Off Campus Event: DIY Adaptations & Home Energy Efficiency, Monday, April 23- 6:30-8PM, Curtis Library


Monday, April 23rd, 6:30-8 PM
Curtis Memorial Library(organized by Bridger Tomlin, ’17, Sustainable Bowdoin/ Americorps

Save money and adapt to climate change all from the comfort of your living room! Learn about DIY home weatherization projects and energy efficiency tips that will cut back on heating and energy bills and reduce your carbon footprint. Speakers include:

  • Steve WardMaine Climate Table: “Maine’s Energy Efficiency Legislative History and Future”
  • Nat BlackfordEfficiency Maine: “Energy Efficiency Programs and Incentives”
  • Jen HatchRevision Energy: “Solar Energy and Installation”

Off campus Event: Island Energy Conference: Deadline to Register: Friday, April 27

Hello Maine energy friends and colleagues,

I hope you’re all doing well and having a good start to Spring! I am writing to invite you to this year’s Island Energy Conference coming up on May 3-5. I have attached a current agenda. There is a fantastic line up this year, with presenters from Maine, Hawaii, Alaska, Europe and elsewhere coming to discuss energy system resiliency in their communities. You can click here to register. The deadline is Friday April 27, this Friday, but you can also register the day of.

We would very much appreciate you taking a moment to spread the word about the conference on any relevant island email lists and Facebook groups. There is a Facebook event you can share as well. We would love to have strong attendance from Casco Bay communities! I have included a description of the event below that you can share via email or post.

Conference Description:

For the past eight years, the Island Energy Conference has brought together island leaders and energy experts from New England and beyond to discuss common energy challenges and the resources and techniques available to address them. This year’s event will highlight what island communities are doing to increase the resilience of their energy systems and communities in the face of an increasingly unpredictable world. Join us to connect with leaders and experts from the field at the region’s premier forum on community-based energy solutions.

If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to reach out or share my contact with others.

Thanks very much,

Brooks
Brooks Winner (Bowdoin class of 2010)
Community Development Officer
Island Institute
207.594.9209 x 148
207.358.0219 cell
www.islandinstitute.org
@brookswinner2 | LinkedIn

Need grant support for your community energy project? Check out the Spark! Fund!

Summer Program: Deforestation

My name is Sophia Watkins and I founded Forest Fund. This is the first year we will be running a course in applied sustainability entrepreneurship. The goal of the summer program is to bring students to the deforestation forefront to understand the economics of destruction firsthand. They will be learning about sustainability problems and analyzing the local and international markets that have generated them (lots on externalities!). By the end of the six weeks they will have formed small teams, picked a sustainability problem, and written and pitched a business plan for a startup to address the problem.

If it would be at all possible to make this opportunity known to undergraduates studying Environmental Studies, we would be very grateful!

Below is the flyer for the summer course and here is a link to a recent interview by The office of Sustainability at Harvard (https://green.harvard.edu/news/understanding-economics-deforestation-amazon).

Summer Program: Wildlands Studies

Wildlands Studies Summer programs offer a perfect work/school balance. For many students, summer is a time to hit the reset button. Most seek jobs to gain experience or restore bank accounts. A few keep to the grind with summer classes. With our programs, students can do both. Our 5-quarter-credit courses in YellowstoneBanffBig Sur and the California Channel Islands give undergraduates the opportunity to learn field research methods and gain credit for a small portion of the summer while also working a summer job before school starts in the fall. Our courses are extremely affordable (less than $2,850 in tuition), short (2 weeks), and attractive to students who don’t want to miss a term on campus.

There is still space on all of these programs and we encourage students to apply soon! Applications for our programs are available at: http://wildlandsstudies.campbrainregistration.com/

Sincerely,

Gabe
Gabe Andrews
Field Studies Advisor
Wildlands Studies
[email protected]
831-684-9999

Announcement: New England Food System Innovation Challenge- Registration Open for College Teams for Fall 2018

Hello All

Registration is now open for the College Track of the 2018 New England Food System Innovation Challenge. We changed our name because the issues facing the Maine Food System are the same for New England. As before, we have room for 8 teams with cash awards to the winners. The Challenge will be held at Saint Joseph’s College November 9-11.  All meals will be provided and we will provide over overnight accommodations to teams traveling a distance. Remember, this is an idea stage challenge. On Saturday of the event we will have 15-20 Resource Team members – professionals in food systems, law, finance, technology and business development to help fine tune your idea. Several past teams have gone to prototype and test their idea and three have moved on to launch their enterprises. Attached is a pdf  outlining the Challenge and rules for participating.  In past years we have had teams from Bowdoin, Bates, College of the Atlantic, Harvard, Unity, Colby, UMaine Darling Center, Hampshire and Saint Joseph’s College. Join us in 2018.

View results of the 2017 Challenge at:    http://maineinnovationchallenge.org/wpa/2017-challenge-results/

Registration at:  http://maineinnovationchallenge.org/wpa/college-team-registration/

View our Three-minute video at: https://vimeo.com/252044306

Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NEInnovationChallenge

New England Food System Innovation Challenge

November 9-11, 2018, at Saint Joseph’s College

www.NEInnovationChallenge.org
www.twitter.com/ChallengeMaine
www.facebook.com/NEInnovationChallenge

Three-minute video  https://vimeo.com/252044306

Bill Seretta, Convener and Co-Chair   
207.831.1438
[email protected]

Tom Settlemire Co-Chair
207.8416747
[email protected]

On Campus Event: “Remnants of a Vision: The Lokshala Movement in Present Day Gujarat”, with Jane-Marie Law, Mon. 4/16, 7PM Kresge

“Remnants of a Vision: The Lokshala Movement in Present Day Gujarat”, with Jane-Marie Law
Monday, April 16 7:00 PM
Kresge Auditorium, Visual Arts Center

Professor Law investigates traditional intentional religious communities as keepers of marginalized forms of knowledge about ecological sustainability. She discusses the Lokshala movement, which follows Gandhian principles to promote agricultural self-sufficiently.

Job: The Nature Conservancy: Taunton Wild & Scenic River Community Assistance Fellow (47 weeks, Boston, MA)

The Nature Conservancy – Taunton Wild and Scenic River Community Assistance Fellow
Tracking Code: 1094-984

Job Description
The Nature Conservancy – Taunton Wild and Scenic River Community Assistance Fellow

Length: Term is position is 47 weeks, full time commitment, 5-days per week
Location: Boston, MA
Living Allowance $510/week

 

Please note, housing stipend and relocation allowance are not provided for this position.

AmeriCorps Award: This position is eligible for an AmeriCorps education award upon successful completion of the program.  Value of education award is $5,815.00 (pre-tax).
Educational Status: Bachelor’s degree appropriate to community based conservation work
Start Date: Projected start date is late May/early June but is contingent on passing background investigation.
Specific training: Hands-on mentored work experience; individual training available to meet specific interests and needs.

How to Apply
Apply on-line at: https://stewardslegacy.org/open-positions

For More Information

Contact Rebecca McCormick, Stewards Program Coordinator
[email protected] 

Program Basics

The Water Team at the Massachusetts Chapter of The Nature Conservancy works to protect the land and water on which all life depends through a holistic and integrated approach of working from headwaters to open ocean. Our strategies involve conservation, spatial planning, innovative finance, and working with local, state, and federal partners to advocate for cutting edge implementation.

The Taunton Wild and Scenic Stewardship Council is a partner organization that meets regularly to protect and preserve the Taunton River. The Council consists of partners from the 10 municipalities through which the river flows, and of local and state non-profit organizations and government.

Specifics about position

The Fellow will work to protect, conserve, and restore ecosystem health and function in the Taunton River watershed. The Taunton River was designated a Wild and Scenic River by Congress in 2009, and the watershed is home to high quality ecosystems and biodiversity and has many dedicated partner organizations working on developing conservation and restoration plans. These include the Taunton River Stewardship Plan and other plans that guide conservation, restoration, and climate resilience projects.

The Fellow’s primary project will be to create a watershed wide framework to compare and prioritize projects from a variety of partner organizations and planning documents. This framework will be the basis of a grant pipeline to fund project implementation.

Duties and responsibilities may include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Develop strategic platform to catalyze conservation and restoration throughout the watershed
  • Review grant funding opportunities for project implementation and summarize needs including match, design, and timeline
  • Host a Stewardship Support Network kickoff through collaborating and connecting with partner organizations (state, federal, and NGOs)
  • Implement and facilitate information sharing, either by compiling information in at toolkit or website, or by convening a small outreach event or conference to exchange information

Mandatory Requirements:

  • Possession of a current valid driver’s license
  • Must be 18 years or older
  • Must be a US Citizen, National, or Lawful Permanent Resident Alien of the United States

Preferred Qualifications: 

KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS:

  • Experience or education in project management and implementing plans.
  • Experience with GIS
  • Knowledge in conservation and/or ecological principles

DISCRETION/LATITUDE/DECISION-MAKING:

  • Make day-to-day decisions within scope of work assignments.
  • Prioritize work independently, working with supervisor as needed.
  • Ability to work effectively under pressure and meet deadlines.

COMMUNICATIONS/INTERPERSONAL CONTACTS:

  • Ability to communicate effectively with a variety of parties
  • Ability to function productively as a member or leader of a work team.
  • Familiarity with standard business communications; ability to write and edit correspondence.
  • Diverse background of experiences strongly desired

This position will be required to submit periodic reports and a final report during their term of service.

ON CAMPUS EVENT: A SHORT SYMPOSIUM celebrating the career of John Lichter, Thursday, April 5 -5:30, Kresge Auditorium

A Short Symposium celebrating the career of John Lichter
Thursday, April 5 4:00-5:30 PM
Kresge Auditorium

John Lichter is an ecosystem ecologist who began his research career by studying the mechanisms underlying plant succession and forest development on coastal sand dunes bordering Lake Michigan.  Since then, he has investigated the effects of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide on forest productivity and carbon sequestration with colleagues at Duke University and other institutions. After coming to Bowdoin College in 2000, he began research on the ecology and environmental history of Merrymeeting Bay and the lower Kennebec estuary. This work was expanded to link Maine’s rivers and estuaries with the nearshore marine ecosystems to better understand ecological recovery and the ecological and social constraints preventing further recovery of these once bountiful ecosystems.

With collaborators, Lichter works with undergraduate students to provide vital information for the restoration and sound management of Maine’s waterways and coastal fisheries.

This short symposium will feature talks by David Foster, director of the Harvard Forest, Harvard University; Anne Hayden, program manager, Sustainable Economies Program, Manomet and Adjunct Lecturer, Bowdoin College; and William Schlesinger, president emeritus of the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies.

A reception will follow the symposium in Lancaster Lounge, Moulton Union.