News from GCI

The Potential of Wolf Reintroduction in Maine

When colonists first arrived in Maine in the early 1600s, wolves still roamed the forests of the area freely. Sadly the time of the wolf would come to an end, by the 1900s wolves had been effectively wiped out in New England (NYwolf). Historically, wolves have always been a target of humans, many children’s tales even feature wolves as the antagonist. Whether it be the literal wolf that the boy cried about or the more symbolic use of a wolf in the story of Red Riding Hood.

Earth Day: Why is it Important?

As many of you may already know, on April 22nd we will be celebrating Earth Day. However, some of you might be wondering how we came to celebrate it? The easiest place to start is at the beginning, or rather, a little before the beginning technically. The first Earth Day was 51 years ago on April 22nd, 1970, but we need to look back a little further to understand how Earth Day started. For those of you who have read our article on Women’s History Month this is going to sound pretty familiar.

David vs. Goliath, The story of Moose and Winter Tick

Moose may be some of the most intriguing animals in the entire world. Moose populations have always been important ecologically and culturally in much of the northern United States (Ellingwood, 2018). In the northern New England states there are currently over 60,000 moose spread throughout the region. Sadly moose populations have not been faring well due to a small but destructive enemy. Ticks. The emergence of these tiny terrors has had terrible impacts on the populations of moose.

Daily Global CO2 Emissions from Fossil Fuels showing dropoff in 2020 due to COVID-19 Pandemic

Covid-19’s Impact on the Environment

Over the past year the world had been shaken by the Covid-19 Pandemic. Regardless of who you are, chances are the pandemic has had some type of impact on you and how you would go about your day to day activities. Wearing masks, working from home, online classes, etc. the pandemic has caused changes like this across the world. All of these changes have clearly had impacts on us, but how did Covid-19 affect the environment?

Women and the Environment

As we come to the end of March, also known as Women’s History Month, it is important to recognize the contributions and achievements of many influential women in our past and present. Women’s History Month can trace its roots back to the early 1980’s with the Presidential proclamation of the first Women’s History Week in March, 1982.

Keystone/XL Pipeline Cancellation

On January 20th, 2020 construction on the Keystone XL Pipeline in the United States stopped in anticipation of President Joe Biden’s plan to revoke the construction permit for the project. This pipeline has been a hot button issue between those looking to curb fossil fuel usage and those wanting to further economic development (PBS). The previous two administrations showcased this division in thought with President Barack Obama rejecting the XL project and President Donald Trump providing the presidential permit for it to be constructed.

Paris Climate Agreement art by Cienpies Design

The Paris Climate Conundrum

During the administration of the former president, Donald Trump, the United States had withdrawn from the Paris Climate Agreement. The official withdrawal from the agreement had occurred on November 4th, 2020 a year after the US began the process of withdrawing (BBC.) With the beginning of a new administration under president Joe Biden, the US once again chose to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement. The process took 30 days to complete with the US finally rejoining the agreement on February 26th, 2021(NBC.)

Remembering Environmental Heroes

Black history month is a time for us to remember some of history’s forgotten or neglected figures, many of whom have been neglected simply because of the color of their skin. Black writers, researchers, teachers, heroes, etc. are finally getting some of the recognition they deserve.

A Climate Power Play for the Seattle Kraken

On July 23rd, 2020 the NHL announced the name of it’s newest team, the Seattle Kraken (CBS Boston). This 32nd team will replace the Vegas Golden Knights, who became a team in June 2016, as the youngest team in the league (Britannica). The NHL is now tied with the NFL for most teams in their league out of the four major sports leagues in North America (NHL, NFL, NBA, MLB). Besides being the newcomer to the league the Seattle Kraken have already made a splash announcing the plans for their new stadium.

Wildfires Continue to Burn Throughout California

Similar to the wildfires that ravaged Australia at the beginning of this year, California has been devastated by recent outbreaks of wildfires. Many of these wildfires had been sparked by a series of lightning strikes in Mid-August (NBC).

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