Welcome Summer 22′ Organizing Interns

Or team is very excited to introduce our summer interns working on the Safe Drinking Water campaign and our new Healthy Homes program.

Caitlyn Hanley is a junior at Bates College majoring in Environmental Studies with a minor in Educational Studies. She grew up in Portland, ME and her interest on environmental issues comes from an interest in Agricultural Systems and past experience working in farms in Maine and Vermont.

Mads McDonough is a junior at Colby College. She’s majoring in Global Studies with a minor in Environmental Studies. She is particularly interested in the intersection of legislative work and grassroots movements.

They’ll be working with our organizer, Sergio Cahueque, on conducting outreach throughout the state to promote the importance of well water testing. Naturally occurring arsenic is a big issue in Maine and Defend knows that the percentage of people who test their well water needs to increase.

The team will be handing out free and “pay what you can” test kits to make sure that affordability is not a barrier for people to know if their water is safe for drinking. They’ll also help folks whose water shows high levels of arsenic or other contaminants to access remediation systems through the Maine Housing remediation program or other alternatives. 

Additionally, they’ll be working on our new healthy housing program with new Mainers in the Southern Maine area. Our goal is to raise awareness about how people could be exposed to contaminants such as lead, while living in older buildings that are made available as affordable housing in the area. They’ll organize community trainings and workshops, and work with people to do in-home self-assessments and provide access to remediation resources when needed. 

Donate to our internship program today!