From organizing bird counts to establishing protected areas, Carter Dorscht\u2019s dedication has made him a standout figure in Canadian environmental circles<\/p>\n
Carter Dorscht, a St. Joseph Island native living in Echo Bay, loves the great outdoors and has dedicated his life\u2019s work to conservation.<\/p>\n
Dorscht was recently recognized by SodaStream Canada as a Hometown Changemaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing a Hometown Changemaker involves representing the idea that everyday actions can drive real environmental change, and sharing practical ways people can live a bit lighter without it feeling complicated,”\u00a0Dorscht told SooToday.<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s meaningful to me because it lines up with how I think conservation works best. Protecting land matters, but so do the small choices we make each day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dorscht\u2019s love for nature began with bird watching.<\/p>\n
He’s\u00a0participated in the Sault Ste. Marie Christmas Bird Count every year since 2016. From 2017 to 2023 he organized the count, including coordinating all of its volunteer participants and compiling the data collected.<\/p>\n
The Sault Ste. Marie Christmas Bird Count takes place each year between Dec. 14 and Jan. 5. The data is made available to scientists, researchers, and conservationists to monitor long-term bird population trends.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started out primarily as a birder but my passion quickly evolved to include everything alive,\u201d Dorscht said.<\/p>\n
He graduated from Sault College’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Technician program in 2015.<\/p>\n
Then, he began working at The Kensington Conservancy, a land trust working to protect ecologically sensitive land in the St. Joseph Channel area of the St. Marys River.<\/p>\n
In 2021, he became the organization’s executive director and throughout 2025 he led its\u00a0rebrand as the Central Algoma Land Trust.<\/p>\n
Dorscht also teaches ornithology and fish and wildlife studies on a part time basis at Sault College.<\/p>\n
With the Central Algoma Land Trust, he\u00a0spearheaded the establishment of several new protected areas, including the Gravel Point Preserve.<\/p>\n
Located just south of Hilton Beach on St. Joseph Island, the 113-hectare nature preserve provides habitat for at least a dozen species at risk. It also has public hiking trails that are very well used by the local community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSince 2006, the Central Algoma Land Trust has established 16 protected areas, totalling almost 500 hectares. Within these areas we have documented nearly 1,700 species of plants and wildlife,\u201d Dorscht said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy passion as a naturalist has led me to discover many species of plants and wildlife that have never been documented in the Algoma District before.<\/p>\n
“Recording new species is important for conservation because it improves our understanding of local biodiversity and how ecosystems are changing over time. These findings can reveal habitats that need protection, highlight areas of high ecological value, and help conservation organizations prioritize where to focus their efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dorscht has won several awards for his work, including the Clean North Citizen Award in April 2024.<\/p>\n
He’s\u00a0said conserving lands in the Algoma District helps wildlife thrive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt also benefits us by providing green spaces for low-impact recreation and helping combat climate change.<\/p>\n
“Landowners can also play a direct role by choosing to protect their own properties through land donations, and that will ensure these natural areas remain intact for future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From organizing bird counts to establishing protected areas, Carter Dorscht\u2019s dedication has made him a standout figure in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":325724,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[49,48,143828,295,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-325723","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-carter-dorscht","11":"tag-environment","12":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325723","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325723"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325723\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/325724"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325723"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325723"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325723"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}