Smart Growth, State Policy and Public Process in Maine: The Dunstan Crossing Experience
Sylvia Most
Samuel B. Merrill
Jack D. Kartez

Sprawling development continues in Maine in spite of a 20-yearemphasis on comprehensive planning. Scarborough's Dunstan Crossing, a project incorporating many of the goals of the national "smart growth" movement, was blocked in a lengthy process in spite of its approval by the town council and compliance with the town's comprehensive plan. Based on the lessons of Dunstan Crossing, the authors make recommendations about Maine's Growth Management Act, more effective regional planning, and how better to structure public participation in potentially contentious projects.

Obesity in Maine: A Policy Approach
Dora Anne Mills

Maine and the nation are facing an "obesity epidemic." Because the factors behind this epidemic are so interwoven in the fabric of society, policy makers, businesses and individuals must consider a variety of solutions on the personal, local, state and national levels. Mills warns if we do not act soon, "our youth may be the first generation to not live as long as their parents' generation.

Five Hundred Sixty Nations Among Us: Understanding the Basics of Native American Sovereignty
Stephen Brimley

Stephen Brimley presents a general background on the historical context of Native American tribal sovereignty on the national level, and the current political and legal environment in which tribal rights are defined. While tribes have retained varying degrees of their pre-contact rights, the sovereignty situation for Maine's Native Americans is somewhat unique because of the land claims settlement act of 1980.

Genetically Modified Food: What Are Mainers Thinking?
Mario F. Teisl
Luke Garner
Brian Roe
Michael E. Vayda

Whether to allow genetically modified (GM) foods in Maine, and if so, under what circumstances, has been hotly debated in recent years. The authors explore one aspect of the issue-Mainers' attitudes about GM food labeling. They conclude that labeling GM foods is more complex than just deciding whether to label, and that simply labeling foods as "genetically modified" may not provide consumers with the information they need to make informed decisions.

Commentary

Bates and Olmstead: Court-initiated Strategies to Implement Community Inclusion of Persons with Psychiatric and Other Long-term Disabilities
Theresa A. Laurie