Islands on the Edge: Resilience and Risk in Maine�s Year-Round Island Communities

Marine energy offers a reliable energy solution for island and coastal communities, which often lack traditional local generation, to support their transition to energy independence and reduce reliance on externally imported fuels. Successful deployment of new technologies in these isolated locations requires community acceptance and approval from the outset, as these communities typically lack the financial and technical resources to operate and maintain new systems. This report presents a community-centric microgrid planning framework for remote coastal and island communities. Community engagement is integrated as the first step in the planning process, incorporating community profiles and visions into energy development scenarios. A case study was conducted in St. George, Pribilof Islands, Alaska, which relies entirely on diesel yet has significant wind and wave energy potential. Community engagement revealed a unique history and current economic status, with an interest in adopting advanced energy technologies despite past failures. Various microgrid configurations were optimized, considering different technologies to meet current and future energy needs while balancing cost and energy resilience. Wave energy converters (WECs) were a key component, integrated with other energy sources using the Xendee optimization tool. The Marine Energy Microgrid Toolkit, developed as part of this work, uses commercial power system analysis tools to optimize and analyze microgrid scenarios. The developed framework and toolkit can be applied to island and coastal communities to enhance resilience and support microgrid deployments. Future enhancements will include incorporating new marine resources, developing dynamic models, and automating the integration of Xendee and PowerFactory simulations.

User acceptance of diesel/PV hybrid system in an island community

Notions of space and time are keenly understood on small islands. It is the isolation from other communities which encourages awareness of risks as well as strengthens identity and the need for collective, collaborative action. Islands are not only exposed to many man-made and natural hazards and threats, the challenges of effective emergency response, humanitarian relief, and disaster recovery are exacerbated by location and limited transportation resources. In addition, understanding the geographies of risk and vulnerabilities, the capacity to cope with and manage natural and human caused threats and hazards is necessary for survival and sustainability. While islands have long developed mechanisms for managing internal social and political affairs, the challenges with globalization have created new opportunities and challenges. International trade and tourism have long exposed island communities to external forces, with climate change, sea level rise, and other global hazards. Islands need more than ever before to develop robust systems for emergency management, risk reduction, mitigation and adaptation. In addition to national systems for coordinating response and recovery, issues related to civilian-military interactions and exchanges between international organizations play out in the planning, exercises, and management of disasters. In addition to the place-based culture and systems of governance, institutional and organizational requirements are drawn into the mix, requiring effective communications, coordination and harmonization of procedures, policies, and approaches to risk management. There is a need for both generally agreed upon principles and standards as well as a capacity to learn and adapt to localized knowledge and systems. While disasters are seen as rare events, they actually reflect and embody many of the underlying characteristics, problems, and capabilities of the affected communities. Based on experiences in Hawaii, Samoa, Indonesia, and other small island communities, the resilience of islands is investigated. Cultural knowledge, traditional systems of community resource management, and efforts to sustain local knowledge, wisdom and practices amidst growing disparities in wealth, power, and access to information and technology suggest the need for greater awareness, improved training and capacity building, and stronger commitments on the part of island and international communities to disaster risk reduction. The chapter suggests strategies and opportunities for not just building resilience on island communities, but also applying the approaches to risk reduction and resilience to other communities. With the growing scale of disaster impacts, and increased demands for outside resources, disaster managers, planners, emergency response personnel, humanitarian relief workers and those involved in longer term recovery need to understand and manage the crossing of borders and boundaries of risk reduction.

Indonesian culture has a strong root in a culture of island communities. The culture, especially philosophy of the island communities is not so much revealed in studies of philosophy and culture. Therefore, this article will explore and explain philosophical values that shape the self-concept of the island communities. Epistemology is used as a formal object, while the material object is the island communities’ views and way of life. This article concludes that for the island communities, their islands are not just meant as a territorial locus, but also a cultural and personal locus because the islands have a concept of self and a sense of space and existence. Every community always identifies and conceptualizes themselves in a cosmological and socio-cultural concept. Every community has local knowledges, values, and institutions that are formed by an original natural ratio. The natural ratio grows from cosmic consciousness level to magical (religious) consciousness, and finally social consciousness. Willingness and policies are needed to build resilience and progress of the nation existence through a development of the island communities manifestly. The development of island communities must become one of important features of national development in Indonesia.

Understanding the coexistence of common and uncommon species is crucial for exploring community assembly processes and facilitating biodiversity conservation across spatial and temporal scales. This study extends the Equilibrium Theory of Island Biogeography (ETIB) to explore how island geographical variables shape the whole‐plant economics spectrum, emphasizing the relationship between intraspecific trait variation (ITV) and species abundance. We quantified ITV within plant communities on 10 land‐bridge islands and investigated its relationship with species abundance. Using generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs), we examined the effects of island geographical variables (island area, isolation, and distance to forest edge) and abundance on ITV patterns. With a rarefaction method, we identified a positive correlation between species abundance and ITV. Common species were predominantly located at the core positions of the community‐wide trait distribution, whereas uncommon species were more often positioned at its margins. Island area, isolation, distance to forest edge, species abundance, and their interactions all significantly influenced ITV patterns. Common species on smaller, more isolated islands and along island edges displayed traits indicative of slow‐growth and resource‐conservative (stress‐tolerant) strategies, while uncommon species on larger, less isolated islands and in island interiors exhibited traits consistent with fast‐growth and resource‐acquisitive strategies. Synthesis . Higher ITV may enhance the tolerance of common species in heterogeneous island habitats, supporting their persistence despite environmental variability. Conversely, lower ITV and smaller population sizes increase the vulnerability of uncommon species to extinction due to habitat loss and fragmentation. Extending ETIB to include plant trait economics provides novel insights into how island geography shapes species trait strategies and community dynamics, offering valuable insights for biodiversity conservation in fragmented landscapes.

Wood as a Source of Energy for Rural and Island Communities

have not been reported in other natural circumstances. The island's other communities were similar to descriptions of other regional plant communities, although Robins Island's communities were relatively depauperate. Based upon a detrended correspondence analysis, variability among each community's transects ranged from high to low; this variability was associated with the random sampling design, inherent heterogeneity, physiographic characteristics, and edge effects. The island's flora consisted of 215 species of vascular plants representing 151 genera and 60 families; seven species were rare or endangered in New York State and 30% of the flora was non-native and naturalized. The flora showed a greater similarity to neighboring Shelter Island (S0rensen's similarity index [SSI] = 55%) than to the adjacent north and south forks of eastern Long Island (SSI = 36 and 38%).

Islands are widely recognised as ideal pilot sites that can spearhead the transition to clean energy and development towards a sustainable and healthy society. One of the assumptions underpinning this notion is that island communities are more ready to engage with smart grids (SGs) than people on the mainland. This is believed to be due to the high costs of energy on islands and the idea that the sense of community and collective action is stronger on islands than on the mainland. This paper presents findings from a survey conducted to assess people’s perception of, and readiness to engage with, SG and demand response (DR) in the communities of three islands taking part in a H2020 project called REACT. The main objective of the survey, conducted in 2020, was to inform the recruitment of participants in the project, which is piloting different technologies required for SGs and DR with communities on the three islands. The results show that many island residents are motivated to take part in SG, to engage with energy saving, and are willing to change some energy-related behaviours in their homes. However, the results also indicate that levels of ownership of, and knowledge and familiarity with, the SG and DR related technologies are extremely low, suggesting that the expected uptake of DR in islands might not be as high as anticipated. This brings into question the readiness of island dwellers for the SG, their role in the deployment of such schemes more widely and the validity of the assumptions often made about island communities. This has significant implications for the design of SGs and DR solutions for islands, including devoting sufficient efforts to build knowledge and awareness of the SG, investing in demonstration projects for that purpose and tailoring interventions based on island communities’ motivations.

Learning from Hurricane Maria: Island ports and supply chain resilience

Island communities have energy-supply problems that differ appreciably from those of major land masses. There is usually an absence of local fossil fuel reserves, such as oil, natural gas and coal, as well as a limited infrastructure for delivering energy. This lack of flexibility requires island communities to satisfy their energy demands with indigenous resources, plus whatever energy supply is imported by sea. In recent years, the energy needs of many island communities have been met almost entirely by seaborne petroleum. As imported oil has become increasingly more expensive and less secure, greater effort has been directed by some island communities toward the development of their local energy resources. A case study illustrates the progress made to date in one island area - Hawaii - in minimizing its near-total dependence on seaborne petroleum. However, there should be some spin-off of this experience to regional energy planning, not only to other island communities, but also to regions within developing countries that share many of these characteristics. 34 references, 6 figures, 6 tables.

International guidelines and recommendations for availability and spatial distribution of emergency obstetric care services do not adequately address the challenges of providing emergency health services in island communities. The isolation and small population sizes that are typical of islands and remote populations limit the applicability of international guidelines in such communities. Universal access to emergency obstetric care services, when pregnant women encounter complications, is one of the three key strategies for reducing maternal and newborn mortality; the other two being family planning and skilled care during labor. The performance of selected lifesaving clinical interventions (signal functions) over a 3-month period is commonly used to assess and assign performance categories to health facilities but island communities might not have a large enough population to generate demand for all the signal functions over a 3-month period. Similarly, availability and spatial distribution recommendations are typically based on the size of catchment populations, but the populations of island communities tend to be sparsely distributed. With illustrations from six South Pacific Island states, we argue that the recommendation for availability of health facilities, that there should be at least five emergency obstetric care facilities (including at least one comprehensive facility) for every 500,000 population, and the recommendation for equitable distribution of health facilities, that all subnational areas meet the availability recommendation, can be substituted with a focus on access to blood transfusion and obstetric surgical care within 2 hours for all pregnant residents of islands. Island communities could replace the performance of signal functions over a 3-month period with a demonstrated capacity to perform signal functions if the need arises.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss and use living stories to provide examples and some basic principles of cooperation as the alternative way of organising island community. Design/methodology/approach – This study draws upon autoethnography and storytelling to show co-operative practices. Storytelling is supported by deconstruction of living stories. Findings – Island communities create and maintain resistance through a culture of cooperation. Living stories (I-V) illustrate different instances of cooperative practices, for example, friends in need, gathering, search and moba, and where sympathy, gift, and humanity and care are essential elements. Research limitations/implications – It would be interesting to explore whether island communities elsewhere exhibit similar patterns. Practical implications – Deconstructed stories helped in reconstructing the bigger picture of how the people on the island offer collective resistance by developing different ways of cooperation. Social implications – Living stories (I-V) based on reciprocity of taking turns and giving back to the community, is a strategy for survival and of collective resistance within the rural island communities. Originality/value – Appreciation of the true value of collective resistance based on gift and reciprocity rather than financialisation and economisation aids to better understanding of the needs of traditional societies of island archipelagos, on the part of policy makers and other stakeholders who are involved in the process of planning for island development.

This narrative literature review examines critical healthcare challenges in Indonesia's island communities, focusing on workforce shortages, inadequate health infrastructure, and the profound impact of geographical and socioeconomic factors. Drawing from eight studies published between January 2000 and December 2023, the discussion highlights both the strengths and weaknesses of existing research. The studies were selected based on their relevance to healthcare issues in island communities, rigorous methodological approaches, and significant insights into healthcare challenges and solutions. This time frame was chosen to encompass a comprehensive evolution of healthcare challenges and responses, particularly considering the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Grounded in the Diffusion of Innovations and Health Belief Model frameworks, the study proposes evidence-based strategies to enhance healthcare accessibility and quality in these underserved regions. The Health Belief Model is employed to understand health behaviors within island communities, addressing perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, and barriers. Strategies include increasing awareness of health risks, highlighting the benefits of telemedicine and improved infrastructure, and reducing access barriers through incentives and infrastructural enhancements. In contrast to, The Diffusion of Innovations Theory guides the dissemination of new healthcare practices and technologies. Emphasizing innovation attributes such as relative advantage, simplicity, trialability, and observability, and utilizing effective communication channels and local social systems. The study aims to promote the adoption of telemedicine and other innovations. By engaging community leaders and health workers, and considering the time needed for adoption, the proposed recommendations aim to accelerate the diffusion process, ultimately improving healthcare accessibility and outcomes in Indonesia's island communities.

This study focuses and emphasizes on the religious activities of islanders in Banyak Island, Simeulue and Nias. This research aims to find religious models and coexistence strategies in interfaith between island communities. These three islands are geographically close and inhabited by people with different religious identities. This research uses qualitative research with an ethnographic approach, data collection is done through in-depth interviews with informants who live on the three islands. The results showed that island communities have a collective ability to manage diversity to avoid conflict in the name of religion. Identity as an “island community” becomes social capital in interpreting collective identity. The open character of island communities is also a cultural capital that can suppress suspicion of different groups. However, the three island communities also have different characteristics in the religious moderation policy space. Nias Islands with a majority Christian population composition shows a fairly strong attitude of tolerance. The principle of kinship adopted by the Nias community serves to strengthen relations between religious communities. Simeulue Islands, whose majority population is Muslim, also shows a high level of tolerance by giving permission to build houses of worship for Christians who have just arrived in Simeulue in the last two decades. In the context of Pulau Banyak, where the majority of the population is Muslim, tolerance is only seen in the economic, market and fishing industry aspects. On the other hand, tolerance does not apply to permits to build houses of worship. This study also discusses the importance of the role of religious and social actors in strengthening community harmony on the three islands under study.

Population loss is one of the main challenges facing smaller island communities in Europe. In this study, we conduct a comparative analysis of population challenges in two island communities: one in Croatia and one in Norway. These two island communities have been struggling with slow, but very long‐term population decline. They have also both experienced an economic upswing in recent decades, resulting in fairly large numbers of labour immigrants coming to the islands. However, the large‐scale labour immigration resulted in differing long‐term outcomes. The island community in Norway has been able to reverse the population decline by retaining labour immigrants, while the Croatian one has not been able to do so. We provide explanations for the diverging outcomes, focusing on the nature of employment possibilities, the housing market, and immigrants' social networks. The findings are relevant to broader discussions on the role of immigration in demographic revival, as well as the potentials and limitations of labour and lifestyle migration for population increase on small islands.