Field Notes in Working Waterfront

Working Waterfront

From crisis response to community resiliency

As the COVID storm continues to roil our coast, my thoughts return to the image of Monhegan’s Matt Weber easing his lobster boat against a large tanker, both vessels in motion, as a Penobscot Bay pilot leaps from the smaller boat to a ladder hanging from the ship, where he… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The way forward is through

A good friend of mine often says that when faced with difficult situations, “The only way forward is through.” To say that we are faced with difficult situations right now would be the understatement of the century. One of the greatest challenges we face at the moment is a crisis… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A new soundtrack for our working waterfronts

It wasn’t just the sound of seagulls and waves lapping against the shore those four years I spent running my family’s Midcoast lobster wharf. There was the whir of impeller blades pumping seawater into the lobster tanks. The roar of the propane blast heater, struggling to heat 200 gallons of water… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Leadership means having the seat with the view

The Passamaquoddy word for leadership is nihkanke. The literal translation of that word is “the one who paddles in the front of the canoe.” I clearly remember when I first heard this word and learned its cultural context. I was at a leadership seminar for island leaders, sponsored by the Island Institute. Linda Cross Godfrey, founder… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine can vote to close the digital divide

Seventeen houses. I don’t feel our list of “needs” was unusual for first-time homebuyers. Yet, in March and April of last year, my husband and I trudged through the snow and mud in 17 dooryards to finally find the home that would become ours. It ticked the top priority boxes—right… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine must do better at welcoming diversity

By Rob Snyder You’ve heard it said many times: “Maine is a white state,” or maybe even, “Maine is the whitest state.” Actually, Maine is not a white state. Some 74,000 Mainers are people of color. When Mainers assert that our population includes a majority of white people, whether through statistical… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

From March madness to marathon: seeing possibility within pandemic

By Rob Snyder Along the coast, March madness is a state of mind linked to living off diminishing savings from last summer, the uncertainty of livelihoods linked to the next tourism and lobstering seasons, isolation, and bracing for a few final snowstorms. Most years, this lasts through April. During an… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Focus and action during the pandemic

My recent conversations with local leaders reinforce the urgency with which I believe towns must act to secure the health, economic viability, and social fabric of their communities. One of the highest priorities is to ensure that children’s needs are met. In addition, there is a range of scenarios that… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

What ‘resilient leadership in times of crisis’ means

By Rob Snyder Island and coastal communities, and the people who care about them near and far, must pull together right now. Tourism and lobstering, our key economic drivers, are in peril. The islands and coast rely on an annual influx of $4 billion in tourism revenue, earned primarily between… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Which is more accurate—a mirror or a painting?

By Meghan Grabill When I moved here over a year ago, people asked me what connection I had to Maine. What brought me here? My response: I had visited once as a teenager on a family trip and when a job opportunity presented itself on the coast of Maine I… SEE MORE