We are celebrating our 5th summer of environmental outreach programs through the Community Environmental Health Laboratory (CEHL). CEHL is a research and education collaborative with the MDI Biological Laboratory. CEHL is used for training teachers, engaging community members in water quality monitoring projects, including Union 98 students and their teachers in on-going water quality studies, and for a variety of summer programs.

Our first Ambassadors of the Bay expedition in 2005 was inspired by the Gulf of Maine Expedition. We documented the ecology, people and issues of Frenchman Bay, to gain a bay-wide perspective and produce a report for use in land use planning, conservation consideration, and education. The next year's expedition conducted a survey from people who live and work around Frenchman Bay which asked what should Frenchman Bay look like in 10 years, in an effort to identify those hopes for the future” that are held in common.

MCLE is a state approved non-traditional limited purpose school offering interdisciplinary semester long research fellowships designed to connect high school students with their environments through purposeful work. MDI Water Quality Coalition offers up to four positions for juniors and seniors interested in working on environmental stewardship initiatives in the community. These projects are part of the on-going scientific research of the Coalition and include fieldwork, analysis, report preparation, and community and statewide communications.

Our outreach program has grown to include a dozen teachers and over 400 students on Mount Desert Island. In 2007, we have expanded our school outreach to Swan's Island and Frenchboro. Our Education Director works to help teachers continue their water quality studies, stencil storm drains, plant vegetative buffers, and prepare for Youth Watershed Forums.