Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions

Session 2: Community-Driven Resilience in Energy Transitions and Climate Adaptation

Please reach out to individual speakers if you are interested in viewing PowerPoint presentations from this session. Due to limited staffing, we are unable to post the presentations to the website.

All Day Session – 8:30AM-10:30AM and 1:30PM-4:00PM
Fort Western Room, First Floor, North Wing

Session Co-chairs

• Sharon Klein, Associate Professor School of Economics, Mitchell Center Faculty Fellow, University of Maine
• Caroline Noblet, Associate Professor School of Economics, Mitchell Center Faculty Fellow, University of Maine
• Johannah Blackman, Executive Director, A Climate To Thrive
• Tanya Rucosky, Community Resilience Coordinator, Sunrise County Economic Council
• Jasmine Lamb, Founder & Chair, Sipayik Resilience Committee
• Gary Fearon, Director, Penobscot Nation Housing Department
• Abby Roche, Community Development Officer, Island Institute 
• Kirsten Brewer, Maine Climate Corps Coordinator, Volunteer Maine
• Gabe McPhail, Region 1 Coordinator Collaborative (R1CC), Resilient Communities
• Gayle Bowness, Municipal Climate Action Program Manager, Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI)
• Steph Sun, Climate Engagement Specialist, Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI)
• Jessica Brunacini, Coastal Resilience Specialist, Maine Sea Grant and Casco Bay Estuary Partnership

This session will bring together Maine communities (municipal and tribal government officials, local non-profit organizations, citizen groups) implementing or interested in implementing solutions to adapt to a changing climate; increase renewable energy, energy efficiency and conservation; and other efforts to improve community resilience. It will also bring together groups supporting these efforts: Service Providers and Regional Coordinators from the Maine Community Resilience Partnership (a program started by the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future in December 2021); non-profit organizations; state agencies; and other entities supporting community resilience. It will be an all-day “track” with morning and afternoon sessions and related poster presentations. It will be the official launch event of the Maine community-led Energy and Climate Action Network (MAINECAN), a new initiative that has been building over recent years as a collaboration between community groups and the entities that support them. Each session will prioritize a theme about outreach and community engagement best practices, which is crucial to community-led initiatives. Panel presentations and roundtable group discussions will highlight specific projects and lessons learned in community resilience initiatives led by Maine communities and Wabanaki nations, including climate mitigation (e.g., renewable energy, energy efficiency & conservation, energy storage in electricity, heating, and transportation) and adaptation (e.g., addressing sea level rise, flooding, more frequent and intense storms, fires, and other natural disasters, etc.). A targeted focus will be on people and communities considered underserved, disadvantaged, or “high” on Maine’s Social Vulnerability Index. We encourage poster presentations on these topics as well.

Session Schedule

Morning Session – Engagement and Capacity for Initiating Community-Driven Action

• 8:30AM-8:45AM – What Is Community-Led Climate and Energy Action? | Presenters: Sharon Klein, Johannah Blackman
• 8:45AM-10:00AM – Community-Driven Resilience Action: Getting Started | Moderator: Gayle Bowness
  
• 10:00AM-10:30AM – Breakout Discussions

Afternoon Session – Resources and Support for Implementing Community-Driven Initiatives

• 1:30PM-1:45PM – What Resources Exist to Help With Project implementation? | Presenters: Kirsten Brewer, Gabe McPhail
• 1:45PM-2:30PM – Community-Driven Resilience Action: Implementing Projects | Moderator: Johannah Blackman
• 2:30PM-3:00PM – Afternoon Break
• 3:00PM-3:30PM – Community-Driven Resilience Action: Working Together | Presenter: Tanya Rucosky 
• 3:30PM-4:00PM – Breakout Discussions

8:30AM – 8:45AM

What Is Community-Led Climate and Energy Action? 

Sharon Klein (1), Johannah Blackman (2)

1. Associate Professor, School of Economics, University of Maine
2. Executive Director, A Climate To Thrive

8:45AM – 10:00AM

Community-Driven Resilience Action: Getting Started

How are communities starting the process, setting goals, deciding on projects, finding/building capacity, etc.? 

Moderator: Gayle Bowness, Municipal Climate Action Program Manager, Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI)

Panelists:

1. Gary Fearon (Director, Penobscot Nation Housing Department): Americorps program for workforce development for residential weatherization & solar
2. Abigail Long (Community Science Coordinator, Gulf of Maine Research Institute): Youth engagement in coastal flooding community science to support community-resilience along Maine’s coastal communities. 
3. Brianna Cunliffe, (Community Engagement and Resilience Coordinator with A Climate to Thrive through an Island Institute Fellowship) and Stephanie Sun (Community Engagement Specialist, Gulf of Maine Research Institute): Community-driven beginning and planning processes, A Climate to Thrive and the Town of Tremont’s community vulnerability assessment and resilience planning
4. ​​Hilary Neckles (Hallowell Conservation Commission and Hallowell Climate Action): Citizen-government partnerships and engaging underserved populations 
5. Ashley Eugley (Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust) and Ed Pentaleri (Town of Alna First Selectman): Service provider assistance for enrolling Alna in the Community Resilience Partnership 
6. Sarah Carter (Select Board Member, Town of Norway) and Claire McGlinchey (Community Resilience Program Manager, Center for an Ecology-Based Economy): Building capacity for climate action in Norway through a committee formation and energy and climate vulnerability assessments

10:00AM – 10:30AM

Breakout Discussions: 

1. How to Start a Citizen Resilience Committee
   Facilitated by Jasmine Lamb (Founder & Chair, Sipayik Resilience Committee), Gary Fearon (Penobscot Nation Housing Director)
2. Barriers & Successes Engaging Underserved Communities in the Community Resilience Partnership, A Conversation with Service Providers
   Facilitated by Sonia Leone (Service Provider Assistant for Pembroke, Patten, Lincoln, Trescott Township; Research Assistant, University of Maine)
3. Engaging Diverse Populations in the Maine Climate Plan Update: Saving $ and Emissions 
   Facilitated by Caroline Noblet, Associate Professor, University of Maine
4. College Students Supporting Community-Led Action
   Facilitated by students from the College of the Atlantic and the University of Maine
5. Developing Strategies for Equitable Community Engagement 
   Facilitated by Jessica Brunacini (Coastal Resilience Specialist, Maine Sea Grant and Casco Bay Estuary Partnership) and Gabe McPhail, Region 1 Coordinator Collaborative (R1CC), Resilient Communities
6. Introducing the New Maine Community-Led Energy and Climate Action Network (MAINECAN)
   Facilitated by Faizan Saif (Master’s Student Research Assistant, Resource Economics and Policy, University of Maine) and Louise Chaplin (Undergraduate Student Research Assistant, Ecology and Environmental Science & Economics, University of Maine)
7. To Be Determined

10:30AM – 1:30PM

Conference Break – Auditorium

Poster session, exhibit viewing, keynote speaker and lunch. 

1:30PM – 1:45PM

What Resources Exist to Help With Project Implementation?

Kirsten Brewer (1), Gabe McPhail (2)

1. Maine Climate Corps Coordinator, Volunteer Maine
2. Region 1 Coordinator Collaborative (R1CC), Resilient Communities

1:45PM – 2:30PM

Community-Driven Resilience Action: Implementing Projects
What types of projects are communities doing and how are they implementing them? 

Moderator: Johannah Blackman, Executive Director, A Climate To Thrive

Panelists:

1. Beth Woolfolk (Manager of Renewable Energy Planning and Policy for A Climate to Thrive): Renewable energy microgrids, resilience and mitigation combined
2. Abigail Long (Community Science Coordinator and former Resilience Corps Fellow at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute) and Morgan Glynn (Current Resilience Corps Fellow at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute): Bridging Networks to Build Coastal Resilience with Community Science in Greater Portland 
3. Luke Dyer (Town of Van Buren): Electric Vehicles and Electric Bikes 
4. Amber Wheaton (Community Initiatives Director, Town of Millinocket): Heat Pumps in Municipal Buildings
5. Rozanna Patane (York Ready for Climate Action): York Energy Coaching Program

2:30PM – 3:00PM

Afternoon Break – Auditorium

3:00PM – 3:30PM

Community-Driven Resilience Action: Working Together
What types of partnerships have been crucial to the success of community-driven projects?

Moderator: Tanya Rucosky, Community Resilience Coordinator, Sunrise County Economic Council

Panelists:

1. Jasmine Lamb (Chair of the Sipayik Resilience Committee): Building capacity and collaboration in Eastport and Pleasant Point with window inserts and tribal citizen-government cooperation
2. Molly Mulhern (Camden Climate Action Now (CamdenCAN)): Partnering with municipal government for impactful community engagement
3. Mindee Goodrum (FB Environmental) and Pauline V Angione (Volunteer with Gouldsboro Shore): Vulnerability assessment in Gouldsboro, Maine
4. Steph Sun (Climate Engagement Specialist, Gulf of Maine Research Institute): Climate Smart Working Waterfronts, a framework to plan for thriving waterfront communities in a warming world 
5. Maddie Jensen (Planner, Bangor Area Comprehensive Transportation System) and Anja Collette (Planning Officer for the City of Bangor): Penobscot Climate Action, A regional, community Informed, planning process 

3:30PM – 4:00PM

Breakout Discussions: 

1. Enrolling in the Maine Community Resilience Partnership and Finding Funding for Community Goals 
   Facilitated by Jasmine Lamb, Founder & Chair, Sipayik Resilience Committee & PhD Student Research Assistant, Ecology & Environmental Science, University of Maine
2. How and Why Should My Community Get Involved in State Energy Initiatives?
   Facilitated by Sharon Klein, Associate Professor, University of Maine 
3. Engaging Diverse Populations in the Maine Climate Plan Update: Protecting Ourselves from a Changing Climate
   Facilitated by Catherine Mardosa (Master’s Student, Anthropology and Environmental Policy, Research Assistant, University of Maine) and Louise Chaplin (Undergraduate Research Assistant, Ecology & Environmental Science & Economics, University of Maine)
4. Centering Young Voices in Community-Led Climate Resilience: a Youth-led Breakout Discussion 
   Facilitated by Edge Venuti (Coastal and Marine Working Group Youth Representative, University of Maine Student), Audrey Hufnagel (Energy Working Group Youth Representative, Lincoln Academy Student, Maine Youth For Climate Justice Member), Carter Frank (University of Southern Maine Student), and Abigail Hayne, (Youth Climate Engagement Coordinator)
   
5. Community-Driven Climate Planning, Engaging Diverse Audiences through Scenario-Based Climate Planning. 
   Facilitated by Gayle Bowness, (Municipal Climate Action Program Manager, Gulf of Maine Research Institute) and Abby Roche (Community Development Officer, Island Institute) 
6. Centering Social Vulnerability in Resilience Planning
   Facilitated by Jessica Brunacini (Coastal Resilience Specialist, Maine Sea Grant and Casco Bay Estuary Partnership) and Gabe McPhail (Region 1 Coordinator Collaborative (R1CC), Resilient Communities)
7. To Be Determined