WERU 89.9 FM Blue Hill, Maine Local News and Public Affairs Archives

Host: John Zavodny and Sara Trunzo
Engineer: Amy Browne

Issue: News, Events and People from Mid-Coast Maine

Program Topic: Hemlock Wooly Adelgid, HEMS Project, and what can be done.
Key Discussion Points (list at least 3):
1. Why is the Hemlock important to Maine and how is the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid a threat to them?
2. What is the HEMS project at Unity College?
3. What can be done to stop the spread of the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid?

Guests by name and affiliation:

Allison Kanoti is a forest entomologist with the Maine Forest Service division of forest health and monitoring. Her responsibilities includeadministering the five state-specific quarantines on pests and plants that threaten Maine’s 18 million acres of forest land, coordinating programs related to survey for the state-quarantined insect pests and responding to inquiries from the public regarding forest and shade tree health. Allison earned her master’s degree in forestry from the University of Maine after completing her thesis work on balsam woolly adelgid. She received a bachelor’s degree in forest biology from the University of Vermont.

Dr. Amy Arnett is a Professor at Unity College. She has published widely in the field of insect ecology and is particularly interested in understanding the impact of invasive species on natural communities.

Kathleen Dunckel is a faculty member in the Center for Natural Resource Management and Protection at Unity College. She is also a Ph.D. student in forest resources at the University of Maine. Her research is centered on using geospatial technology to inform decision making in resource management and land use planning.

For More Information:
www.unity.edu

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Issue: News, Events and People from Mid-Coast Maine
Host: John Zavodny
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Program Topic: Restorative Justice: an Alternative to Punishment
Key Discussion Points (list at least 3):
1. What is restorative justice?
2. How does the restorative justice program work in Maine?
3. How do participants fell about working within the restorative justice system?

Guests by name and affiliation:
1. Tia Poulin: Volunteers of America Case Manager at the Maine Coastal Regional Reentry Center. Beal College graduate in Social and Human Services. Licensed Alcohol and Drug counselor in 2010. She now works at the Maine Coastal Regional Reentry Center.
2. Suzanne Farley: Adult Program Coordinator, Restorative Justice Project of the Midcoast. Ms. Farley is a graduate of the University of New Mexico and worked successfully in human services in New Mexico for years earning the “Child Care Provider of the Year” award by the New Mexico Department of Human Services. She is the former Executive Director of Cuidando los Ninos, a comprehensive program serving children and their families experiencing homelessness and was appointed to the 2007 Mayor’s Affordable Housing Committee.

For More Information:
The Restorative Justice Project of the Mid-Coast: http://www.rjpmidcoast.org/

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Standard Podcast [ 57:47 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Broadcast Time: 10:00-11:00 AM

Program Topic: Belfast Creative Coalition

Key Discussion Points:
1. What is the “Belfast Creative Coalition?”
2. What are the program goals of the BCC?
3. Who is Kimberly Callas, and what is her role?

Guests:
1. Martha Piscuskas | Co-Director and co-founder of Waterfall Arts in Belfast and Montville. Martha has been worked with several non-profit organizations in Maine including the Maine Aids Alliance, Maineshare, and Women Unlimited. She is a graduate of the Maine College of Art and Wesleyan University.
2. Donna McNeil | is Director of Policy and Programs at the Maine Arts Commission. Donna holds a BFA in Painting from Syracuse University, an MLA in Art History from Harvard University and a certificate from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government for executives in state and local government. Donna has devoted a lifetime to the arts in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors, holding directorial and curatorial positions in galleries, museums and the performing arts.
3. Kimberly Callas | Is the new coordinator of the Belfast Creative Coalition. She is the Board Director and Art Coordinator of Midcoast Magnet and co-founder of the Newforest Institute in Brooks Maine. A graduate of the New York Academy of Art and the University of Michigan, Kimberly is a practicing artist in her own right.

For More Information:
Waterfall Arts | www.waterfallarts.org
Maine Arts Commission | www.mainearts.org

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Host: John Zavodny
Engineer: Joel Mann

Standard Podcast [ 57:30 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Issue: Immigration

Broadcast Time: 10:00-11:00 AM

Program Topic: The

Key Discussion Points (list at least 3):
1. How do national immigration issues affect people in Mid-Coast Maine?
2. Are there local resources for people dealing with immigration issues in Maine?
3. How does social media play a part in telling personal stories related to immigration?

Guests by name and affiliation:
1. Michele Leavitt is a first generation college graduate. Winner of the 2010 Ohio State William G Allen Award for creative nonfiction, her poems and essays have been published widely since 1995. A trial attorney in the Boston area for 15 years, she now teaches in the Center for Environmental Arts and Humanities at Unity College where her husband, Stephen Mulkey is the president.
2. Rosita Ayala is a Unity College graduate of Salvadoran descent. She is a first generation college student and American who grew up on Long Island, New York. Rosie graduated from Unity College with a degree in Environmental Writing in May of 2011 and is employed by Unity College as an Admissions Counselor.
3. Jeresia Nicos is an American citizen who lives outside of Savannah Georgia. Jeresia is married to Luis Nicos, who entered the U.S. without inspection.

For More Information:

The Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project (http://ilapmaine.org/) (ILAP) provides free and low-cost immigration information and legal assistance to low-income Maine residents.

Define America is a project to facilitate the immigration debate by giving people opportunities to tell their stories. Read Jeresia Nicos’ post at http://www.defineamerican.com/story/post/673/the-two-sides-of-america/

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Political Broadcast:

Host: John Zavodny

Engineer: Joel Mann

Standard Podcast [ 57:22 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Program Name: Mid-Coast Currents

Broadcast Date: December 16, 2011

Broadcast Time: 10:00-11:00 AM

Program Topic: Visual Arts as Environmental Advocacy

Key Discussion Points:
a) How has Maine Farmland Trust used the visual arts?
b) What does it mean to be an “Environmental Documentarian?”
c) How effective has “From the Land” been for Maine Farmland Trust?

Guests:
A) Bridget Besaw, Environmental Documentarian

Bridget’s projects have tackled issues such as development threats to northern Maine’s wilderness, loss of working farmland in New England, restoration of crucial salmon habitat in the North Pacific, threats to wild rivers and arid grasslands in South America, climate change research and prevention in Indonesian forests and sustainable fisheries initiatives throughout the world.i

Organizations who have partnered with Bridget to create imagery and multimedia projects:Maine Farmland Trust, The Nature Conservancy,? Maine Coast Heritage Trust, Patagonia, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation,?? Chewonki Foundation, ?The Kittredge Foundation,The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, The Penobscot River Restoration Trust and Patagonia Sur Foundation.

As a press photographer, Bridget has won numerous national press awards for stories on the depletion of natural resources.

Bridget has created feature stories for:Newsweek, Time, Forbes, Fortune, The New York Times, Business Week, Smithsonian, National Geographic Adventure and Nature Conservancy Magazine.??

Bridget has published two books in partnership with environmental organizations:Wildness within, Wildness without in 2007 with and From the Land in 2010.

B) John Piotti is the Executive Director of Maine Farmland Trust headquartered in Belfast, he is former Maine State Senator for District 23, and helped found the Unity Barn Raisers. Maine Farmland Trust partnered with Bridget Besaw to produce “From the Land” that included images by Besaw, text by Piotti and foreword by Maine Congresswoman Chellie Pingree.

For More Information:
Bridget Besaw: www.bridgetbesaw.com
Maine Farmland Trust: www.mainefarmlandtrust.org

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Political Broadcast:

Host: John Zavodny

Engineer: Joel Mann

Standard Podcast [ 58:26 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Producer/Host: John Zavodny
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Topic: The Creative Economy on the Mid-Coast

Guests:
Amber Heffner: Owner, Little Harbor Technology, Midcoast Magnet Board Chair, and Juice Steering Committee Chair
Skip Bates: Regional Manager, Bangor Savings Bank,Midcoast Magnet Board Member (former chair), Juice Steering Committee member, and Juice Conference Pitch Contest Chair
Donna McNeil: Arts Program and Policy Director, Maine Arts Commission

Who are some of the speakers at the Juice Conference?
What is “Creative Economy?”
What kinds of partnerships help fuel the mid-coast creative economy?

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Producer/Host: John Zavodny
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Topic: Mid-Coast Land Conservation
Guests:
LouAnna Perkins is former Executive Director of Maine Farmland Trust and now serves as its staff attorney. On the side, she is a musician, storyteller and grandmother. She and her husband Royce live in Penobscot.
Galen Todd is President of Coastal Mountains Land Trust. He is a retired paper industry executive and former president of Hurricane Island Outward Bound School in Rockland. Galen Todd is Managing Director of Curtis Island Partners, LLC, a volunteer firefighter, and Director of the Ragged Mountain Ski Patrol.
Ellen Skoczenski grew up in Portland Maine and has recently returned after being “away” for 7 years. She is the Coastal Mountains Land Trust Membership Coordinator and previously worked for two years on land preservation and stewardship projects in the southwest.

For More Information
Maine Farmland Trust: http://www.mainefarmlandtrust.org
Coastal Mountains Land Trust: http://www.coastalmountains.org

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