Protecting Wild Spaces One Project at a Time

Robb Stavne, Sora Ecological Consulting

Meet Robb Stavne of Peace River. Growing up, he would often come home at dusk—hands and shoes dirty from exploring every wild space he could find.

Well, some things don’t change. Today, Stavne considers himself lucky to have travelled far and wide and to have learned so much about many precious animals and ecosystems across Canada.

“Making meaningful connections with people and our environment has always been important to me, perhaps now in my career more than ever,” said Stavne. “I’ve always gotten a thrill from being outdoors.”

In 2019, Stavne founded his own wildlife and habitat management company, Sora Ecological Consulting. Since then, Sora Ecological has served nearly 50 clients—performing environmental monitoring across Western Canada and offering a broad range of environmental services.

True to his beginnings, Stavne earned a master’s degree in science and became a registered professional biologist. Then, he gained a wealth of work experience before starting his company.

“Working in a variety of roles in industry and the public sector gave me valuable perspectives for what I do now, especially when it comes to managing conflict between industrial development and protection of wildlife and habitats,” said Stavne. “If a client wants help with responsible resource development planning that adheres to regulatory policies and the public interest, we can help.”

Starting out as a one-man company in 2019, Stavne quickly found his services were in high demand. Initially, he was drawn to numerous oil and gas projects.

“I was working on major pipeline installations in BC, Alberta and Saskatchewan where my skill set with amphibians, birds and mammals was a huge asset," said Stavne.

Maximizing on the success of those first projects, Stavne expanded his workforce. Between 2020 and 2023, each year he doubled his team size and the number of projects they took on.

“We’re now entering our sixth year of operation and have settled into a small group of seven full-time professional wildlife and fisheries biologists.

In addition, we now have admin support and two or three project partners from around Alberta at any given time,” said Stavne.

Sora Ecological promotes conservation of wildlife populations and sensitive habitats, from both inventory and educational perspectives.

“Many companies have every desire to comply with government regulations, but operational rules are not always easy to interpret,” said Stavne. “We can help demystify how everything works and fits together.”

Though Sora Ecological is based in Peace River, team members also live and work out of Edmonton, Calgary and Prince George, BC.

“The global response to COVID really helped make working remotely a viable option for us. We all work out of our homes and meet regularly online. When field work is required, we are well positioned to put staff and vehicles on the job quickly and affordably for the client,” said Stavne.

Today, Sora Ecological is registered as a business in both Alberta and BC and operates throughout Western Canada (including the Territories). Most recently, they also expanded into Manitoba to work with the federal government and a First Nations community to develop baseline inventories for plants, wildlife and fish.

“These kinds of inventories are important to conduct now because if a company decides they want to start working within a traditional territory, the Nation will have documented habitat and wildlife occurrences that can form the basis for protection,” said Stavne. “Our inventories also serve as a baseline for later reclamation.”

The services Sora Ecological offers, especially when it comes to regulatory compliance, are vast and comprehensive.

“We monitor and take inventory of migratory birds and nests. We do amphibian and fish rescues. We identify wildlife features like den sites, raptor stick nests and piliated woodpecker nest cavities. We also do turbidity and water quality monitoring,” said Stavne.

Sora Ecological also provides a supporting role when a client is assessing and mitigating risk. Stavne and his team help interpret laws and regulations and provide in-field support for terrestrial and aquatic site monitoring.

“We work with communities, governments and conservation groups to provide data gap analysis, population inventories, eDNA sampling, winter tracking, trail camera monitoring and GIS,” said Stavne.

And, Sora Ecological’s long list of services doesn’t stop there.

“We also lead local conservation efforts, offer public education events in collaboration with municipalities, provide land management services, and we manage tree planting programs for carbon sequestration,” said Stavne.

The Sora Ecological team has various talents and expertise to draw from, so they can usually respond to client needs—even when it’s somewhat challenging. For example, they specialize in remote access field work under harsh conditions, something that is only earned with experience.

Stavne says it’s been a whirlwind since starting the business, but things are settling into a rhythm, and they are beginning to enjoy the reputation they worked so hard to build.

“My 12-year self would be thrilled. I’ve found the perfect field. It combines travel, outdoor work, meaningful connections, and I get to help protect—and speak on behalf of—wild places, which are so important to preserve,” said Stavne.

As his company grows, Stavne takes on new business and partnerships while strengthening existing relationships. Together with his team and clients, they protect wild spaces—one project at a time.

Sora Ecological Consulting www.soraecological.ca | rstavne@soraeco.ca | 780-618-4613