Project

Oceans of Possibilities 2022

Celebrating the ocean with Maine Libraries.

Each year, libraries across the country select a shared theme for their summer reading and program activities. GMRI and Learning Ecosystems Northeast were thrilled to partner with Maine State Library to celebrate 2022’s theme — Oceans of Possibilities! We offered a suite of resources and opportunities based on our best-in-class ocean science to help librarians share the beauty and science of the Gulf of Maine with all their patrons.

Project Goals:

  • Continue to strengthen relationships between GMRI and communities across the state by supporting the 350+ community libraries in Maine.
  • Support librarians across the state with resources from GMRI and Learning Ecosystems Northeast and introduce libraries to the Connected Learning Ecosystem near them.
  • Demonstrate the relevance of oceans to communities both at the shore and inland.

This page features a collection of resources intended to support the Oceans of Possibilities summer 2022 library reading theme.

Gulf of Maine, Explained

This series of brief videos (< 5 minutes) presents nuggets of scientific information about the Gulf of Maine in easily digestible format. These are a great resource to add to your web site or as the kick off for a Family Science Night at the library. Stay tuned for the second installment of season 2 coming later this summer!

Community Science Investigations

Our community science program, the Ecosystem Investigation Network, features an investigation that your patrons can do at the ocean that will contribute to scientific work relevant to the Gulf of Maine. It focuses on documenting coastal flooding resulting from sea level rise. Stay tuned for an event later in July where you can learn more about this and other community science investigations!

Celebrating Seafood

If you preordered a poster and recipe cards they will be arriving at your library in a few weeks. If not, please feel free to print your own! You can find a more abundant list of recipes and some great seafood cooking tips below!

Gulf of Maine Warming

GMRI releases an annual report about the status of ocean warming in the Gulf of Maine. Our most recent annual warming report shows that 2021 was the hottest year on record. We designed this ArcGIS StoryMap to showcase these data rich findings in an easily digestible way that works across multiple device types (computer, tablet, phone) to support a range of programming.

Project Supported By:

Our Learning Ecosystems Northeast team will be leading the development and implementation of the suite of resources and opportunities designed to engage patrons of Maine's community libraries for the Oceans of Possibilities summer reading theme.

Project Partners

Staff Contact

Contact Sarah VanDenbergh if you have any questions or concerns.


Sarah VanDenbergh
Sarah VanDenbergh Project Manager II [email protected]

Read More