{"id":4075,"date":"2023-04-21T01:00:47","date_gmt":"2023-04-21T05:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/spire\/?p=4075"},"modified":"2023-04-24T12:45:27","modified_gmt":"2023-04-24T16:45:27","slug":"editor-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/spire\/2023\/04\/21\/editor-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"A Letter From the Editor"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dominic Piacentini<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ph.D. Candidate, Anthropology & Environmental Policy
\nUniversity of Maine<\/h5>\n

Welcome to Spire\u2019s seventh issue! We are glad to announce Leslie Moore as the winner of this year\u2019s cover design contest. Her linoleum block print \u201cHunters’ Moon\u201d<\/a> and her series of paired prints and poems<\/a> are a bright look into the eccentric wildlife of Maine. As we received submissions this year, I was thrilled by the diversity of the pieces and inspired by the contributors\u2019 engagements with conservation and sustainability in Maine. In an increasingly uncertain world, one filled with dire climate predictions and toxic landscapes, the pieces here are a testament to Mainers\u2019 commitment to their environment.<\/p>\n

The authors in this issue do not shy away from the feelings of sadness, frustration, and anger that come from living in times like these. Alice Hotopp\u2019s \u201cFieldnotes on Grief\u201d<\/a> poignantly reckons with ecologies of loss and the emotional and psychological strain of studying disappearing ecosystems. In Lucia Owen\u2019s \u201cGypsy Moths,\u201d<\/a> the speaker wrestles with futility, wielding \u201cfeeble brooms\u201d against the vanguard of invasions to come \u2014 of emerald ash borer and hemlock wooly adelgid. And in \u201cProduct,\u201d<\/a>\u00a0Jim Krosschell offers a fiery indictment of the roots of our ecological crises. In the issue, authors reflect on environmental changes to their home, like Vi Nelson\u2019s plaster sculpture, \u201cBustins on Ice\u201d<\/a> and Erin Coughin\u2019s art series<\/a> of discarded, coastline objects on Allen Island. At the same time, many are finding new notions of \u201chome\u201d in bogs<\/a> and in snowfall<\/a>. Amid the sadness, anger, and frustration \u2014 which are all very real \u2014 contributions such as John Paul Caponigro\u2019s \u201cI, You, They, Us, We,\u201d<\/a> and Tamra Benson\u2019s love letter<\/a> to Braiding Sweetgrass <\/em>illustrate\u00a0new (and old) ways of mutual thriving. In this issue, you will find hopeful invitations to rethink local to global climate governance<\/a>, sustainable agriculture<\/a>, and materials reuse<\/a> in Maine. I think in Spire\u2019s seventh issue, you will see a great deal of honesty and vulnerability, but you will also see hope and inspiration for sustainable, equitable solutions.<\/p>\n

Although in many ways, we are still in the throes of a global pandemic, I was glad that the editorial team was able to periodically get off of Zoom this year to meet and celebrate the release of the issue in person for the first time since 2020. We received more submissions this year than in any previous year, and the production of the issue would not have been possible without the help of our committed editors \u2014 Gabrielle Hillyer, Elizabeth Payne, Michelle Hoekel-Neal, Katie Matthews, Harrison Goldspiel, Marissa Ander, Braden Collard, Sara Delaney, Rebecca Champagne, Sophia Colfer, Julia Schneider, Neily Raymond, Rachel Swanwick, and Cheyenne Hebert. Special thanks go to Val Watson who managed Spire\u2019s social media accounts. (Check us out on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, and Twitter<\/a> if you haven\u2019t already!) Thanks also go to our faculty director, Dr. Dan Dixon, and Spire\u2019s co-editor in chief, Clinton Spaulding for their ongoing support and enthusiasm for the journal\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n

I thoroughly enjoyed serving as editor in chief of the seventh issue and getting to know poets, artists, and essayists across the state. I am happy to say that Cora Saddler, MA student in English, will be next year\u2019s editor in chief. Cora has been a valuable member of our editorial team and a great help in getting this issue put together. As Spire continues to grow and change, I can\u2019t wait to see what Cora is able to do with the eighth issue. I\u2019m already looking forward to reading it.<\/p>\n

Happy Reading,<\/p>\n

Dominic Piacentini
\nEditor in Chief<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dominic Piacentini Ph.D. Candidate, Anthropology & Environmental Policy University of Maine Welcome to Spire\u2019s seventh issue! We are glad to announce Leslie Moore as the winner of this year\u2019s cover design contest. Her linoleum block print \u201cHunters’ Moon\u201d and her series of paired prints and poems are a bright look into the eccentric wildlife of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spire-2023-issue"],"yoast_head":"\nA Letter From the Editor - The Maine Journal of Conservation and Sustainability - University of Maine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/spire\/2023\/04\/21\/editor-2023\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Letter From the Editor - The Maine Journal of Conservation and Sustainability - University of Maine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dominic Piacentini Ph.D. Candidate, Anthropology & Environmental Policy University of Maine Welcome to Spire\u2019s seventh issue! 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