Sophie McCarthy

As the Lake James Program Manager, Sophie is responsible for coordinating and assisting with community facing programs in community engagement, education, recreation, and community science in the Lake James Watershed and adjacent areas of the Northern Basin. Collaborating with locally-focused organizations like Lake James Environmental Association and other community groups is critical to her role. 

Sophie grew up in Chapel Hill, NC, but fell in love with the mountains while attending UNC-Asheville. She has a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies and has worked in the environmental nonprofit world for most of her career. Her interest and focus in water quality and protecting our waterways was honed while working in the Chesapeake Bay region, and when she returned to the foothills of NC to start a family, she discovered and began working with the Lake James Environmental Association. That job led her to Catawba Riverkeeper, where she is excited to focus her efforts on helping to develop, grow, and implement programs to protect the Lake James Watershed and the Northern Basin of the Catawba River. 

Sophie loves hiking, traveling, and enjoying the outdoors, and one of her life goals is to visit every US National Park. She feels incredibly lucky that her love of nature and wild spaces has translated into a career for her.