Planning with Partners to Face the Future

As climate change brings sea-level rise and more severe storms to Maine, we need climate-resilient communities and ecosystems more than ever. Based on decades’ worth of research, we have developed online tools that help communities identify infrastructure at risk of flooding.
Municipalities, land trusts and planners can use these tools to prepare for climate change impacts—and find solutions that work for nature as well as people.

As a major landowner and neighbor in the Katahdin region, home of the Penobscot people, we are partnering with a collaborative of local businesses and organizations to implement a region-wide vision for a diverse economic recovery. After hearing from community members that the region needs more scenic trails for visitors of all interests, abilities and means, we are building a new wheelchair-accessible trail in the Debsconeags Lake Wilderness Area. The trail will have views of Katahdin and feature Penobscot Nation storytelling.

Forests that shade and filter water sources make forest conservation key to improving and sustaining drinking water quality. We’re working with partners to protect forested land within the Sebago Lake watershed, the source of drinking water for one-sixth of Maine’s people. This approach maintains valuable wildlife habitat, provides new recreational opportunities and maintains water quality while benefitting nature.

Meeting our climate action goals requires changing how we work and building relationships with more partners—especially youth who will be the scientists and leaders of tomorrow. TNC is supporting organizations around Maine that give youth tools and opportunities to engage with today’s toughest environmental challenges. We are also creating opportunities for youth to enter careers in conservation by partnering with the Maine Environmental Education Association (MEEA) to support Changemaker fellowships and entry-level residency positions with TNC and MEEA for emerging environmental leaders.

In Maine, both iconic species like lowbush blueberries and rarer plants like the endangered eastern fringe prairie orchid and northern blazing star thrive on land that is burned periodically. Our land management team oversees controlled burns to maintain habitat on several TNC preserves in Maine. Prescribed burns are highly collaborative—TNC staff and volunteers work with trained crews from other nonprofits, state and federal agencies, and universities to carry them out. Our Wells Barrens Preserve is a regional hub for ongoing fire crew learning and training, hosting gatherings where dozens of partners learn skills and share best practices for managing with fire.