Markets & Economic Development Community Leadership Downeast Groundfish Initiative Hatchery Outreach and Education

Penobscot East Resource Center is a non-profit organization established in 2003 to secure a future for the fishing communities of eastern Maine. The center builds alliances among fishermen and community members, fosters community-based science projects, and works to strengthen and diversify marine economies.

Our mission is to secure a viable future for the fishing communities of eastern Maine, and our work combines hope and practical grassroots action.  Hope is essential to counter despair and apathy.  Grassroots action provides tangible results.  This type of cultural change is a long term process, creating the safe space where fishermen themselves grapple with changing to live within the bounds of the ecosystem they use.  Our role is to provide a long term presence, contributing tools, skills and resources as needed for fishermen and fishing community members to do this. 

Our work is environmental, economic and civic. We operate through four interlocking projects that serve one goal: to rebuild a small-scale diversified fishery where fishermen and their communities are an integral part of the governance of fishing, taking responsibility for fishing sustainably.

PROGRAMS

The community-supported Zone C Lobster Hatchery raises juvenile lobsters, collaborates in lobster research and explores techniques for restocking locally depleted areas. It was developed at the request of local fishermen and under the guidance of Ted Ames, fisherman-scientist and MacArthur Fellow and has become the most successful operation of its kind in the U.S.

Downeast Groundfish Initiative (DEGI) is a campaign to rebuild ground-fisheries in eastern Maine. DEGI employs advocacy science and grassroots governance and is developing a strategy to purchase groundfish permits to preserve access rights for eastern Maine fishermen.

Community Supported Fisheries (CSF) is a program where consumers pre-purchase a portion of a fishing harvest fresh off the boat. We started in 2008 with a winter shrimp program and expanded in May 2010 into groundfish with COMMUNITY FISH. This is an opportunity for fishermen to engage with their local communities and a mechanism for the long-term work of building the groundfishery.

Community Fisheries Action Roundtable (C-FAR) is a fishermen’s leadership training program which takes place in three two-day sessions each winter backed up by year-round mentoring skill-building and training support, provided by our Community Coordinator.