Happy July, friends.
This is one of my favorite months. School is out, spending time in the great Maine outdoors is in, and families and friends gather around campfires, lobster bakes, or scenic mountaintops. All of Maine is green and blue, with brightly colored splashes of wildflowers, birds, and butterflies.
This July is even more special for me. It marks my first full month as Maine Audubon’s executive director. After spending the first six months of 2017 as acting executive director, I received word from our board of trustees in June that I have been selected to fill the role on a permanent basis. It is an incredible honor to lead Maine’s oldest and largest conservation organization. It is also a significant responsibility, and one I take very seriously.
My job is to ensure that Maine Audubon becomes increasingly relevant in a changing world – a world where both the meteorological and political climates have become more extreme. The word “people” in our mission is key: people are the secret to working through these challenging times. Maine Audubon is already one of the state’s most trusted and effective conveners and facilitators of smart, science-based, wildlife-friendly solutions to the challenges we face as a state. I am committed to continuing and strengthening that legacy.
The programming we offer is a central pillar of that work, and our best avenue for reaching and bringing value to Maine’s increasingly diverse audiences. Moving forward, we will continue to provide the rich programs you’ve come to love — engaging trips, camps, and speakers — but we will soon begin layering on new ways for our stakeholders to enjoy, discover, and steward Maine’s wildlife and habitat.
To support that growth, you’ll see us streamlining our operations with new systems, a new website, more partnerships, and many more volunteers. You’ll see programs that are broader in scale, incorporating more elements of Maine’s distinct lifestyle – like art, music, and food – while stimulating all of your senses. We’re in the design stage now, but be on the lookout for expanded program offerings soon. We’re going to have fun experimenting with new approaches. Not everything will work, but the things that do promise to broaden our reach, amplify our message, and carry forward our mission in exciting new ways.
Please join us in this grand adventure. Attend our programs, share your feedback, visit our website, visit a sanctuary, partner with us on a project, or volunteer your time. Maine has a great history of being a place of strong communities. I welcome you to be an engaged member of ours!
Andy
