OUR MAINE: EXPLORING ITS RICH NATURAL HERITAGE - BOOK EVENT

Description

Meet the editors and photographer who teamed up to create “Our Maine: Exploring Its Rich Natural Heritage,” a book of essays by 33 contributors that paints a vivid portrait of Maine's wild places and wild creatures, as well as of human impacts and the way the state's heritage has changed. Editors Aram Calhoun, Mac Hunter and Kent Redford ,and photographer Laura Zamfirescu, will be at the Wendell Gilley Museum on Saturday, Oct. 28 for a 4 p.m. reception and book signing followed by a 5 p.m. presentation that will be livecast simultaneously with the in-person program. Free and open to all, but registration is required at www.wendellgilleymuseum.com/calendar. When signing up, please indicate whether you will join in person on online. Photographer Laura Zamfirescu was born in Romania and moved to Maine in 2009 where she developed a passion for photography after receiving a camera as a gift from her husband. After trying weddings, family portraits, and other events she found her true calling in wildlife photography and focuses much of her time on photographing Maine wildlife with camera and drones. “If I can inspire people to experience all that nature has to offer, I have achieved my goal,” she says. Among her many accolades, she was featured on the cover of Downeast Magazine in December 2021, provided the cover for Maine’s official travel planner and road map for 2021, and is a three-time prize winner in the Downeast Magazine photography contest. Her photographs will be available for purchase the night of the event. Aram Calhoun is a professor emerita of wetland ecology and conservation who worked for decades at the University of Maine-Orono. Her research focused on wetland conservation and policy with a specialty on vernal pool ecosystems. She savors spending time exploring Maine’s waters via skates, sea kayak, and canoe; wetlands with muck boots, waders, skis, and snowshoes; and forests and mountains. Mac Hunter recently retired after 43 years at the University of Maine where he focused on conserving ecosystems for biodiversity, especially the interface between forestry and wildlife management. He grew up in Damariscotta, where his family roots reach back to 1760, but as he has written, “Maine is not the universe; it’s just the center of the universe.” Thus he and Aram, his wife, have balanced exploring the length and breadth of Maine with traveling the globe in a quest to see all the families of vertebrate animals, an impossible goal because of deep sea fishes, burrowing snakes, and other cryptic creatures. Kent Redford is a conservationist with a history in academia and conservation organizations. He left the mainstream to move to Maine to become an independent practitioner and consultant. Kent, Pamela, their two indoor cats and dog Biscuit live in Portland and roam the state whenever possible, with a particular fondness for alewife restoration spots. They are proud to be contributing to conservation of the West Branch of the Union River.