The Ecology School, a non-profit education center focused on the environment, has opened a $14.1 million campus in Saco, Maine.
The campus includes a 144-bed, 9,000 square-foot dormitory, the 7,000 square-foot Poland Spring Education and Dining Commons, and a 712-panel solar array that generates 105% net positive energy on the 105-acre campus.
The Ecology School says it aims to serve 12,000 to 15,000 participants per year, ages preschool to adult, in a combination of in-person, in-school, and online ecology programs.
Other features of the new campus:
- It was designed for foot traffic and not cars. Tree-line windrows divide the auto-based world from the naturally trafficked world.
- Farmyard pathways are accessible to those with disabilities and promote universal access.
- Rain gardens capture storm-water runoff and strategically drain to nourish farm fields below.
- Permaculture gardens include native trees, shrubs, bushes, fruits, and vegetables.
- New pathways and gathering areas connect to existing trail systems, inviting exploration of the surrounding property.EV charging stations are available to those arriving in electric vehicles.
- To maintain a combustion-free campus, these are supported by a Tesla Powerwall that stores solar energy to provide battery-powered back-up rather than generator back-up.
- By 2025, 100% of the produce served on the campus served will come from The Ecology School’s farm or from local farms to demonstrate a sustainable food system and support Maine’s economy.
- Significant outdoor gathering spaces and theater promote community, physical movement, and joy.
A $500,000 gift from L.L. Bean will enable the school to build a new arrival plaza and a new waterfront area for recreation and environmental education on the Saco River, the Portland Press Herald reports.
