The Maine Journal of Conservation and Sustainability

By Chantelle Flores & Harrison Goldspiel   Welcome to Spire’s tenth anniversary issue! Since our inaugural issue in 2017, we have been fortunate to publish a wide variety of environmental stories, including over 150 works of fine art, photography, poetry, essays, research articles, and even animation. We are grateful to the many talented contributors who […]

By Nestor Walters   Maine’s virtual Ice Age tour begins on a well-known coast-side mountain peak marked by smoothed boulders and rivulet-like ridges [1]. The landscape was formed, according to our guide, the late Dr. Harold W. Borns of the University of Maine, by an ice sheet that, twenty-five thousand years ago, was two miles […]

By Matthew Jablonski          (There is no anatomy for Steller’s Sea Cow. Every Steller’s sea cow is dead. Its anatomy is no more.)        In the conference room, the scientists discuss their plans to deextinct Steller’s sea cow.        The younger scientist says, Steller said that they tasted like beef, […]

By Erin Victor     I am a waste nerd. If you open the Photos app on my phone, you will find hundreds of pictures of waste-related infrastructures (Figure 1). Nestled between pictures of my children, I have photos of trash, recycling, and compost bins from around the world. After scrolling through a photo shoot […]

By Mara Scallon   “So! I’m signed up to do a bird count survey for the Mountain Birdwatch Project…would u be interested in joining??” This early-evening text from my dear friend KP brought a smile to my face. I quickly replied that I’d check my schedule, and within two days we’d finalized our plans. I […]

By Jordan Ramos   In open fields found venturing through the woods or down dirt roads in rural far northeast regions of Maine, awaits a unique summer challenge and ceremony: to harvest Maine’s tiniest native fruit. This watercolor painting series, called Athletes of the Rake, illustrates the hand-raking communities who come to harvest wild blueberries […]

By Patricia Arrington   My poem is about one of my favorite Maine wildflowers that I often see out on walks when I visit Pemaquid in the summer. I now grow them in my own garden to remind me of my time there. Meadowsweet (Spiraea alba) attracts many species of bees, beetles, butterflies and wasps […]

By Jordan Thompson   I walked along my path and saw a tree on the ground.Solitary, it stood. It was once tall, Triumphant.Now, on the ground it lay. Crestfallen, defeated. Can a tree feel when it is about to fall?If it could, would that make its descent more tragic—To know the tree must fall and […]

By Grace Freeman1, Alina Rousseau1, Michelle Brunton1, Luke Kramer1, Stephanie Miller2, and Laura Kate Corlew1 1. University of Maine at Augusta, Augusta, Maine 044302. University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469   Abstract This study presents the findings on the use of narrative (i.e., storytelling) when communicating complex scientific uncertainties. A growing body of evidence in […]

By Erin Coughlin   I am telling the story of the Maine Coast, how it is changing, and what can be done to ensure a resilient future for both the environment and the communities that inhabit it. Growing up and going to college in Maine, the coast has always been an important part of my […]