Reuben M. Schafir covers Indigenous communities in Maine for the Portland Press Herald. He previously covered the county government and the environmental beats for the Durango Herald. There, he reported on environmental threats to water in Southwest Colorado, covered the state’s two federally recognized tribes and ensured accountability and transparency on the part of governments and elected officials. He won numerous awards from the Colorado Press Association and the Top of the Rockies Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for his reporting on the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe’s experimenting with water-efficient crops, who is harmed when insurance companies and health systems don’t get along, innovative wildfire management practices, election coverage and more. When he’s not working sources, Reuben is an explorer of all things outdoors and likes pickin’ tunes on string instruments.
Beat: Indigenous communities in Maine
There are 9,000 members of the Indigenous community living in Maine. But the four tribes are treated more like municipalities than sovereign nations, a status enjoyed by 570 federally recognized tribes. The Indigenous reporter examines how distinct limits on tribal sovereignty affect tribal members and their descendants, the political forces that prevent change, and the ways tribal members shape art and culture.