Ecocrisis targeted at Earth Day event

Mark Brown was happy to see Earth Day arrive. "We were so looking forward to a great event and even greater discussions, and we were successful in achieving both," says Brown. A Machias Earth Day celebration was held at the Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Maine at Machias (UMM) on April 21.
The event was cosponsored by 350 Downeast and EcoSattvas Downeast. The group 350 Downeast is a grassroots effort started by Brown and others in 2017 to raise awareness, organize, educate and support people living in coastal Washington County working together as a community to reduce dependency on fossil fuel.
Member Diane Fitzgerald explains EcoSattvas Downeast is an environmental group inspired by the example of the "bodhisattva," someone compassionately dedicated to relieving the suffering of the world. The term "EcoSattva" is a combination of "eco" or "ecology" with bodhisattva. Zen Buddhist practitioners formed the environmental group in 2017, and it now has expanded to include anyone looking for ways to respond to the eco‑crisis created by climate change and pollution. Currently the group is engaged in a multi‑year campaign to eliminate single use plastics, such as plastic water bottles, shopping bags, straws and Styrofoam cups, as part of the "More Ocean, Less Plastic" initiative.
Earth Day is an idea born in 1970 by founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, who was spurred to do something after witnessing the catastrophic damage done by the massive 1969 oil spill in California. Earth Day is celebrated every April 22 around the world. Earth Day 2018 was focused on ending plastic pollution.
Dr. David Goodrich, a retired climate scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, opened the program speaking about his bike ride across the U.S. observing the impact climate change is having on the country. His book, A Hole in the Wind: Cycling to Oregon, Looking at Climate is about that journey.
Goodrich used photos from his trip to accompany his thoughts on climate change as he spoke to an audience of about 40 people. "From the science perspective, there is a lot more going on than just global warming," says Goodrich. "One of the biggest effects of climate change is ocean acidification, and it doesn't have anything to do with global warming. Acidification is a climate change effect, carbon dioxide dissolving in water, making a big difference on coral reefs and whatever forms a shell. So we are seeing a global change in a lot of things besides temperature."
A panel discussion on climate change and its impact on Washington County presented short talks on sea and tidal projections, forest adaptation, fish, habitat and conservation, all in response to climate change. A constant theme of the panel was a wetter and a lengthening warming trend. Panel members were Tora Johnson, associate professor of Geographic Information Systems at UMM; Sandy Wolczyk from the Maine Forest Service; Dwayne Shaw, executive director of Downeast Salmon Federation; and Eileen Hostert, president of Downeast Coastal Conservancy.
The screening of an award-winning short film, A Plastic Ocean, which was sponsored by EcoSattvas DownEast, garnered plenty of audience reaction. In a search for the elusive blue whale, searchers find instead oceans filled with plastic waste. The film details the degradation of the planet through the use and disposal of plastics all over the world. "The comments from the audience were emotional, reflecting their distress at confronting the enormity of the plastic pollution problem," says Fitzgerald. "Many asking what they can do and one person volunteering to start a 'ban the bag' campaign in Machias are just great. Getting upset is a necessary first step in solving any problem."
A second panel then fielded questions from the audience. Participants included Madelyn Woods, a marine research coordinator for the Marine and Environmental Research Institute in Blue Hill, and Leslie Gajdukow and Kyle Winslow, both from EcoSattvas Downeast. Both the film and discussion noted the goal of not only reducing, but also stopping the use of plastics globally. Fitzgerald notes, "As Madelyn Woods pointed out, only 5% of plastic gets effectively recycled, confirming that recycling isn't the solution. Our research indicates that the equivalent of a garbage truck full of plastic is dumped into the world's oceans every minute."
Both Brown and Fitzgerald said they were pleased with the attendance but noted the absence of students and younger people at the event. "Except for the absence of young people, I think the whole event was very successful and inspired an ever‑widening circle of people to acknowledge the enormity of the eco‑crisis and find positive ways to respond and engage others in that response," says Fitzgerald.
What's next for both groups? Brown says there are two new initiatives in the works for 350 Downeast. "One will be a project to help people insulate their windows by making window inserts," says Brown. "The other is to create a fossil‑free community group to present, and hopefully pass, a fossil‑free resolution at the local level. Two organizational meetings have been scheduled, with the first to be held on Saturday, May 19, and a second meeting on Thursday, May 24, at 6:30 p.m."
Fitzgerald and her group plan to continue their weekly stewardship of Mowry Beach in Lubec while continuing to develop strategies to eliminate reliance on plastic. An example she cites is the Washington Academy Sustainability Club, which is trying to completely overhaul the school's cafeteria to eliminate all single-use plastics and promote recycling.
Anyone interested in becoming involved or learning more can visit <www.350Maine.org/downeast> and <www.zendowneast.org>.
Additional screenings of A Plastic Ocean will be held in June on Campobello Island, in July at the Porter Memorial Library in Machias and in August at the Peavey Memorial Library in Eastport.