BY CLAIRE BURNET

On a sunny Wednesday in early May, I started my day at the Parkman Mountain Carriage Road Trailhead. I frequently explore Acadia’s trails on my own time, but today I was here for work. I was joined by staff from Acadia National Park, Schoodic Institute, Friends of Acadia, and an
eager class of UMaine students.

We were all there with the same goal: to kick off this year’s Save Our Summits program by carrying bags of soil up Sargent Mountain. A few miles and over a thousand feet of elevation gain later, we removed that soil from our packs and caught our breath.

The views from Sargent Mountain are beautiful. It’s easy to forget to look down, but the lichens, grasses, and shrubs on Acadia’s summits are worth paying attention to.

Trampling and climate change impacts have led to vegetation loss, but years of restoration work have shown that soil helps. Looking down, we saw early signs of success: a few blades of grass peeking through the fiber netting of a restoration plot established last year.

This year, I have the lucky task of leading groups of volunteers up Sargent and Penobscot Mountains with soil to support continued summit restoration efforts. You may have heard about or participated in last year’s Save Our Summits event, where volunteers carried up over 1,500 pounds of soil.

Staff from Acadia National Park and Friends of Acadia hold handfuls of soil during the Save Our Summits event. Participants carried their soil in bags tucked into their backpacks. (Photo by Shannon Bryan/Friends of Acadia)

This year we’re building on that success by offering regular volunteer opportunities. You can register to hike up soil with me every Wednesday from late June through early September.

Save Our Summits is one of several projects I’m helping lead as Acadia National Park’s Community Volunteer Ambassador (CVA). The CVA program is a year-long position designed to strengthen relationships between parks and local communities.

The program is a partnership between Americorps, Conservation Legacy, and the National Park Service. I’m a member of the first-ever Climate Cohort, a subset of CVAs focused on advancing resiliency in sites particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. I’m passionate about environmental literacy and climate action and feel lucky to be in a role that brings together those interests.

The magic of national parks is that they bring together so many people who care deeply about a place. Acadia is changing rapidly, and it can be hard to know how to help.

Almost two-thirds of Americans are worried about global warming, and they are hungry for solutions. Collective action is as much about our own wellbeing as it is about helping out.

Whether I’m building citizen-science opportunities, tabling at community events, or hiking soil up a mountain, my goal is to open the door to meaningful action. I hope you’ll join me this summer on the trail!
‘Learn more and sign up for a Save our Summits hike this summer by scanning the QR code or visiting friendsofacadia.org/soilhero.

CLAIRE BURNET is the Acadia National Park Climate Community Volunteer Ambassador.