Misha Mytar Appointed Senior Director of Land Protection at Maine Coast Heritage Trust
The longtime conservation leader will guide MCHT’s strategic land protection efforts
Mount Desert Island, Maine – August 11, 2025 – Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT) is pleased to announce the appointment of Misha Mytar as the organization’s new senior director of Land Protection, following a highly competitive search process. Mytar assumed the role on Monday, August 4, succeeding Betsy Ham, who is retiring after more than two decades of shaping MCHT’s land protection legacy with vision and commitment.
“MCHT has been incredibly fortunate to have had Betsy at the helm of our land protection efforts. Her unwavering dedication is part of MCHT’s DNA,” said Kate Stookey, president and CEO of MCHT. “And today we celebrate the ushering-in of a new leader in Misha. Her promotion is a testament to her conservation expertise, collaborative nature, and relationship-building skills, which will be essential as we continue to serve Maine and its communities. We owe big congratulations and thanks to these two important figures in Maine’s conservation landscape.”
Reporting to the president and CEO, Mytar is responsible for developing and advancing MCHT’s strategic conservation planning and priority land protection activities. This includes comprehensive planning efforts through leadership and collaboration with a broad array of state and local partners and oversight of all land protection projects, initiatives, and partnerships. A member of MCHT’s senior leadership team, Mytar will help shape MCHT’s strategic direction and vision, sustaining MCHT’s overall organizational health and ensuring alignment among its management, operations, strategy, and culture.
She is based in the Mount Desert Island office. Mytar joined MCHT in 2011 and most recently served as associate director of Land Protection. She played a pivotal role in shaping the organization’s strategic plan, managing complex conservation transactions, and coordinating Conservation Limited Development LLC, an MCHT subsidiary. Mytar has forged longstanding partnerships with landowners, local partners ranging from Acadia National Park to the Island Housing Trust, with a focus on conserving ecologically and culturally significant landscapes and community resources.
Before joining MCHT, Mytar was a senior planner at the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands and previously held positions at Blue Hill Heritage Trust and a number of Downeast conservation and community planning organizations. A graduate of Yale University with a degree in anthropology, she also holds a master’s in community planning and development from the University of Southern Maine’s Muskie School of Public Service.
Honoring the Leadership of Betsy Ham
Mytar takes the helm from Betsy Ham, whose remarkable 23-year tenure at MCHT helped shape the organization’s land protection efforts statewide. In 2002, Ham began her career at MCHT as a project manager in the Midcoast, where she completed more than 80 conservation projects. She became director of Land Protection in 2013.
Under Ham’s leadership, MCHT completed more than 320 conservation projects, protecting over 50,700 acres of Maine’s most cherished landscapes. This includes 107 fee acquisitions that created or expanded over 100 public preserves totaling 13,400 acres, and 81 conservation easements safeguarding more than 5,000 acres of working forests, farmlands, and coastal habitats.
Ham also championed the protection of 31 coastal islands and spearheaded efforts with partners to complete 132 additional projects, conserving another 32,000 acres across the state. Her steady guidance laid the foundation for some of MCHT’s most celebrated successes in land conservation.
About Maine Coast Heritage Trust
Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT) advances the conservation of lands and waters in Maine to ensure ecological wellbeing and foster thriving communities. Since 1970, we have worked to guide the conservation movement and support a network of more than 80 land trusts. Together with partners, we’ve protected over 190,000 acres, supporting the needs of people, plants, animals, and ecosystems across the coast. We’re dedicated to ensuring that our natural areas can mitigate the effects of climate change and support all people and life for generations to come. Learn more about our work and get involved at www.mcht.org.
Media contact:
Linda Lidov, Director of Communications
llidov@mcht.org / 207-607-4574