Stella Bowles

Stella’s river testing for fecal contamination drew national attention and influenced a $15.7 million government project to have the LaHave River in Nova Scotia cleaned up. She has won many awards including the Meritorious Service Medal from the Governor General in 2018, The Canada Walk of Fame Community Hero Award 2018 and she is also the youngest ever recipient of the Order of Nova Scotia, 2020. Recently the river project was completed and the LaHave River Estuary is now free of all illegal straight pipes.

Stella is currently in her third year at Dalhousie University, Halifax focusing on International Development Studies and Sociology. Although the river project is complete, Stella continues to share her success story in motivational keynotes and presentations. She hopes her river project demonstrates that science combined with social media can influence positive environmental transformation. At just twenty years old, Stella has become one of Nova Scotia’s leading environmental advocates.

* Quote from Stella, May 1, 2023: “Well, it is complete! The LaHave River Estuary is free of straight pipes. Thank you to the many community members and past politicians who came together to support this cause. It feels like a chapter has been closed and a new, healthier one begins for the LaHave River. I encourage the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg to have Coastal Action keep testing the LaHave, so the river health can be monitored and results shared. There are many more illegal straight pipes polluting our waterways beyond the LaHave. These still need a plan. I hope to discuss this further with our provincial government. Living in this area is such a privilege. It really is our job as a society to protect the beauty that surrounds us and continue to improve and maintain healthy waterways for future generations. Thank you everyone!”