Mainers from every corner of the state are stepping up to the climate challenge. Practical, creative and trailblazing teachers, bus drivers, students, communities, recent graduates and professional athletes alike are taking action to get ahead of the climate curve. Read their stories.
Maine’s first electric bus hit the road this year in Mount Desert Island - and veteran school bus driver Doug Van Gorder drove this clean energy transportation action.
Travis Ritchie, a STEM teacher at Geiger Middle School in Lewiston, is co-founder of the Maine Electric Vehicle Association (a community of EV enthusiasts) and a former EV mechanic. He leads “EV 101” seminars for prospective EV owners looking to flip the switch — which Maine will need to reach projected EV targets for curbing greenhouse gas emissions.
Why does an EV make sense for you?
Matt Lutkus is Town Manager in Damariscotta. The town is taking action to protect its historic downtown from rising sea levels with a comprehensive waterfront infrastructure project to guard against flooding, replace sewer lines, improve drainage and pedestrian access, and build new public restrooms. This work was funded by a $3 million federal grant and $1.3 million in funds raised locally after being planned for a decade — a timeline the Climate Action Plan wants to accelerate for towns through a State Infrastructure Adaptation Fund.
Karina Graeter and Abbie Sherwin are on the front lines of climate resiliency with the Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission in coastal York County, where rising sea levels portend serious economic and environmental damage. As Sustainability Coordinator and Senior Planner & Coastal Resilience Coordinator, respectively, they work collaboratively with several coastal towns on resiliency strategies, a regional approach the Climate Action Plan endorses as a model for other communities to consider.
What inspires you to do this work?