Tedx Talks — Thinking Like an Island

Philip Conkling can trace the beginning of his career back to the discovery of an ancient cellar hole on Flint Island in Maine. The history seemed fascinating. “I couldn’t get it out of my head,” he said. “Who were these people?”

Thus began a lifelong interest in island culture, which he’s become devoted to saving. He realized that island communities were dying; although a century ago, there were 300 year-round island communities, there are only 15 today. He embarked on a mission to save them.

First, he interviewed island fisherman to learn more about the community.

“We could provide high-quality ecological information to empower local policy,” Conkling said.

They aimed to “lead from behind,” or put local leaders in charge of saving their communities.

Conkling found that investing in island schools was the most important aspect to saving the island communities; without schools, there were no women and children, and without women and children, the economy would fall apart. So Conkling founded The Island Institute, through which he inaugurated the Island Fellows Program in 2001, which paired young people with local mentors on islands. Fellows, who are college or graduate school graduates, work with schools and communities to help build sustainability and economic development. There have been 70 Fellows since 2001.

“Maine’s greatest export from its islands was its youth,” Conkling said.

But with the Island Institute’s help, the islands will not die out.