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Casco Bay Coastal Academy

Casco Bay Coastal Academy is a quarterly workshop series aimed at building the knowledge base of municipal board members about critical coastal issues, and providing skills training to support their project planning and implementation.

Conservation commissioners and other local board members can and do play an important role in natural resource protection and education. As an arm of local government, local boards can also be a conduit for information, technical assistance, and grant funding from outside organizations, as well as a conduit to those organizations about the needs of the local community. A few resources in Maine provide information and training to elected officials and local boards, including The Maine Municipal Association and Maine Association of Conservation Commissions. Municipal staff and regional planning agencies provide needed technical assistance. Yet these programs cannot reach all municipal officials, especially volunteer board members such as conservation commission and planning board members.

CBEP and partners are offering quarterly workshops designed for members of municipal boards and staff, focused on important coastal issues and offering science-based natural resource information. There are presentations, followed by plenty of time for peer discussion. A big focus is peer-to-peer exchange; for instance, highlighting local community success stories and profiling best management practices and programs.

Climate Resilience Funding Workshop Series

New England Environmental Finance Center, Casco Bay Estuary Partnership, and Maine DEP, with assistance from Resilience Works, LLC and support from USEPA Region 1, offers this series focused on crafting successful proposals toward sustainable financing of climate resilience and stormwater related projects. This series offers knowledge sharing, idea exchange, and real-world advice and inspiration. We lead participants through successive sessions that build upon one another, from understanding what grant agencies look for in their applications, to beginning the process of establishing sustainable financing sources.

 

RESOURCES

Casco Bay Coastal Academy

Upcoming Program:
 
Climate Change and Drinking Water: Challenges & Opportunities for Private Wells and Small Water Systems in the Coastal Zone
Part II: Addressing the Challenges
January 18, 2024, 12 noon – 1:00pm
Building upon Part I. Understanding the Issues, this workshop will focus on Addressing the Challenges. Speakers will share funding and technical assistance available for planning and solutions for private well owners and small water systems in the coastal zone.
Past Programs:
 
Climate Change and Drinking Water: Challenges & Opportunities for Private Wells and Small Water Systems in the Coastal Zone
Part 1: Understanding the Issues
January 18, 2024, 12 noon – 1:00pm
 
How is climate change impacting drinking water in coastal Maine, and what are some coastal and island communities doing to begin addressing these challenges? In this workshop, we will hear from a few island communities who have been taking steps to protect their drinking water, as well as from Ryan Gordon, Hydrogeologist with Maine Geological Survey. A follow-up workshop later in January will focus on technical assistance programs and funding sources.
Conservation Commissions and Plan Review, 10/29/2019, Maine Audubon Gilsland Farm
  • Presentation by Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission

Nutrient Pollution in Casco Bay, 1/27/20, Maine Audubon Gilsland Farm

Stream Smart Culvert 101 for Local Boards, 4/28/20, Webinar 
 
Maine Climate Council & Your Community, 9/29/20, Zoom Workshop
 
  • Presentation by Judy East, Chair, Community Resilience Planning, Public Health, and Emergency Management Working Group, Maine Climate Council
  • Presentation by Kathleen Leyden, Co-Chair, Coastal & Marine Working Group, Maine Climate Council
  • Summary, Maine Climate Council Recommendations
  • Update for Maine Association of Planners on Maine Climate Council

Coastal Stabilization Case Studies for sites in Casco Bay, 12/17/20, Zoom Workshop

  • Workshop recording
  • Presentation by Peter Slovinsky, Maine Geological Survey
  • Presentation by Damon Yakovleff and Chris Baldwin, Cumberland County Soil & Water Conservation District
  • Presentation by Martha Sheils, New England Environmental Finance Center
  • Handout: Nature-Based Solutions Funding Matrix
  • Handout: FEMA, Nature-Based Solutions Guide
It All Begins with Habitat, 5/6/21, Zoom Workshop
 
  • Workshop recording
  • Handout: Beginning with Habitat Guidebook
  • Handout: Beginning with Habitat Toolbox
  • Handout: Questions for Online Map Viewer

Community Intertidal Data Portal, 10/28/21, Zoom Workshop

Volunteer Involvement in Climate Action Planning, 3/23/23, Zoom Workshop

Climate Resilience Funding

Workshop #1: Navigating Grant Programs, 8/19/20

Workshop #2: Financing Community Resilience, 10/16/20
 

Workshop #3: Building Strong Communities with Grant Funding, 5/10/22

For More Information

Contact Victoria Boundy, Community Engagement Coordinator, Victoria.boundy@maine.edu, (207) 780-5843.