• February 24, 2020

    Maine islands look to microgrids for energy independence

    Isle au Haut is among the latest islands pursuing a microgrid to reduce long-term costs and reliance on the mainland.

    Maine’s unique geography is creating opportunities for microgrid developers.

    Energy

  • February 14, 2020

    Roque Bluffs wins broadband funding

         “Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success,” according to Henry Ford. This sentiment could be the motto for a group of Roque Bluffs residents who saw a need and did something about it.

    Economic Development

  • January 13, 2020

    20 on ’20: Maine leaders weigh in on what’s ahead for the state's economy this year

    Every January, Mainebiz looks at the coming year and asks a range of experts, “Where is the economy headed?” This year, we asked CEOs, business owners and nonprofit leaders what 2020 will look like. A year ago, many were expecting a recession.

    Economic Development

  • January 11, 2020

    Residents seek help for lack of broadband service

    OWLS HEAD — The lack of broadband service is leaving some residents out in the digital cold and they are asking the town for help.

    Several people turned out Monday afternoon Jan. 6 to an Owls Head Selectmen's meeting to discuss the impact of not having access to the internet.

    Economic Development

  • Irina Erickson, an inmate at the Women’s Re-Entry Center in Windham, works at David’s 388 in South Portland through an apprenticeship program of HospitalityMaine and the state Department of Corrections.
    December 27, 2019

    The year in review: There was (some) good news for Maine business in 2019

    For business, 2019 has been a mix of good and bad. With the approach of the new year, Mainebiz has taken a look at 10 of 2019’s most “positive” stories — ones that carry an encouraging message about Maine’s economy and companies.

    Economic Development, Aquaculture & Marine

  • December 24, 2019

    Thermal Scan Camera and LED bulbs available to Rockland residents

    ROCKLAND — The City of Rockland announced that the Energy Committee has been awarded a $2,000 Spark! Grant by the Island Institute. This effort is in conjunction with the recently adopted Rockland Climate Action Plan to move the city to carbon neutrality by 2045.

    Energy

  • December 20, 2019

    Climate disruptions could wallop Maine’s economy in coming years

    Stonington, the state of Maine’s top fishing port in landed value, is facing seismic change. By mid-century, its lobster fishery could drop by 15 to 20 percent due to warming ocean waters, the Gulf of Maine Research Institute predicts.

    Aquaculture & Marine

  • December 13, 2019

    Aquaculture allows couple to work on water year-round

    ISLESBORO — Marshall Cove Mussel Farm, owned by island residents Josh and Shey Conover, was the subject of a video released by the Maine Aquaculture Association Dec. 5, the second in a series of videos about its members the MAA is producing.

    Aquaculture & Marine

  • December 11, 2019

    14 New England Communities to Build a “Portrait of a Graduate”

    The Island Institute is excited to be partnering with the nonprofit Rural Aspirations Project to bring together three small, isolated, rural Maine high schools and take an in-depth look at the unique role and purpose of rural education and its connection to rural community, vitality, and sustainability. The schools involved are: Islesboro Central School and Vinalhaven School in Penobscot Bay and East Grand School located in Northern Maine near the Canadian border. Learn more about the "Portrait of a Graduate" project and other grantees in this announcement from the Barr Foundation.

    Education & Leadership