At West Boundary Community Forest (WBCF), we work to ensure the decisions we make in our forest have the best interests of the community in mind. We view our community forest as a shared space, inviting diverse points of view for decisions. People play a key role in the prosperity of the community forest and help build healthy communities.
This feature is our opportunity to amplify the voices of friends of the West Boundary Community Forest, those who help us ensure every project follows community values, goals, and objectives. Today, we spotlight Doris Hausleitner, a wildlife, ecology, and restoration instructor with Selkirk College and a registered professional biologist specializing in species at risk.
Doris lives on a nine-acre farm just outside of Nelson with her husband, two children, and various farm animals. She finds inspiration in the natural environment of the Kootenays, where she enjoys a sense of community, recreational opportunities, and sustainable living.
With 25 years of experience as a wildlife biologist, Doris currently teaches first-year Fish and Wildlife and Techniques in Wildlife Management courses and Ecosystems Management for the Recreation Fish and Wildlife Program at Selkirk College in Castlegar, BC, as well as the restoration field school for Applied Environmental Science and Planning Technology.
“I love what I receive from the students: energy, excitement and a fresh way to look at ecological and conservation problems,” she mentioned.
Recently, Doris and her class worked on a collaborative project with the WBCF that will be launched this spring.
“We were approached by WBCF to help create an educational piece and it fit well into the Recreation Fish and Wildlife Ecology class where one of the student objectives is to make science tangible to the public,” she said. “The educational goal is to provide cards with place-based ecological content.”
Through this project, students will be able to learn some Indigenous perspectives on the species they write about, using meaningful terms to a public audience and ensuring that their content is well-aligned with industry standards.
“We were excited to learn about the vision of WBCF and how some of the students might make working with WBCF a future goal,” Doris added.
Beyond the classroom, Doris is also the owner/operator of Seepanee Ecological Consulting, which has specialized in research on rare and endangered wildlife species in British Columbia for the past 17 years.
Throughout the years, her efforts have been directed towards learning non-invasive wildlife sampling techniques and improving conservation outcomes for at-risk species.
“My goal with Seepanee is to provide a voice on behalf of these species. Recently, our focus has been on denning wolverine. Since 2020, we have impacted conservation through a moratorium on trapping in the Kootenay Boundary and finding and protecting wolverine denning areas.”
Doris emphasizes the importance of thoughtful collaboration with Indigenous communities, the public, and industry partners, advocating for engagement, respect, and communication with these partners and recognizing that their perspectives and knowledge are crucial for effective conservation management.
Surely, Doris’ work with West Boundary Community Forest and her commitment to ecological education and conservation exemplifies the path towards a sustainable future for our forests and communities.
Healthy Forests.
Healthy Communities.