Talk of the Towns

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
College of the Atlantic provides help with production. Engineering by Joel Mann of WERU Community Radio.
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
What is College of the Atlantic’s focus on human ecology and its approach to education?
What are the results of a recent study of College of the Atlantic’s contribution to the regional economy and cultural landscape?
How has College of the Atlantic benefited from an ongoing relationship with United World Colleges and it’s scholarships for international students?
What has led to the success of College of the Atlantic’s decade long Summer Institute?
How is College of the Atlantic responding to challenges facing higher education, including the shrinking number of traditionally-aged college students?

Guest/s:
Dr. Sylvia Torti, President, College of the Atlantic

FMI:
www.coa.edu

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
College of the Atlantic provides help with production. Engineering by Joel Mann of WERU Community Radio.
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
What is the work of Downeast Restorative Justice?
How does restorative justice connect to the criminal justice system to bring together those who have caused harm with those who have been harmed?
What is the broader set of restorative practices that underpin the work of Downeast Restorative Justice to build community connections and resilience?
What might a community circle look like… how is it convened, what are its intentions, what values does it demonstrate?
How might listeners learn more about training opportunities to build skills that support restorative justice and, more broadly, restorative practice?

Guest/s:
Kayla Gagnon, Downeast Restorative Justice Youth and Community Coordinator
Leslie Ross, Downeast Restorative Justice Program and Case Coordinator

FMI:
downeastrestorativejustice.org

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
College of the Atlantic provides help with production. Engineering by Joel Mann of WERU Community Radio.
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
What is the problem with traditional round road culverts? Why are they a problem for fish passage?
How do traditional round road culverts respond to higher intensity rain storms and flooding?
How do “stream smart” road crossings work? Are they worth the investment by Maine towns and private landowners?
As Maine Audubon takes the lead for “stream smart” education, who are its partners?
What role do Soil and Water Conservation Districts and Councils of Government play in seeking “stream smart” education and implementing better road crossings over streams?
Where can listeners get more information about “stream smart” solutions?

Guest/s:
Sarah Haggerty, Conservation Biologist, Maine Audubon.
Julie Sells, Knox-Lincoln Soil & Water Conservation District.
Meg Rasmussen, MidCoast Council of Governments.

FMI:
Stream Smart Program/Maine Audubon maineaudubon.org/projects/stream-smart/
Knox Lincoln Soil and Water Conservation District. www.knox-lincoln.org
Midcoast Council of Governments. www.midcoastcog.com
Demonstration video Stream Table www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCh1l5unRVI

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
Production support from College of the Atlantic.
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
How do the programs of Island Readers and Writers help students become confident, curious and engaged learners?
What is the decade long history of Island Readers and Writers? How did it move from serving classrooms on the unbridged islands to also include schools in Washington County, Maine?
What are some outcomes of bringing authors and illustrators of children’s books into Maine classrooms?
What have you learned that teachers want, in order to help them become better teachers of reading and writing?
What is the focus of the state-wide Dear Teacher conference on November 6 2025?

Guest/s:
Courtney Waring, Executive Director, Island Readers and Writers.
Alison Johnson, Director of School Programs, Island Readers and Writers.
Penny Johnson Principal of Perry Elementary.
Everett Caroll 4-6th grade ELA teacher Milbridge Elementary.

FMI:
Island Readers and Writers islandreadersandwriters.org/
Dear Teacher Conference. islandreadersandwriters.org/events/
Dear Teacher Keynote speaker John Schu www.johnschu.com/

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
Production support from Joel Mann and from College of the Atlantic
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
What is the history of public libraries in the US?
What is the mission of community libraries?
What is included in “new librarianship”?
What does “new librarianship” imply for library staff and boards of directors?
How might local libraries shift from serving their communities to “saving” them?
How might local libraries make use of and help their members make use of Artificial Intelligence?

Guest/s:
R. David Lankes, author of New Librarianship Field Guide and Triptych: Death, AI and Librarianship.

FMI:
davidlankes.org

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
Production support from Joel Mann and from College of the Atlantic
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
What is Cherryfield’s historical and current relationship to the Narraguagus River?
What was the 1961 Corps of Army Engineers Ice Dam and how did reduce flooding and reduce fish passage?
What led to a recent study that resulted in a redesign of the engineering that provides flood control due to ice jams as well as passage of Atlantic Salmon, shad, alewives and other fish up stream on the Narragagus River?
What benefits will Cherryfield and the river ecosystem see as a result of the new design and waterfront park?
What can other communities learn from the process that Maine Coast Heritage Trust, Downeast Salmon Federation, the Town of Cherryfield followed to secure fish passage on the Narragaugus River?

Guest/s:
Jacob van de Sande, Assoc. Director, Land Protection, Maine Coast Heritage Trust
Mary Knapp, Selectboard Member, Town of Cherryfield
Ellie Mason, Project Manager, Downeast Salmon Federation

FMI:
www.mcht.org
www.mainesalmonrivers.org
www.cherryfieldmaine.us

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
Production support from Joel Mann and from College of the Atlantic
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
How did the group working on AI in the MDI School System get formed—what are its goals? What have been the takeaways so far? Surprises?

Talk a bit about public perception of AI in school. ChatGPT generated essays, plagiarism concerns, etc. How does that match up with the reality in Maine classrooms?

What is the Maine Learning Technology Initiative? The state government implemented a pause on use of generative AI two years ago, to clarify policies and best practices. Some countries, states and cities have bans on the use of AI in schools. Could you talk a bit about where Maine falls on that spectrum and what has been learned since 2023?

What did you learn when you taught a class on AI-assisted writing. What has struck or surprised you in that process?

What do you think we can learn from human experience with other technology and scientific advancement as we ride the wave of AI?

Where can listeners learn more… do you have any favorite writers or sources?

Guest/s:
Kate Meyer, English and Design Thinking teacher, MDI High School and 2020 Hancock County Teacher of the Year
Nicole Davis, AI & Emerging Technology Specialist, Maine Dept of Education
Gray Cox, professor of philosophy, College of the Atlantic, author of Smarter Planet or Wiser Earth: dialogue and collaboration in the era of artificial intelligence, published by Quaker Institute for the Future, 2023

FMI:
www.oneusefulthing.org/
(“One Useful Thing | Ethan Mollick | Substack,” March 30, 2025. A series of useful blog posts that keep track of many key new features of AI. Also see Mollick, Ethan: Intelligence: Living and Working with AI. New York: Portfolio, 2024. An accessible, short book length introduction to the basics of AI and its uses by a Wharton Business School professor

www.newyorker.com/culture/the-weekend-essay/will-the-humanities-survive-artificial-intelligence
(Burnett, D. Graham. “Will the Humanities Survive Artificial Intelligence?” The New Yorker, April 26, 2025. . A very stimulating, cutting edge interpretation of how Generative AI is transforming the current practice and future of liberal arts education)

www.smarterplanetorwiserearth.com
(Smarter Planet or Wiser Earth? Dialogue and Collaboration in the Era of Artificial Intelligence, by Gray Cox. A very in-depth approach to the issues Generative AI raises from a systematic human ecological point of view.)

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Producer/Hosts: Ron Beard and Liz Graves
Production support from Joel Mann and from College of the Atlantic
Theme music for Talk of the Towns Theme is a medley from Coronach, on a Balnain House Highland Music recording.

Talk of the Towns: Local Community concerns and opportunities

This month:
Profiles of four community libraries in Northeast Harbor, Bucksport, Bangor and Ellsworth.
Their traditional roles, and new roles to bring people together and to respond to new needs as “public help desks” for their communities.
The role of the Maine Library Association to support professional development for library staff and to help coordinate library service throughout the state.
Challenges, including threats to cut federal funding.
What to look for in the PBS Independent Lens program Free for All: the public library.
The role of free public libraries in building democracy.

Guest/s:
Amy Wisehart, Director, Northeast Harbor Library and President, Maine Library Association
Lisa Ladd, Director, Buck Memorial Library, Bucksport
Ben Treat, Director, Bangor Public Library
Sarah Lasko, Director, Ellsworth Public Library

FMI:
bangorpubliclibrary.org
www.bucklibrary.org
www.ellsworthlibrary.net
nehlibrary.org
mainelibraries.org

• Whole Person Librarianship. (website about social work / library collaborations) wholepersonlibrarianship.com/
• Bryne, Janicki, and Visser. (2024). “Libraries Stand Ready as Digital Inclusion Comes of Age.” Maine Policy Review 33.2 digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol33/iss2/3/
• Clark & Smith. (2024). “What’s Keeping Public Libraries Up at Night?” Maine Policy Review 33.2. digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol33/iss2/12/
• Furukawa, Scott, & Treat. (2024). “‘We’re the Town’s Help Desk:’ Social Work Creep in America’s Last Public Space. Maine Policy Review 33:2. digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol33/iss2/15/
• Houston. (2024). “Lewiston Public Library Services for New Mainer Population.” Maine Policy Review 33:2. digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol33/iss2/22/
• Silka. (2024). “Interview with Hazel Onsrud.” Maine Policy Review 33:2 digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mpr/vol33/iss2/5/

About the hosts:

Ron Beard is producer and host of Talk of the Towns, which first aired on WERU in 1993 as part of his community building work as an Extension professor with University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Sea Grant. He took all the journalism courses he could fit in while an undergraduate student in wildlife management and served as an intern with Maine Public Television nightly newscast in the early 1970s. Ron is an adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, teaching courses on community development. Ron served on the Bar Harbor Town Council for six years and is currently board chair for the Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor, where he has lived since 1975. Look for him on the Allagash River in June, and whenever he can get away, in the highlands of Scotland where he was fortunate to spend two sabbaticals.

Liz Graves joined Talk of the Towns as co-producer and co-host in July 2022, having long admired public affairs programming on WERU and dreamed of getting involved in community radio. She works as the Town Clerk for the Town of Bar Harbor, and is a former editor of the Mount Desert Islander weekly newspaper. Liz grew up in California and came to Maine as a schooner sailor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download