The Islesboro Forum

Beth Orcutt, "Deep Sea Frontiers: What Happens as Humanity Seizes the Seafloor?"
2020-08-09 17:30 - 18:30 (Asia/Karachi) | ME
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Will your next cell phone or solar panel contain heavy metals from the seafloor? Could strange life in the deep sea contain the genetic blueprint for a new blockbuster drug or industrial enzyme? Join Dr. Beth Orcutt for an introduction to the vast and diverse underbelly of life on Earth found deep in our oceans. Learn how this life benefits humanity, and how the deep sea connects to recommendations of the Maine Climate Council to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045.
Dr. Orcutt has been a Senior Research Scientist at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences since 2012, where she leads a team to study the weird microscopic life that lives at the bottom of the ocean. For her research, Dr. Orcutt has traveled far and wide: to the bottom of the ocean, exploring underwater hydrothermal vents in remote oceans and oil seeps in the Gulf of Mexico; to remote lakes of the Canadian Arctic reachable only by helicopter; and to research labs around the world, including a recent sabbatical in Germany. She was recently awarded the Asahiko Taira Prize for Scientific Research from the American Geophysical Union, the largest international scientific society for Earth science. She received her Ph.D. degree in Marine Sciences from the University of Georgia Athens.

Dr. Jim Basker, "Black Lives Have Always Mattered: American History and the Gilder Lehrman Institute in 2020"
2020-08-16 17:30 - 18:30 (Asia/Karachi) | ME
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In this talk, which will be dedicated to the memory of Richard Gilder, Dr. Jim Basker will present 6 or 7 moments in American history that were shaped by the African American presence, often in unexpected or forgotten ways. The focus will be on key documents, from a rare printing of the Declaration of Independence and a unique letter that Frederick Douglass wrote to his former master, to a 1926 NAACP poster and a civil rights placard from 1968. While progress is never smooth, it is always made possible by education and perseverance.
Basker is president of the Gilder Lehrman Institute and Richard Gilder Professor of Literary History at Barnard College, Columbia University. As president of the Gilder Lehrman Institute since 1997, Basker has overseen the development of history education initiatives nationwide, including history high schools, teacher seminars, traveling exhibitions, digital archives, and the National History Teacher of the Year Award program.
Basker has also served as project director for several history exhibitions at the New York Historical Society, including Alexander Hamilton: The Man Who Made Modern America (2004–2005), Lincoln in His Own Words: An Intimate View of Our Greatest President (2009), and John Brown: The Abolitionist and His Legacy (2009–2010). He is an elected member of the Society of American Historians and former fellow of the American Antiquarian Society. He serves on Mount Vernon’s Scholarly Advisory Board, the boards of the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize and the Frederick Douglass Book Prize, and as a trustee of the New-York Historical Society.
Basker was educated at Harvard, Cambridge, and Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He taught for seven years at Harvard University before coming to New York, and he has been a visiting professor at NYU, Cambridge University, and Rogue Community College in Oregon. He is also founder and president of OxBridge Academic Programs, which has sponsored summer programs and teacher seminars in Oxford, Cambridge, Paris, and Barcelona for more than twenty years.
His publications include Amazing Grace: Poems about Slavery 1660–1810 (2002), Early American Abolitionists (2005), and American Antislavery Writing: Colonial Beginnings to Emancipation (2012) as well as scores of essays and educational booklets on various topics in English and American history and literature.
Thanks to Richard Gilder, Dr. Basker has a long and recurring connection to Islesboro. Gilder invited Basker and his family to Islesboro often over the years, so he now counts many people on Islesboro as friends.
He will be introduced by Islesboro resident and Oxford classmate, John Rex Waller.

Dr. Abe Miller-Rushing, “Managing for Climate Change in Our National Parks”
2021-07-11 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | ME
National parks were originally established with the goal of preserving resources as they were in the past. That goal is no longer feasible. Dr. Miller-Rushing will describe how national park managers are adjusting their approach to manage for change and the science they are using to inform their decisions. He will specifically talk about work going on in Acadia National Park, which serves as a model for how national park managers can adjust to a changing climate.
Dr. Miller-Rushing is the Science Coordinator for Acadia National Park, where he has worked since 2010. He oversees research in the park and leads the science strategy to meet the park’s priority needs. Dr. Miller-Rushing’s own research focuses on protected area management, forest responses to climate change, and citizen science. He helped to establish the Citizen Science Association and the USA National Phenology Network, a national network to monitor the impacts of climate change plants and animals. He received his bachelors in Biology from Grinnelll College in Iowa and his Ph.D. in Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution from Boston University.

Dr. David Van Essen, “Your Brain, My Brain, and a Chimpanzee’s Brain: What’s the Difference, and Why Should We Care?”
2021-07-18 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | ME
The quest to understand the human brain in health and disease is a grand challenge for the 21st century and beyond. This talk will focus on the cerebral cortex, which is the dominant structure of our brains and largely responsible for what makes us unique as a species and unique as individuals—each with our distinctive personalities, intellectual capabilities, and personal foibles. Recent progress using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has provided intriguing answers to some questions but leaves many others as truly daunting.
David Van Essen is the Alumni Endowed Professor of Neurobiology at Washington University in St Louis. For nearly 50 years he has studied the structure, function, connectivity, development, and evolution of cerebral cortex in humans and nonhuman primates. He recently led the Human Connectome Project (HCP), a large-scale effort that acquired, analyzed, and freely shared high-quality neuroimaging data from 1200 healthy adults. Dr. Van Essen received his undergraduate degree from Caltech and his Ph.D. from Harvard University. He joined the Caltech faculty in 1976 and moved to Washington University in 1992 to chair the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology for 20 years. He has served in many other leadership positions, including President of the Society of Neuroscience and founding chair of the Organization for Human Brain Mapping. He has received numerous awards and honors, notably including the Glass Brain Award from the Organization for Human Brain Mapping, the George A. Miller Prize from the Cognitive Neuroscience Society, and the Carl and Gerti Cori Faculty Achievement Award from Washington University. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

Myron S. Cohen M.D., “COVID-19: Past, Present and Future”
2021-07-25 17:30 (America/New_York) | ME

Roger Heinen, "Islesboro Economic Sustainability"
2021-08-01 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
IESC is a quasi-municipal, non-profit entity transforming private non-taxable donation dollars into a catalyst for the essential island services and businesses which underpin a vital, full time island community. The IESC supports local entrepreneurs creating on-island jobs and attracting new families by providing information, business expansion loans and direct investments in infrastructure projects. Roger’s talk will briefly describe the IESC mission and accomplishments in its first 18 months of operation. Following that Roger will review the recent IESC island survey seeking to understand what the most essential services and businesses are. Then he’ll engage the audience in a discussion on their ideas for promoting Islesboro sustainability.
Roger and Marny Heinen have been residents of Islesboro since 1996. Roger spent his career in the computer industry including senior executive roles at Apple and Microsoft, mentoring and financing early-stage startups, and directorships for public, private and non-profit organizations. Roger holds degrees from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute and the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Miles O’Brien, "Flying Cars, Electric Planes and Cheap Rockets: how some breakthroughs in transportation may save the planet."
2021-08-08 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | ME
Miles O’Brien is a veteran, independent journalist who focuses on science, technology and aerospace.
He is the science correspondent for the PBS NewsHour, a producer, director, writer and correspondent for the PBS documentary programs NOVA and FRONTLINE and an aviation analyst for CNN. He owns MOBIAS Media, Inc., a production company that creates award winning documentary films primarily for PBS as well as several educational and corporate clients.
For nearly seventeen of his thirty-nine years in the news business, he was a staff correspondent and anchor with CNN, based in Atlanta and New York. He served as the science, environment and aerospace correspondent and the anchor of various programs, including American Morning.
While at CNN, O’Brien secured a deal with NASA to become the first journalist to fly on the space shuttle. The project ended with the loss of Columbia and her crew in 2003 – a story he told to the world in a critically acclaimed sixteen-hour marathon of live coverage. He later served for ten years as a member of the NASA Advisory Council, offering strategic advice to the NASA administrator.
Prior to joining CNN, he worked as a reporter at television stations in St. Joseph, MO, Albany, NY, Tampa, FL and Boston. He began his television career as a desk assistant at WRC-TV in Washington, DC.
O’Brien is an accomplished pilot and is frequently called upon to explain the world of aviation to a mass audience.
He has won numerous awards over the years, including six Emmys, a Peabody and a DuPont.
He has produced, written and directed nine films for PBS NOVA: Mind of a Rampage Killer (2013), Manhunt Boston Bombers (2013), Megastorm Aftermath (2013), Why Planes Vanish (2014), Nuclear Meltdown Disaster (2015), Fifteen Years of Terror (2016), The Nuclear Option (2017), Inside the Megafire (2019) and The Great Electric Airplane Race (2021).
He also produced, wrote and directed FRONTLINE Coronavirus Pandemic (2020) and was a writer and correspondent for four FRONTLINES: Flying Cheap (2010), Flying Cheaper (2011), Nuclear Aftershocks (2012) and Dollars and Dentists (2012).
In February of 2014, a heavy equipment case fell on his forearm while he was on assignment. He developed Acute Compartment Syndrome, which necessitated the emergency amputation of his left arm above the elbow. Despite the loss of his arm, he has completed two marathons, several ultra-distance bike rides, a half Ironman, and has returned to flying airplanes.
Born in Detroit and raised in Grosse Pointe Farms, MI, he is based in Vero Beach, Florida. He was a history major at Georgetown University. Miles has two grown children. His son is a US Navy Lieutenant stationed in Yokosuka, Japan and his daughter is a social work in New York City.

David Greene, "American Higher Education in the Eye of the Storm"
2021-08-15 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
The global pandemic didn’t create a crisis for colleges and universities as much as it exposed existing and growing fault lines. Outdated financial and pricing models, weakening public support, the promise (and failure) of online learning, and industry-wide inertia are leading to a major shakeout. But the news is not all bad, with innovative approaches and a long overdue focus on students and learning charting a way forward.

As Colby College’s 20th president, David A. Greene has been executing an ambitious program for ensuring Colby’s place among the world’s finest liberal arts colleges. Most recently, Greene led the creation of the Davis Institute for Artificial Intelligence at Colby, which will be the first interdisciplinary AI program at a liberal arts college when it formally launches in the fall of 2021. Construction is underway on the largest academic building project in Colby’s history, the Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts, and in 2020 Colby opened the Harold Alfond Athletics and Recreation Center, the finest facility in Division 3 athletics.
A major priority in his administration has been to advance the College’s efforts around diversity and inclusion and investment in programs to increase its global focus. Through expanded outreach and distinctive financial aid programs, Colby’s applicant pool has risen from 5,000 to 16,000 and the enrolled classes at historic highs for academic preparation and diversity. Greene led the creation of DavisConnects, an innovative program that guarantees funded global experiences for Colby students and supports internships and research opportunities through partnerships with corporations and nonprofit and civic organizations. Partnerships also support the Colby Labs, such as the Buck Lab for the Environment and Climate Change and the Linde Packman Lab for Biosciences Innovation, an initiative Greene spearheaded to create multidisciplinary connections around major global challenges and to facilitate funded internships, research, and global experiences for students. Through a partnership with the Wyeth family, Colby students and faculty have unique opportunities to engage in research on Allen Island off the Maine coast, and in 2017 Colby launched the Lunder Institute for American Art, a collaborative initiative with the Colby College Museum of Art that inspires innovative research and production to expand the boundaries of American art.

Recognizing that a vibrant downtown Waterville is critical to both the region and to Colby, Greene has worked with city leaders to make downtown revitalization a priority. The College’s action, including the redevelopment of key properties downtown, spurred additional investment in real estate and economic activity on and around Main Street, with a total of $180 million invested to date. Colby’s downtown projects include two facilities that will make Waterville a destination for the arts and culture, a boutique hotel and restaurant, a student residential complex, new retail spaces, and a tech center in a former bank building that had been vacant for decades. Colby’s efforts are being supported through the largest fundraising campaign in liberal arts history.
Before arriving at Colby, Greene was executive vice president of the University of Chicago and, prior to that, served in leadership roles at Brown University and Smith College. At the University of Chicago he led high-priority initiatives including revitalization of community and commercial areas in Hyde Park, near the university’s campus; a master plan to support $3 billion in infrastructure improvements and expansion including residence halls, research buildings, clinical care facilities, and art centers; an affiliation with the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole and establishment of the Becker Friedman Institute for Research in Economics; and development of new research and teaching centers in Chicago, New Delhi, and Beijing.

Greene received a bachelor’s degree in history from Hamilton College and a master’s degree in human development and psychology from Harvard University before earning a master’s and a doctoral degree in education and social policy at Harvard. In addition to the economics of education, his research interests include social and political movements and their influence on individuals and institutions.

Chase Reynolds Ewald, "Bison: An American Comeback Story"
2021-08-22 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | ME
Chase Reynolds Ewald will tell the story of the bison, from their near annihilation in the 19th century to their stunningly revived status today. She will describe a new approach to bison ranching, trace the return of bison to tribal lands and provide an inside view of the ambitious goals of the American Prairie Reserve in Montana to conserve more than 3 million acres of mixed grass prairie habitat, re-establish bison populations and improve the environment through the process of self-regeneration.
Chase Reynolds Ewald is the author of fourteen books on architecture, interior design, traditional craftsmanship, natural history and cuisine. Her most recent works are Bison: Portrait of an Icon, with photographer Audrey Hall, Modern Americana, written with designer Max Humphrey, and At Home in the Wine Country, written with co-author Heather Sandy Hebert. A graduate of Yale and Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, Chase is a frequent contributor to Mountain Living and Cowgirl magazines, Senior Editor of Western Art & Architecture, and Design Columnist for Big Sky Journal. She also edits, writes, and does social media management for private clients. A former resident of Maine, she has worked for Down East Magazine and Hurricane Island Outward Bound. When not wandering the West or visiting islands in Penobscot Bay, she lives in Marin County, California, with her husband, Charles, and their four daughters.
https://www.chasereynoldsewald.com

William G. Rosenberg, Phd.
2022-07-10 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
William G. Rosenberg, Phd. is Professor of Russian History Emeritus at the University of Michigan and, Vice Chair, Board of Trustees at the European University at St. Petersburg. His first trip to Russia was in 1967, and has been the author of several books on Russia and China. Rather than the usual Forum lecture, he prefers to make a few remarks, Rosenberg will respond in discussion to questions or particular issues raised from the participating Forum audience. Bill Rosenberg and his wife Elie now live in Brunswick, and are long-term summer residents of Islesboro.

Darron A. Collins
2022-07-17 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Darron A. Collins, President of The College of the Atlantic since 2011 is an American Ecologist and academic administrator and academic administrator specialized in ethnobotany. Among his duties he and U. S. Senator from Maine, Angus King, join in a monthly podcast on climate and change and student action.
See Darron’s slideshow: From Maine to Mongolia and Back Again

Darron Collins would like Islesboro residents to know about an upcoming program at the College of the Atlantic that is part of the COA’s SUMMER INSTITUTE 2022: Entitled “Our One and Only Ocean,” it takes place July 25-29; free and open to the public; in person or virtual!
https://collegeoftheatlantic.regfox.com/coa-summer-institute

George Stevens, Jr.
2022-07-24 16:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
George Stevens, Jr., a summer resident of Islesboro, Founder of The American Film Institute, and 37-year producer of the Kennedy Center honors, published a new memoir in May this year: My Place in the Sun: Life in the Golden Age of Hollywood and Washington. He will recount some of his times with a most remarkable assembly of accomplished friends and colleagues from the entertainment world, government, politics and journalism. Extraordinary people from the late 20th and early 21st Century animate his many stories throughout unusual shared times.
His book will be for sale. Please come early for the book signing!

Ken Hinman
2022-07-31 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Ken Hinman, President, The National Coalition for Maine Conservation, has been at the center of the fisheries conservation movement over 40 years. He is head of Wild Oceans, an independent non-profit organization. “I am Wild Oceans” he said at the founding in 1973. He notes “it’s indeed a fish-eat-fish world” and has proceeded for decades with his passion to keep the oceans wild to achieve a vibrant future for fishing with ecosystem-based managements for fisheries.
Widely acclaimed for his plan at the center of the fisheries conservation movement with dedication to our coastal ecosystems, Hinman has written extensively on conservation policy and science, served as a conservation editor, and published widely while uniting fishermen and environmentalists for the preservation of our oceans and fishing opportunities to assure a healthy future.

Dr. Sian “Leo” Proctor
2022-08-07 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Dr. Sian “Leo” Proctor, is an American geology professor, commercial astronaut, space artist, and science educator. She was captain of the historical SpaceX spacecraft, the 2021 first all-civilian mission into space. She will speak of her experiences as astronaut and pilot of Crew Dragon, the craft that orbited the Earth for three days in the world’s singular Inspiration4 private spaceflight.

David R. Godine
2022-08-14 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
David R. Godine, fifty-year prominent book publisher and printer of Godine Press, began his unique collecting, printing and promotion of high quality publishing by working first with artist-printer Leonard Baskin and the Gehenna Press. He then converted an abandoned Brookline, Massachusetts cow barn for printing with hot metal. His letterpress of books and pamphlets were American classics of nonfiction, literary fiction, and poetry. An independent book publisher, recently retired, he was adventurous and outspoken about the unexpected quality of the content and production of his books, Reviews of his press reference the fine colors, tasteful art, elegant typography and historic photos on fine papers: a gold standard, and “grace that endures.” Godine books won Nobel Prizes, adaptations for BBC serials, and more. Mr. Godine enjoys speaking about his vital years creating and directing the greatly admired fine art Godine Press

Peter Tirschwell: "The World of Ocean Shipping and Maritime Supply Chain Snafus During the Pandemic"
2023-07-16 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Tirschwell is Vice President for Maritime & Trade at S&P Global Market Intelligence, a leading global provider of maritime data, analysis, consulting and media. With background as a career business journalist, he serves as a shipping and international trade reporter, bureau chief, assistant managing editor and editor in chief of the Journal of Commerce. Peter is a summer resident of Islesboro, raising his young son to be seaworthy with his wife Gretchen and his mother, Peggy Tirschwell.

Dr. David Reidmiller: “Climate Risks & Response Options in the Gulf of Maine”
2023-07-23 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Through a range of physical, chemical, biological, and socioeconomic impacts, climate change poses an existential threat to Maine’s coastal communities as we know them. But it doesn’t have to. Dr. Dave Reidmiller, Director of the Climate Center at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute will provide an overview of observed and projected climate impacts in this region and what the state, municipalities, blue economy businesses, and coastal residents are doing to address climate-related risks—and capitalize upon emergent opportunities afforded by pro-actively responding to climate change.
Dr. Dave Reidmiller is the Director of the Climate Center at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI). In that role, he leads a team of interdisciplinary experts developing and delivering climate services to coastal and marine stakeholders throughout the Gulf of Maine. Prior to joining GMRI, Dave served in a number of senior climate science policy positions with the federal government. Among those roles was serving as the Chief Climate Scientist for the State Department where he led U.S. engagement in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and served as the lead U.S. science & technology negotiator for the Paris Agreement). As part of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy, he led the development of the Fourth National Climate Assessment, which serves as the nation’s most authoritative source on how climate change affects the livelihoods and well-beings of Americans in every corner of the country. Dr. Reidmiller holds a Ph.D. in atmospheric sciences from the University of Washington and a BA in chemistry from Colgate University. He grew up in Rochester, NY and fulfilled a lifelong ambition of living in coastal Maine by moving to South Portland with his wife, Katie, and dog, Atticus, in 2020.

Local Growers: “The Challenges & Rewards of Growing Kelp, Vegetables, Oysters, Fruits, Goats and . . More!”
2023-07-30 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
The Forum is particularly proud to present a panel representing many local Islesboro farming gardeners dedicated to keeping their eyes, hands, and hours active for the nurture of fruits, flowers, vegetables, seeds and root-vegetable gluten-free products. Their long daylight work on the land produces verdant
growth and, often leads to the related production of syrups, honey, baked goods, unexpected items processed from individual expertise. All growers participate with island markets, some put out produce on an independent basis as well. When such busy lives can make time, several enjoy sharing their natural wizardry with visitors: a few offer recipes and/or how-to for those of us who tend our own porch plantings. You’ll enjoy hearing how our happy island lives are improved and made tastier with the easily-acquired fresh and healthy produce just picked or prepared down the road.
Participants, at this time, include…
Sandy Oliver – Pretty Good Farm. Sandy, a long-time-island resident who owns, plants and manages Islesboro’s Pretty Good Farm, has a deep interest in sustainable agriculture. A New England food historian she has written books on Colonial, Federal and current DownEast cooking. She writes regular articles on kitchen and garden matters for several regional publications, and speaks broadly on food and sustainability.
Pam Larson and Michael Hutcherson – Growing Things organic market garden. Growing healthy food for the island is central to our mission and we also strive to involve the community in our process. Our approach is informed by no-dig and regenerative practices, and our priority is growing nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables. We do not use herbicides, pesticides or man-made chemical fertilizers. This is our fourth year of growing a diverse mix of vegetables, flowers and seedlings for the Islesboro community.
Kim Grindle – Islesboro Oyster Company. Long time Islesboro resident Kim, with the help of and a little shove from her kids, has established a thriving oyster farm in Gilkey Harbor.
Anna Zlotkowski – Anna is a rising Senior at ICS with an interest in agriculture and vet studies and is an avid animal lover. She rents out her small herd of goats on Islesboro, and the
surrounding islands, for land clearing.
Gaby Zlotkowski – on the growing business of kelp farming. Gaby was recently interviewed and featured in a Civil Eats article called, “A Young Oyster Farmer Carrying on the Family Business,” she talks about her kelp farming, how she was one of the forces in the development of an oyster farm, and how
being part of the working waterfront is continuing a family tradition.
Panel will be moderated by island resident John Rex-Waller.

Dr. Amanda Stent: "Being Human in the Age of Generative AI"
2023-08-06 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Dr. Amanda Stent is inaugural director of the Davis Institute for Artificial Intelligence at Colby College. She previously held positions at Bloomberg, Yahoo, AT&T Labs – Research and Stony Brook University. She has a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Rochester. Dr. Stent has authored or co-authored over 100 papers on natural language processing and is co-inventor on over 35 patents. She is a fellow of the Association for Computational Linguistics and a senior member of the Association for Computing Machinery, and is board co-chair of the Computing Research Association Committee on Widening Participation in Computing Research.

David Michaelis: “The Wyeths, Including Thoughts about Eleanor Roosevelt: A Biographer’s Notebook”
2023-08-13 17:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
David Michaelis, close friend and New York neighbor of Islesboro summer resident Francie Train, is a successful biographer of notable American figures whose interests varied widely. He wrote of the Wyeth family whose members lived and painted on our nearby coast of Maine, of Charles Schulz, creator of PEANUTS cartoons, and of Eleanor Roosevelt. The “stunning” volume on Mrs Roosevelt was reviewed as the “first major volume of biogaphy in half a century” and was nominated for the Los Angeles Book prize for Biography. His volume The Wyeths has been widely sought, and his N.C. Wyeth won an Ambassador Book Award. Beyond biography, Michaelis has written throughout his life: non-fiction, short stories, extensively about friendships with well-known figures of the 70’s & 80’s. During those years he planned a movie (un-produced), edited The Paris Review, wrote for Manhattan, Inc. and volunteered for the New York Police Department. His wisdom, humor, and wide interest in American lives is broadly admired. He will be accompanied by his wife, Nancy Steiner, documentary film producer.

Ian Toll: “The Economic War Machine Supporting WWII in the Pacific”
2023-08-20 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
How did the US so quickly produce such an enormous war machine during WW II, deploying huge military forces – men, weapons, and supplies efficiently across the expanse of the Pacific, an ocean that covers 30% of the earth’s surface, to win the largest naval battle in history?
We are pleased to welcome, and hope to hear some answers – financial and global – to that remarkable period pre-dating current time from military historian, Ian Toll. Regarded as a great story-teller. Toll has written The Pacific Trilogy, reported to be “military history at its best.” His highly praised three-volume history ot the War narrates combats on the sea, in the air, on beaches, a horrific time at sea, and major challenges to power in Washington and Tokyo. It has captivated readers of history and those of us who are ever-grateful for our American lives and developments of the late 20th Century. TWILIGHT OF THE GODS, War in the Western Pacific, 1944-45, is the final volume of the epic history. It covers the period led by Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines, featuring kamikaze attacks, B-29 bombers, the atomic blasts of that terrible defying, yet successful strategic and diplomatic time. A victory that won our US future for recent years.
Toll is a graduate of St. George’s School, Georgetown University and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

Kim Hamilton, "Coastal Forces, Community Responses: An Evening with Island Institute"
2024-07-14 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
The islands and communities along the coast of Maine are facing tremendous changes—more frequent storms, regulatory challenges to our iconic lobstering industry, housing pressures and more. For forty years, Island Institute has worked deeply with Maine’s coastal communities to build community resilience in the face of these tectonic forces. Join Dr. Kimberly Hamilton, president of Island Institute, for a discussion of the forces shaping Maine’s coastline today and Island Institute’s work to elevate community solutions as models of innovation.
Dr. Kimberly Hamilton joined Island Institute as its newest president in April 2023.. Prior to stepping into that role, she served as the Institute’s interim Chief Programs Officer, overseeing the Institute’s Climate, Economic Resilience, and Leadership programs and serving as a member of the senior leadership team.

Shey Conover, "The Narrows Flooding Adaptation Project: Planning for a Resilient Future on Islesboro"
2024-07-21 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
The Narrows Flooding Adaptation Project: Planning for a Resilient Future on Islesboro.
In this talk, Shey Conover and members of the Town’s Sea Level Rise Committee will discuss their work to address current and future flooding at the Narrows, including updates from the recent engineering report and early-stage alternative designs. Since 2022, the committee has hired a project manager, onboarded engineers, and engaged the community in robust conversation on how to adapt our island to rising seas and increasing storms due to climate change. Join us in a conversation on the projected effects of sea level rise on Islesboro and what our Town is currently doing to plan for a more resilient future!

J. Craig Venter, World Renowned Biologist "Human Genome Sequencing and Unlocking the Secrets of the Ocean’s Microbiome"
2024-07-28 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
J. CRAIG VENTER, Ph.D., Founder, CEO and Chairman, the J. Craig Venter Institute, is a biologist renowned for his contributions in genomics including sequencing the first draft human genome, the first complete diploid human genome and construction of the first synthetic bacterial cell.
He and his teams’ current research programs include continued analysis of the human genome with a focus on the intersection of the genome and all physical characteristics and how this relates to disease and health; the human microbiome; synthetic biology advances; infectious diseases; and discovering and understanding genetic diversity in the world’s oceans.
Venter is a recipient of the 2008 National Medal of Science and is a member of the National Academy of Sciences. He is the author of The Voyage of Sorcerer II: The Expedition That Unlocked the Secrets of the Ocean’s Microbiome (Harvard University Press, 2023), Life at the Speed of Light: From the Double Helix to the Dawn of Digital Life (Viking, 2013) and A Life Decoded: My Genome: My Life (Viking, 2007).

Here is a link to his new book: THE VOYAGE of SORCERER II

Hunter Stires, "Countering China's Maritime Insurgency in the South China Sea"
2024-08-04 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Hunter Stires, who serves as Maritime Strategist on the personal staff of the Secretary of the Navy, will share insights on China’s maritime insurgency against the freedom of the sea and the rule of international law in the South China Sea, and will discuss strategies for how the United States and its allies can effectively push back short of war. Disclaimer: The views voiced here will be his alone and do not necessarily represent the official positions of the Department of the Navy, the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.

The Maine Monitor, "Tackling News Deserts: Bringing In-Depth Journalism to Maine’s Rural Communities"
2024-08-11 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Many of Maine’s rural communities see little to no journalism coverage. Maine’s daily newspapers are based in Maine’s urban centers and have few regional reporters covering limited portions of Maine’s rural communities, where 40% of Mainers live. In August 2022, The Maine Monitor launched a reporting initiative to dedicate coverage to rural communities, collaborating with hyperlocal independent news outlets to identify issues that would benefit from The Maine Monitor’s investigative and enterprise reporting. The Maine Monitor now dedicates reporting to Maine’s Downeast and Western Mountain regions, empowering residents there with information on matters of public interest. Join Executive Director Micaela Schweitzer-Bluhm and Local Government Reporter Emmett Gartner to learn more about this initiative, the impactful and informative reporting resulting from it, and how The Maine Monitor is delivering news, for free, to all of Maine’s communities.
Micaela Schweitzer-Bluhm is the Executive Director of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, which publishes The Maine Monitor. Micaela joined MCPIR/The Maine Monitor after retiring as a Senior Foreign Service officer. Micaela represented the United States around the world for 26 years, leading U.S. diplomatic teams, and advancing U.S. principles of democratic governance, most importantly, the importance of a free and vibrant press. Micaela spent most of her career in the Middle East and Southeast Europe and served as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Skopje, North Macedonia. Micaela holds a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations from Brown University and a Master’s Degree in National Security Studies from the National War College. A native of southern New England, Micaela, her husband Todd, and three children have called Maine home since 2017.

Emmett Gartner covers accountability and Maine’s rural communities as a Roy W. Howard Fellow through the Scripps Howard Fund. Emmett earned his master’s degree in journalism from the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism and a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from the University of Vermont. While working as a reporter at the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism, he helped produce two award-winning investigations: “Printing Hate,” which documented the historic role of newspapers inciting racial lynchings, and “Mega Billions,” which investigated state lottery operations. Most recently, Emmett reported on health and environment for The Frederick News-Post in Maryland. He previously worked for the U.S. Forest Service in Oregon and interned for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

Kate Cough is editor of The Maine Monitor. She previously served as enterprise editor for The Monitor while also covering energy and the environment and writing the weekly Climate Monitor newsletter.
Before joining The Monitor, Kate was a beat reporter for The Ellsworth American and digital media strategist for The Ellsworth American and Mount Desert Islander.
Kate graduated with honors from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and Magna Cum Laude from Bryn Mawr College.
Kate is an eighth generation Mainer, who lives on Mount Desert Island with her husband, daughter, and dogs.

Nick Mills

Board Director
Nick Mills teaches journalism at Boston University and is a columnist for the Maine Outdoor Journal and Huffington Post. He has traveled the globe in his 45-year career reporting from Iraq, Kosovo, Beirut, Tajikistan, Portugal, Vietnam and other hot spots.
A primary focus for Nick is helping the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting explore non-newspaper markets for its stories and provide counsel on the center’s educational programs.

Jonathan Becker, "A Lifetime of Editorial Photography Across the Globe"
2024-08-18 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
The work of editorial photographer Jonathan Becker is—quite simply—sublime, offering private glimpses inside the remarkable lives of royalty, celebrities, artists, writers, activists, and scores of fascinating people around the globe. In capturing their pain, their ennui, their anguish, and their joy, Becker humanizes his subjects, revealing the curiously ordinary side of the extraordinary. Becker’s inclusive eye frames cultural history. His portraits for Vanity Fair—a magazine he has contributed to for more than three decades—tell the haunting, personal stories of loss, memory, and contemplation. The expansive breadth of Becker’s photography chronicles a world in transition, a view of society that is seldom seen. His ability to seize the authenticity of a moment is reflected by his life spent delivering unforgettable, lasting images.

Nirval Dinesh Shah, Former Acting Director of CDC "Lessons Learned from Covid and other Epidemics; Are we ready for the Next One?"
2025-07-13 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
“Lessons Learned from Covid and other Epidemics; Are we ready for the Next One?”
Have you ever wondered “What did we learn from the Covid pandemic and how ready are we for the next one?” Who better to tell us than Maine’s former CDC director, Dr. Nirav Shah, who led the state of Maine’s response to Covid 19. Many might remember his daily TV updates that were both informative and reassuring to a nervous public. Because of his proven leadership during this difficult time, Dr. Shah became the Principal Deputy Director of the U.S. CDC in 2023. Among other things, he was responsible for leading our nation’s effort to be prepared for the next pandemic. Dr Shah stepped down from that position earlier this year and has returned to his home in Maine. He was recently named a Visiting Professor at Colby College where he will teach courses in public health, policy, and communications. In his remarks, Dr Shah will highlight lessons learned from Covid and other epidemics and also take questions from the audience.

William B. Taylor, Former US Ambassador to Ukraine "Russia’s War on Ukraine: An Update"
2025-07-20 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
“Russia’s War on Ukraine: An Update”
After defending their country and its continued existence for over three years, the Ukrainians continue to deserve our support. They are fighting for their homeland, but they are at the same time defending the rest of Europe and American values.
From the Atlantic Council website:
Ambassador William B. Taylor is a distinguished fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center. Prior to the Atlantic Council, Taylor was vice president, Europe and Russia at the US Institute of Peace. From 2006 to 2009, Taylor served as the US ambassador to Ukraine and as the chargé d’affaires ad interim from 2019 to 2020 at the US embassy in Kyiv.
Beyond Ukraine, Taylor served as the special coordinator for Middle East Transitions at the US Department of State from 2011 to 2013, where he oversaw assistance and support to the Middle East during the Arab Spring—including support to Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and Syria. Prior to his tenure in the Middle East Transitions Team and Kyiv, Taylor served as the US government’s representative to the Mideast Quartet from Jerusalem. From 2004 to 2005, Taylor served in Baghdad as director of the Iraq Reconstruction Office; from 2002 to 2003 he served in Kabul as coordinator of US government and international assistance to Afghanistan; and from 1992 to 2002, he served in Washington as coordinator of US government assistance to former Soviet Union countries and Eastern Europe.
Taylor holds a Bachelor of Science from the US Military Academy in West Point, New York, and a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Taylor also served as an infantry platoon leader and combat company commander in the US Army in Vietnam and Germany.

Dr. Alexa Dayton and Robin Alden from Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries, with McArthur Genius Award recipient Ted Ames discuss potential impacts on the Gulf of Maine from proposed changes to Federal funding and science and management processes at NOAA, and Maine’s Department of Marine Resources
2025-07-27 17:30 - 18:30 (America/New_York) | Islesboro Community Center, 103 Pendleton Point Road, Islesboro, ME, United States
Join Dr. Alexa Dayton, Executive Director of the Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries (MCCF), Robin Alden, former Executive Director and Founder of MCCF, and Ted Ames, former groundfisherman and McArthur Genius Award recipient, on Sunday July 27, 2025, for a lively discussion of the potential impacts on Gulf of Maine fisheries resulting from proposed changes to Federal funding and science and management processes at NOAA, and Maine’s Department of Marine Resources.

We will explore the historical context of the decline of groundfish and how Maine got to a largely lobster dominated Maine fishery over a 40-year period, which has created perilous dependence upon a single species fishery that supports 4,500 individual businesses and generates more than $1 billion in economic return to the State of Maine. We will examine the opportunities and risks associated with a future Federal regulatory and funding landscape that must reply upon a data poor scientific process and de-regulated management, and discuss how this might help or hinder objectives to restore a more diversified, healthy, thriving marine economy that can sustain the test of time.
Dr. Dayton’s work has been focused on the complex interplay of species conservation balanced with economic returns for natural resource such as fisheries, which plays out in the allocation of harvest privileges through co-management and trade-off decisions at the community scale. Alexa also serves as President Ex-Officio of Fishing into the Future, a U.K. based charity that was catalyzed by King Charles’s charitable foundation to build co-management of UK fisheries. Before joining MCCF, Alexa held senior positions at Gulf of Maine Research Institute, University Maine, L.L. Bean and Maine Huts and Trails.
