Clean North Awards honour local 'environmental champions'

The winners of 2024 Clean North Awards are in.

A number of awards have been handed out, including three individuals and three green organizations/businesses being recognized for their commitment to protecting and preserving the environment in Sault Ste. Marie/Algoma District.

The winners are:

Secondary Student Award winner

Isaac Jeffery: Isaac is a Superior Heights student who has demonstrated the values of environmental stewardship in many ways, including through his co-op placement with Clean North and his participation in the Green Industries course at Superior Heights. He was a class leader in several initiatives that had a positive environmental impact in the school and our community.  In addition, as part of his commitment to reduce his carbon footprint, he cycles to and from school regardless of the weather and made it a personal goal to learn how to use public transit.

Citizen Award winners

• Carter Dorscht: Carter helps protect ecosystems both in his role as executive director of The Kensington Conservancy, a land trust serving the St. Joseph Channel area, and as a citizen scientist. His work for the conservancy has included overseeing the creation of four new nature preserves, protecting over 315 acres of land including wetlands and habitat for species at risk; the development of public hiking trails; community-based stewardship projects; and nature-based educational opportunities for youth and adults. He also organizes the Sault Ste. Marie and Desbarats Christmas Bird Counts, is an eBird Regional Reviewer, and has submitted a whopping 29,000+ verifiable observations of the Algoma District's flora and fauna to iNaturalist.
• Chevaun Toulouse: Living in Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation, Chevaun is studying biology and Indigenous environmental science through Trent University and has been documenting Ojibwe names for plants and animals. For example, working with Magnetawan First Nation, she helped create an Ojibwe/English reptile and amphibian species-at-risk colouring book and partnered with Saugeen Conservation to profile birds species using both English and Ojibwe names. She also worked for many years as a species-at-risk technician for the Toronto Zoo; Magnetawan and Sagamok First Nations; the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry; and the Ontario Science Centre. In addition, she was a researcher for the documentary Great Lakes Untamed, which highlights challenges facing the Great Lakes, and received a Nature Canada's Young Nature Leaders Grant and the Ontario Native Women's Association's Protecting Mother Earth Award.

Business/Organization Award winners

• The Kensington Conservancy (TKC):  In 2023, TKC worked with American Friends of Canadian Conservation to ensure that Bowen Island (a small island off Pine Island in the St. Marys River) is forever protected from harmful development. This island has been identified as part of the Great Lakes Heritage Coast, one of nine signature sites in Ontario's Living Legacy Land Use Strategy. TKC also worked throughout the year to ensure their other 1,200+ acres of nature preserves and conservation easement agreements remained in good ecological health, including collecting thousands of bat recordings and working with volunteers to conduct many water quality tests. They also ran the TKC Junior Explorers program and Explorer Summer Day Camp to educate local youth about nature and the environment.
• Greenstone Engineering Ltd.: This environmental consulting and engineering firm is working to improve the quality of the environment in northern Ontario through services including contaminated soil and groundwater remediation, asbestos and mould abatement, and consulting services.  Since they opened their office in the Sault in 2022, they have successfully remediated over 100,000 m3 of contaminated soil in our community. They also celebrate Earth Day annually by organizing a downtown clean up.
• Hogan's Homestead: This maple products company promotes sustainability in the community and their industry including reusing recycled material for packaging their products to ship worldwide and donating products that are not up to the standard of sales to food banks. They also recycle surplus sap tubing.