Flipping the Calendar Page to September
Sep 05, 2023
We’ve said it before—Camden is a special, sweet corner of Maine. The things we love about it are often sublime—the briny wisp of a summer sea breeze; the masts of the windjammers poking up amongst fuel-guzzling megayachts. And like any love, there are letdowns and disappointments: heartache when a corner lot is cleared of 100-year old evergreens (and the required buffer ignored); anger and frustration when towering trees are downed for the sake of a harbor view (fines are paid, yes, but what about a public apology?); disagreements amongst neighbors about infrastructure that morph into character attacks.
CamdenCAN’s newsletter begins from this love of a place and explores climate work near and far. A topic as vast as Camden’s climate future can’t help but touch on every corner of our lives—that’s the reality of our warming planet.
Climate change affects our weather, which affects our food system (sad about those peaches in Maine this season, and have you noticed how the apple trees are struggling?), our housing stock (how many climate refugees have you met this summer, glad to have moved to our corner of the world?), and even our politics (one candidate for president has remarked that “fossil fuels are required for human flourishing”—he may be correct—the appropriate question now being, how do we flourish while we eliminate fossil fuels?).
In this issue we present the schedule of events and activities for CamdenCAN(ClimateActionNow) through February 2024. It’s just a small selection of what’s possible. Possibility and imagination are critical to solving the climate change puzzle. We hope you’ll lean in and help us. We can work to solve this issue by pulling together, listening, and rebuilding our beloved Camden for resilience.
We’d love your feedback on these events—what are you excited about and what would you like to see more of? (Contact us by responding to this newsletter.)
Upcoming CamdenCAN Events and Activities
- 9/14/23, Thursday, Camden Public Library, 630 pm -730 pm. “Camden, the Climate Crisis, and You,” climate conversation by Molly Mulhern and CamdenCAN. (In person and hybrid.) Bring your questions, energy, and curiosity. You’ll get to meet neighbors and add your thoughts to Camden’s climate action. This is the formal kickoff for CamdenCAN. See the write up here.
- October 5 and October 19 (Thursdays), Camden Public Library, 1-2:30 pm, (plus future Thursdays as the groups so desire): Camden Climate Circle Conversations. Join others concerned about our climate futures in small facilitated conversation circles. These will be informal, designed to help us get to know one another and find ways to talk about the climate crisis. There’ll be resources for guided discussion, too. Further offshoots of this could be a climate book or podcast club.
- November 19 (Thursday), French Conference Room, 630-8 pm. The first is our series of Camden Climate Talks: “Camden’s Neighbors’ on Climate Action: Tales of Hope and Activism from Belfast to Vinalhaven (and Elsewhere!)” Come join us to hear a panelists of climate activists and professionals from neighboring areas talk about their experiences and hopes for their town’s future.
- December 7 (Thursday), Camden Public Library, 630-8 pm. “Where Does Camden Stand on Climate Action?” A panel including town officials, volunteers, and activists discuss improvements made in the last several years since Camden signed on to the Covenant of Mayors to reduce our green house gas emissions. Also, a homeowner will discuss how they became energy independent; town staff will discuss past and current initiatives. Conversation and questions will be encouraged.
- January 11, Camden Public Library, 630-8 pm. Parker Gassett, “Best Practices Across Camden Climate Hazards,” insights and best ways to more forward in policy and action, geared specifically for Camden’s residents (including shoreline work, storm-water management on individual properties, permeable surfaces), also to include municipal issues—water treatment plant safety, emergency plans for flooding, etc.
- January 30, Camden Public Library, 630-8 pm. Facilitated Camden-Specific citizen/staff workshops/discussion on Climate Resiliency Plans, steps to being creating road maps for a Camden Climate Action plan.
- February 2024: Camden-Public-Landing-Specific Conversations: facilitated conversations and workshops to inform residents of the specific climate change challenges of the Landing and provide forums for input and priority setting.
- Ongoing: this newsletter will release biweekly; we’d also like to create a Climate Column for our local publications, including your organization’s news and fostering further community climate connection. If you have a publication and would like our contributions, contact us (mmulhern@myfairpoint.net). Or, if you want to submit articles or ideas for this newsletter, contact us.
- Also ongoing: we’re hoping to spur a series of neighborhood gatherings for talk, food, and conviviality. What better way to build the support we might need when a massive weather event crashes along our shores? Look for more information upcoming, or come back to us with you ideas.
CamdenCAN (ClimateActionNow) is a citizen-led organization committed to reducing Camden’s contribution to climate change through local action, education, advocacy, and resources. We help our community take advantage of climate solutions with actionable steps. Together we CAN make a difference.
Building a Camden Climate Coalition
It’s been said that all jobs are climate jobs. It might also be said that all nonprofits are climate nonprofits. With this wide net we’d like to welcome you to contact us if you are involved in climate work in Camden. Whether it’s the housing trust, a watershed group, or a school initiative, we want to hear from you so that we can create a Camden Climate Coalition and Alliance to share knowledge and expertise, and not duplicate efforts. Send your information as a reply to this newsletter and we’ll get back to you.
Upcoming Climate Actions Nearby
September 13, Wednesday, Rockport Public Library, 6 – 7 pm. Seed Saving and Building a Resilient Community, with Charlie Costello. Charlie will discuss seed saving, community seed banks, and resilient agriculture. FMI, go to here.
September 17, Sunday, Belfast, noon to 12:30. March for Fossil Fuels. Solidarity event for the large NYC climate march of the same day. Corner of High and Main streets, downtown Belfast. Please bring yourself, friends, and simple homemade signs proclaiming: CLIMATE EMERGENCY.
September 29, Strom Auditorium, Camden, 730-9 pm. Pine Tree Power event in Camden with Seth Berry, the force behind this important campaign. Film, music, and information to share concerning the push to a consumer-owned utility in Maine. This November 7 ballot initiative has been endorsed by Bernie Sanders and Bill McKibben. Cosponsored by the Fearless Grandmothers, Sunrise Movement, 350.org, Third Act Maine, and more.
Other Worthwhile Maine Climate Links (Plus a Few from Farther Afield)
Listen here to the recent Maine Calling interview with Paul Mayewski, UMO Climate Institute on climate change at large, and in Maine. Forthcoming, no pulling punches, upbeat, proactive, but serious too! (Thanks, Beedy, for the heads up!)
Jason Anthony’s Field Guide to the Anthropocene. This Mainer’s take on climate change and what he notices from his Maine Coastal home rings true. Read his latest “Flat Tire and a Dead Battery: the climate and biodiversity crises are inseparable, and can only be solved together.”
Other news—Camden’s town manager recently gave a chat to West Bay Rotary on Climate Change and Wastewater. Contact Audra directly (acaler@camdenmaine.gov) if you’d like her to present on this topic to your group, or if you’d like to see the presentation.
Project Drawdown’s Table of Solutions—a highly useful and relevant site that provides many ideas for action.
Climate Action Venn Diagram. Some of you may know Ayana Elizabeth Johnson as a co-author of the terrific anthology All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis. She also has a sage Ted talk in which she talks about how to find how we each fit in the climate action. Read more about how to find your place in climate work at her website.
Concluding Thoughts
One of our fellow Mainers, E.B. White, wrote many poignant essays about the paradox of living in magical, sublime Maine. There’s an oft-cited observation of his about the tension between appreciating this glorious piece of the planet and working to protect it. We’ll end with those words, hoping they help you find the balance needed in our current world. (And if anyone call tell us the essay this quote is from we’d love to hear from you.)
“Every morning I awake torn between a desire to save the world and an inclination to savor it. This makes it hard to plan the day. But if we forget to savor the world, what possible reason do we have for saving it? In a way, the savoring must come first.”