Working Waterfront

Challenging the enduring weight of ‘local’

By Tom Groening For journalists, elections are something like Christmas morning. Actually, as the polls close and the counting starts on Election Day evening, it feels like Christmas Eve. Then the final tally is like opening the presents under the tree the next morning. Even those of us with some… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Cliff Island’s quiet stalwart

Editor's note: This story first appeared in the 2019 edition of Island Journal. By Tom Groening//Photos by Lorinda Valls Cheryl Crowley offers a vivid metaphor for the challenges and rewards of working to support a small island community. “It’s like painting a house,” she says. “I hate all the scraping.… SEE MORE

Emily Lane of Vinalhaven is the new chairwoman of the Island Institute's board of trustees.

Working Waterfront

Emily Lane to lead Island Institute board

By Tom Groening Emily Lane is an unassuming groundbreaker. But groundbreaker she is. For years, Lane did seafood marketing on Vinalhaven, work she didn’t plan to make a career of, but living on an island, there it was. And in doing so, she earned respect in that male-dominated sector. Now, on being… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Cumberland, York county towns tangle with FEMA

By Jacqueline Weaver Rising sea levels and their impact on flood insurance rates are becoming a contentious and anxiety-provoking issue for Maine coastal towns. Flood maps drafted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reflecting the predicted higher seas have been disputed by coastal communities in York and Cumberland counties… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Innkeepers report mixed results from just-ended season

By Jacqueline Weaver Hotels, motels, and inns along the Maine coast, many of which have shuttered their windows for the season, have varying reports on how well their businesses fared over the spring, summer, and fall. Some said occupancy rates and stays were higher and longer than ever before and… SEE MORE

A view of the village area on Michigan's Mackinac Island.

Working Waterfront

Great Lakes islanders find common concerns

By Tom Groening Representatives from island communities across the Great Lakes gathered on Mackinac Island in Michigan in late October for an annual summit at which common challenges were explored. The Great Lakes Islands Alliance formed three years ago, with assistance from the Island Institute, publisher of The… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

On land and sea, Swan’s Island entrepreneurs find their niche

By Jennifer Helman//Photos by Dale Joyce Living on an island requires resilience, patience, creativity, and an entrepreneurial spirit. But some islanders take that to a whole new level. Gary Rainford, owner of Coffee Love, explains the mindset perfectly: “When you live in a place like this and there is something you need… SEE MORE

Sunset views on the Skyline Trail in Cheticamp at Cape Breton Highlands National Park

Working Waterfront

Our Cape Breton road trip: Music, joie de vivre, and views

By Tina Cohen Cape Breton and its famed scenery and roadway—the Cabot Trail—caught our imagination and became a place we had to see. Not too far from Maine (especially by ferry), we could bring our Chocolate Lab and pull a small camper behind our truck. On arrival at the welcome… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

When small island nations speak, we should listen

By Kate Tagai Fourteen island states gathered in the Maldives in November 1989 for the Small States Conference on Sea Level Rise. Jack Hopa, minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries for the island nation of Vanuatu (in the Coral Sea, east of Australia) asserted: “On the issue of sea level… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Coyotes on Chebeague worry islanders

By Donna Miller Damon It wasn’t interest in the workings of local government that drew nearly a hundred Chebeague islanders to a select board meeting. It was interest in the newest island inhabitant, the non-native Eastern coyote The meeting featured a presentation by Scott Lindsay, regional wildlife biologist for the… SEE MORE