up at Coastal Mountains Land Trust—and thank you, land stewards.
- Belfast has a ton of climate education and activity going on, much in part due to Brenda Harrington at the Belfast Library. If you can’t come to our picnic tomorrow night, check out this lecture (via zoom or in person): Community Resilience for the Climate Emergency, 7/19 at 6 pm, with Dr. Peter Kalmus.
- Schoodic Institute’s Goldstein lecture next week—attend via zoom, 7/24 at 4 pm: Keeping up the Pace, How Are We Responding to Climate Change?, with Ira Flatow, host of Science Friday on NPR.
- Job opportunity: The Nature Conservancy is hiring a full-time Climate and Energy Policy Advisor in Brunswick.
- Job opportunity: The Bicycle Coalition of Maine is hiring a Development Director, hybrid with at least one day per week in Portland.
Concluding Thoughts
So much, so quickly. We read a recent post that explained why things seem to be erupting in the climate—it has to do the with the non-linearity of our climate system. You can read that analysis here.
This week we attended a house party about Pine Tree Power—the fall ballot question where we get to vote to change ownership of our electrical utility from the investor-owned model to consumer-owned. The event was extremely educational, and hopeful. Understanding our electric grid and imagining a world were power is in our own hands is kinda exciting. Read more about it here, and be prepared for the onslaught of marketing materials from Versant and CMP against the initiative. (They have made millions as our utilities; they are spending those millions to stop the change in ownership—fearing that “as Maine goes, so goes the nation.”)
Didn’t we say it was exciting?—Maine CAN lead the way, just as CamdenCAN take action on climate. See you tomorrow!