Advertise on podcast: Voices for Maine's Environment

One of the truly special things about Maine is the relatively easy access to stunning outdoor spaces. Our experiences in these natural places help shape who we are, but barriers exist for everyone to access the outdoors equally. Maine Gear Share Executive Director Josh Basson joins the podcast to speak about how outdoor gear lending libraries are making it easier for Mainers to get outside. **Show links: Maine Gear Share, Maine Gear Library Network, Gear Again Festival, NRCM Sustainability Grants **Support NRCM by becoming a member or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Bald Eagles are now commonplace in Maine. Piping Plovers are making a dramatic comeback. It’s all thanks to a decades-long law called the Endangered Species Act, as well as the dedicated, hard work of thousands of volunteers and organizations dedicated to restoring these vulnerable species. Laura Minich Zitske, the Associate Director of Conservation at Maine Audubon, speaks with Colin about why it’s so important to protect and restore threatened or endangered species in Maine, and why laws like the Endangered Species Act matter. **Show links:  Maine Audubon Coastal Bird Program **Support NRCM by becoming a member or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Casco Bay stretches from Two Lights in Cape Elizabeth to Cape Small in Phippsburg. It’s clean water and rich ecology support 14 coastal communities and tens of thousands of jobs in fishing, aquaculture, tourism, and recreation. In this episode, we speak with Casco Baykeeper Ivy Frignoca, environmental attorney with expertise in the Clean Water Act and other environmental laws, about the threats to this important natural resource and what we can do to protect it. **Show links:  Friends of Casco Bay website **Support NRCM by becoming a member or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

In April 2026, the NRCM Board of Directors selected Justin Strasburger, a well-respected leader of impact-driven organizations, as our next Executive Director. In this episode, Colin speaks with Justin about why he’s so excited about advancing the unique role NRCM plays as a fearless watchdog for Maine’s environment and mobilizing the power of everyday people coming together to build a lasting legacy through policy and systems change. **Show links:  New E.D. Announcement **Support NRCM by becoming a member or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

A new Maine law will allow residents to install compact plug-in solar panels in their home or apartment with the help of a qualified electrician. Plug-in solar opens the door for every Mainer, regardless of their income or housing type, to take steps toward energy independence without unnecessary utility barriers. In this episode, Colin speaks with Beth Woolfolk of the local climate action group A Climate to Thrive who was a driving force behind passage of this exciting new affordable clean energy solution. **Show links:  A Climate To Thrive website, Blog-What You Need to Know About Maine’s Plug-in Solar Law **Support NRCM by becoming a member or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Spring marks one of the truly remarkable feats of nature we get to experience in Maine: the annual return of sea-run fish to our rivers and streams. One of the most iconic species is Atlantic salmon, an endangered fish with a long history and connection to our land and the Wabanaki Nations who have stewarded these places for time immemorial. In this episode, Colin speaks with state fisheries biologist Jennifer Noll about the heroic collaborative efforts to restore Atlantic salmon in Maine.  **Show links:  DMR Atlantic salmon page, Salmon for Maine’s Rivers conservation project **Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Hear from experts at the Natural Resources Council of Maine about the bills we are tracking in the 2026 legislative session to will advance climate action and protect Maine's forests, wildlife, waters, and outdoors. Getting involved at the Legislature – either by listening to this recorded webinar, sending in comments in support of bills, or joining us at the State House -- is a great way to make a difference as Maine’s environment is facing attacks by the Trump Administration. **Show links: NRCM Bill Tracking webpage, NRCM events ***Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates. ****Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Jackson Chadwick of Maine Youth for Climate Justice and Rockland City Councilor Nate Davis speak to Colin about the proposal to create a Maine Climate Superfund. Mainers across the state are paying the price for destructive storms and flooding made worse by climate change. This year, lawmakers have the chance to provide relief by creating a Climate Superfund that would help towns rebuild after climate-fueled storms by requiring the world’s largest oil and gas companies to pay for their fair share of climate damage. **Show links: Maine Youth for Climate Justice, Nate Davis Bangor Daily News op-ed **Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on

Christi Elliott has been called a powerful force for outdoor recreation in Maine. Born in Machias, Christi founded Maine Women Hunters as a welcoming place for like-minded women to learn and join in the fun of hunting and fishing. A strong voice for hunting and conservation, Christi’s new book Always Game documents her journey. In this episode of Voices for Maine’s Environment, Christi speaks with Colin about the important role hunting and fishing play in Maine’s conservation community.  **Show links: Always Game published by Islandport Press, Maine Women Hunters Facebook group, Christi Elliott webpage   **Support NRCM: become a member today or sign up to receive email updates.  ** Follow NRCM on social @nrcmenvironment

Connection, community, joy. These are all essential ingredients as we come together to confront the environmental challenges confronting our world, nation, and state. In this episode, we speak with Sophie Davis and Luke Fatora from Halcyon, an artists collective in Midcoast Maine working to inspire environmental stewardship through music and arts. Their newest multimedia project, The Future is Here, will feature the stories and actions of Maine people who are working on the ground to build creative, regenerative, and resilient communities in response to the climate crisis.  **Show links: Halcyon **Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Last week, the Nature Conservancy announced it has reached an agreement for the purchase of the four Kennebec dams between Waterville and Skowhegan, an essential step toward their eventual removal and a multi-year restoration process in close collaboration with local communities and businesses. To get a sense of what’s possible when rivers flow free, Colin speaks with Steve Brooke, retired Senior Planner from the Maine State Planning Office and Trout Unlimited member who also served as project coordinator with the Kennebec Coalition during the removal of Edwards Dam. **Show links: nature.org/kennebec **Support NRCM: become a member today or sign up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on socials @nrcmenvironment

Advancing more sources of homegrown renewable energy is our best step toward a more equitable clean energy future. The Maine Labor Climate Council (MLCC) is an important coalition partner that NRCM is collaborating with to advance this vision. Colin speaks with MLCC’s Francis Eanes and Cheyenne Gallivan about how they are growing coalition of public and private sector labor unions working together to address the twin crises of climate change and broader inequality in our state and beyond. **Show links: Maine Labor Climate Council website **Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Maine is generating more waste per capita over time and studies estimate single-use packaging materials make up a large amount of the trash we send to landfills and incinerators. We’re joined by University of Maine professor Dr. Cindy Isenhour to discuss what Mainers can do about this by moving toward reusable packaging programs in restaurants and other local businesses. Isenhour leads research efforts on sustainable consumption, reuse, and building a circular economy at UMaine. **Show links: UMaine Reusable Packaging Resource Guide, UMaine Reusable Packaging Research Project, NRCM Sustainability Grants, State of Maine Community Action Grants **Support NRCM: become a member today or sign up to receive email updates. ***Follow NRCM on socials @nrcmenvironment

The first session of the 132nd Maine Legislature has officially concluded, producing some big wins for clean energy and conservation, but also some mixed results and a few losses that were hard fought and disappointing. Colin speaks with Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim to break it all down and describe how our experts worked with partners and people like you to deliver results for Maine’s environment. **Show links: NRCM Bill Tracking webpage, North Woods StoryMap, Summer Meet & Greet Events ***Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates. ****Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok

Maine’s lakes are just as iconic as our rocky coastline. But lakes don’t just provide outstanding recreational experiences – they provide essential wildlife habitat and clean drinking water for thousands. Colin talks with Susan Gallo, the executive director of Maine Lakes, to learn more about lakes and ponds in Maine, what makes them so special, why we can’t ignore the risks facing them, and what we can do about it. **Show links: Maine Lakes website, LakeSmart program  **Support NRCM by becoming a member today or signing up to receive email updates. ** Follow NRCM on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or TikTok