For the past couple years, I have facilitated a senior seminar at a local university. The seminar focuses on “Citizenship”, and encourages students to be involved in community service learning, to gain understanding of local politics through attendance at a city or town government meeting, and to practice civil discourse with classmates around social issues and current events.

All Maine Initiatives’ in-person events follow COVID-19 protocols aligned with current recommendations from the CDC.  Masking is currently optional. Masks and hand sanitizer will be available at all events, as a safety precaution for anyone who wants it. We strive to host events with outdoor seating options when possible, weather permitting.  Maine Initiatives asks that […]

September, sneakily, is a month of new beginnings. Back-to-school. Autumn. Football season. Pumpkin spice extravaganza.  [There is a lot going on. And the weather (finally!) decided to feel like summer all of a sudden.] In the midst of all of this excitement, I want to invite you to join our fall Grants for Change (G4C) […]

Does your employer provide you opportunities to support Maine-based organizations you believe in? If not, tell them about MaineShare. MaineShare leads an annual workplace giving campaign that allows employees to donate $10 a paycheck (or $3, or $5, or $25) to support a coalition of grassroots and justice-focused nonprofits in Maine. Employees have multiple options […]

Summer in Maine, in vacationland. Finally! Time to gather outside with friends and to visit your favorite swimming spot.   Summertime in Maine…and I keep thinking about the Neo-Nazis setting up shop just north of where I live. Maybe you’ve read about it. It’s not new news, but it’s recently gained statewide and national attention.  Maine […]

Many nonprofits have been evaluating needs and rethinking opportunities for their workspaces, given shifts in work schedules and arrangements, rental markets, and demand for services. In Spring 2023, Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, Maine Association of Nonprofits, Maine Initiatives, and Maine Philanthropy Center conducted a pilot survey of nonprofits and funders to better understand what organizations […]

Our work is rooted in a simple, yet transformative idea: that people can come together around shared values of justice and equity: to raise and pool money and get it to the people doing that work in our community.

I am coming into this month of June, with a profound sense of hope and possibility. Over the past few weeks, I have been in a number of powerful in-person gatherings: the Maine Philanthropy Center Conference, the Resident Community Builder Program at Maine State Prison, a First Light gathering, the GEO Learning Conference, the Peter […]