Some Lincoln Academy students and local members of Citizens Offering New Alternatives (CONA) may take advantage of free and discount offers for a nationally recognized environmental conference to be held in Portland on the weekend of Oct. 17-19.
Kindle, the Northern New England Bioneers Conference, brings together panel speakers, workshops and community educators by linking with 18 other communities via satellite in an effort to continue the discussion of environmental sustainability and social justice.
According to a recent press release from Tammy Lee of Lee Communications, the term “bioneers” was first coined by Kenny Ausubel. She said that the term refers to a growing culture of environmentally conscious people.
“As part of the Bioneers satellite conference network (based in San Rafael, Cal.), Kindle represents a cultural shift toward protecting and preserving global natural resources beyond just awareness and concern,” said Ted Regan, presenter of Kindle. “The best scientists across the globe agree that the hour is now to change the destructive routines that impact the environment.”
According to Lee, student members of Lincoln Academy’s Climate Action Club can get free admission to the $375 per person conference featuring national and international speakers, educational workshops, entertainment and food.
Groups such as CONA can get a special discount rate to this conference to be held at the Abromson Community Education Center at the University of Southern Maine in Portland. Lee said that the special group rate is $150 off the regular admission price ($375 for the three days). Regular high school and college passes cost $25 per day.
Lee said scholarships for the students were made available thanks in part to donations made by philanthropists. She said that the anonymous donors felt the environmental issues facing the planet are too important to ignore.
“The lineup of speakers is phenomenal,” said Bioneer volunteer and Pemaquid resident Tammy Lee. “This conference addresses global issues such as environmental sustainability and social justice, as well as how to get involved locally from a social, scientific, political, artistic and business perspective.”
According to Lee, some of the speakers at the conference will include Mike Tetreault, Executive Director of the Maine chapter of the Nature Conservancy, Russell Libby, Executive Director of Maine Organic Farmers and Gardiners’ Association and Katherine Freund, founder and Executive Director of the Independent Transportation Network.
There will also be a number of speakers beamed in by satellite at this conference including Alexandra Cousteau, founder of Blue Legacy and granddaughter of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, authors such as Bill McKibben (“The End of Nature”), environmental activists, farm workers, biologists and professors.
Boothbay summer resident Peter Blaze Corcoran, a professor of Environmental Studies at Florida Gulf Coast University will give the keynote speech at the conference on Fri., Oct. 17.
An environmental author, Corcoran works with many national and international organizations such as the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, the President’s Council of the National Wildlife Federation and the Earth Charter Initiative.
To register for this event visit the website at: www.kindleinme.com or call 207-699-4444. More information about bioneers can be found online at: www.bioneers.org.
