Eric Dombrowski: From Island Child to Renewable Energy Expert

By Shelley Wigglesworth

Thirty-four-year-old Eric Dombrowski grew up on Goose Rocks Beach, where he spent much of his time as a child “terrorizing the transient community with my older brother, Greg,” he said, adding “Our hustle started young with selling sand dollars at the entrance to the beach and moved on to mowing lawns and delivering papers.” 

When he was six years old, Dombrowski had the unique privilege of living with his family on Goat Island off Cape Porpoise after his parents, Scott and Karen Dombrowski became the lighthouse keepers on the island, a job they continue to this day. Eric recalled “The facilities on the island were rough when we first started out there, so we would spend weekends at a time and just work on fixing things and cleaning the grounds. We eventually got to the point where we could spend the whole summer out there when I was still in elementary school. The main thing that I did on the island was disappear into the rocks with a book. Some of my best experiences growing up were spent alone, wandering the island, turning over rocks and just seeing what was under them. This was also followed by mind numbingly boring back-to-back days of fog so thick you cannot see the tower from the house.”

Eric and friends playing wiffle ball on the Goat Island lawn

Dombrowski said his curiosity and appreciation for the greater world around him piqued when he lived on the island. “I think just looking at the different colors that nature produces were enough to keep my young mind reeling. The Maine coast may look a little dull in color from a distance, but there are so many small crystals in the rocks, fluorescent marine life that sparkles in the sun, and mind-blowing sunsets and sunrises that fill your 360-degree vision. I also learned how powerful the ocean is when living at the lighthouse. Waves are no joke, tidal surge is no joke, storms can be fierce.”

Eric’s mother Karen said both Eric and his brother Greg learned responsibility and work ethic at an early age growing up on the island. “They knew that if they were told something that had to do with their safety on the island, it was not to be questioned, and it never was. Because of this, they were allowed to do things their peers weren’t allowed to do-for example, they were allowed to go fishing in the harbor at an early age by themselves. I had a whistle that I would blow, and they would come back to the island, no questions asked. This was way before cell phones. I'd like to think that the privileges they were given at an early age led to their being amazing productive adults.” 

Eric enjoying some summer downtime on Goat Island

Growing up, Dombrowski attended Consolidated School in Kennebunkport and Kennebunk High School. He said he received an excellent education at both schools, while he garnered engineering experience along the way by continually working on cars and boats during this time. After high school, he went on to Stonehill College where he earned his BS in Chemistry and after that, he earned a PhD at Tufts University, also in Chemistry. “My work at Tufts had me studying how gasses react with surfaces under extreme conditions. I graduated with a good understanding of the methods used in semiconductor fabrication and went to work for a small instrumentation company servicing that field, STAIB Instruments, in Virginia. I built, tested, and installed instrumentation that operated in large vacuum chambers at national labs and universities. When COVID I was laid off and stumbled upon a job posting for Commonwealth Fusion Systems. I promptly applied and have been working there since the Summer of 2020,” he said.

Today, Dombrowski is a Tritium Engineer at Commonwealth Fusion Systems, where his work is focused on innovative renewable energy. “For the past year I have been on the manufacturing team. Our main goal was to construct a prototype large-bore elevated temperature superconducting magnet, which is a mouthful, but worth digesting. The fusion device we are building, SPARC, uses magnetic fields to confine plasma into a donut shaped vessel. Under the correct conditions, this plasma undergoes fusion where two hydrogen-like atoms combine to form a helium atom. This creates heat which will be captured to generate electricity with negligible fuel input. The prototype magnet was a key undeveloped technology, which did test successfully this past fall at the MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center. One large outcome from this test was the closure of CFS' series B fundraising efforts which has provided the company with the funding to build the SPARC device and start building the systems and capabilities to commercialize fusion energy.” He continued, “Since then I have been working with the FUEL team whose job it is to manage the hydrogen-like fuel, called tritium. It is essentially hydrogen, but it has two extra neutrons, whereas hydrogen has none. While there are still hurdles to overcome before the completion of SPARC and commercialization into the ARC device, it is exciting to be a part of the project aiming to provide clean renewable energy at such a large scale.”

Eric at work

Dombrowski said his interest in renewable energy was fostered by the observations he made as a child living on Goat Island. “The lighthouse and surrounding islands have changed considerably since I was a child. This will undoubtedly continue and even accelerate as sea level rise becomes reality. While the lighthouse is on the front lines of climate change for me, some people's livelihood is going to take the brunt of the blow. I think that any investment in stemming our contribution to climate change is worthwhile right now.”

When it comes to the evolution of the Trust that he has experienced in his lifetime, Dombrowski said “I am amazed at the progress the KCT has made both recently and in the long term. It is amazing knowing that so many of the islands are protected for everyone's use. It is a true natural resource that I have been lucky enough to become a part of. Some of my fondest memories growing up were during the Phil Mathews lobster bake on Langsford Road and I am likely not the only one to feel this way. An excellent group of people working towards a common goal, and I very much want to see that tradition continued. I am thrilled the Trust has started thinking about the effect of climate change and is working to empower the people that can enact change for the future.”