A MAJOR MILESTONE: THE AUDUBON SOCIETY OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND BIRD TOWN!
|
|
Bird Town Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Audubon Council, and the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania (ASWP) have taken an important step. A cooperative agreement is now in place that will result in the potential enrollment of dozens of new municipalities into the Bird Town Pennsylvania program. ASWP will bring funding and staff to expand Bird Towns in the southwestern portion of the state. ASWP's Executive Director, Jim Bonner; and Nick Stahlman, Wildlife Habitat Educator, have begun to introduce the program to the dozens of municipalities with which they already have a close association. The expectation is that we will see many of our newest Bird Towns in Pennsylvania coming from their outreach.
This new relationship is a milestone, as it will serve to underscore the statewide breadth of the Bird Town Pennsylvania program. Heretofore, the majority of the Bird Towns have been concentrated in the southeast part of the Pennsylvania. The success of ASWP will also aid the connections with municipalities made by Audubon chapters in the central part of the state. The Appalachian Audubon, Juniata Audubon, Lycoming Audubon and the Seven Mountains Audubon Societies have made promising connections with several municipalities that we anticipate as new Bird Towns! As Jim Bonner and Nick Stahlman have stated, the Bird Town program is “mission aligned with the work of ASWP and frankly all chapters. It becomes a critical means to enhance the work of our chapters at the municipal level through the support of the Bird Towns in their respective chapter territories!"
|
|
THE BIRD TOWN PROGRAM CONTINUES TO GROW:
With Help of Our Audubon Chapter Network
Municipalities across the state continue to show interest in the program with the support of local Audubon Chapters. Working closely with Appalachian Audubon Society in the Harrisburg area, South Middleton Township, the county seat of Carlisle Borough, Lemoyne Borough, Mechanicsburg Borough, Upper Allen Township and the city of Harrisburg continue to move forward with their applications. Bird Town PA held a table at Lemoyne's Arbor Day Festival, which was well received and resulted in numerous connections.
The support of the Juniata Audubon Society and State College Bird Club resulted in a presentation to State College Borough, their creation of a Bird Town Committee and their continued work towards their application. Also, Lycoming Audubon supports Williamsport joining the program. An introductory meeting has already taken place. All chapters are welcome to pass along contact information
of any municipality that might be interested in the Bird Town program. Please contact us at pabirdtown@gmail.com.
|
|
TIME TO CAST A CHAPTER BALLOT
For the Pennsylvania Audubon Council Elections
The 2024 Nominating Committee of the Pennsylvania Audubon Council was appointed earlier this year and includes: Ali Bowling, bowling.a@alumni.ou.edu. Past President, Appalachian Audubon Society; Michael Celec, MCelec@BCAS.org, Executive Director, Bucks County Audubon; and Robin Minnick, robinm19@ptd.net Secretary, Tiadaughton Audubon Society. The Nominating Committee was charged to receive recommendations and potential nominees of individuals to serve with the Officers on the Executive Committee of the Council. The call for nominations concluded on May 10, 2024. No new nominations were received and the existing slate of individuals expressed their willingness to serve for an additional one-year term. All positions are for election to one-year terms from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025. The recommended slate includes:
|
|
Officers
President: Leigh Altadonna, Wyncote Audubon Society
Vice President: Paul Burroughs, Presque Isle Audubon Society
Secretary: John Carter, Conococheague Audubon Society
Treasurer: Jim Bonner, Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania
Executive Committee Members
Laura Jackson, Juniata Valley Audubon Society
Susan Murawski, Presque Isle Audubon Society
Peter Saenger, Lehigh Valley Audubon Society
Jeff Stratford, Greater Wyoming Valley Audubon Society
Bird Town Pennsylvania Liaison
Heidi Shiver, President, Bird Town Pennsylvania
The Officers and the Executive Committee members conduct a monthly meeting and can hold additional meetings if needed. A virtual ballot has been created that reflects the slate of nominees. Each chapter is eligible to cast t one ballot for the 2023-2024 Slate. We hope to replicate last year’s election that witnessed all Pennsylvania Audubon Chapters participating in the election!
|
|
The Pennsylvania Audubon Council
“WALT POMEROY CONSERVATION AWARD”
Call for Nominations for 2024!
As noted in the April edition of the DRUMMER, nominations Form for the Pennsylvania Audubon Council Walt Pomeroy Conservation Award are now welcomed. The Nomination Form is available on the Pennsylvania Audubon Council website: paauduboncouncil@gmail.com! The nomination window will be open through June 15, 2024. Additional information and directions can be located on the website. The Council Executive Committee is pleased that several chapters are submitting nominations for 2024.
The Council Executive Committee will review the nominations and a selection for the Pennsylvania Audubon Council Walt Pomeroy Conservation Award will be announced. The tradition has been to present the award in an informal basis at a chapter designated location or event. The award has been presented in simple ceremonies and not intended as apart of a fundraising event for the Council.
|
|
Pennsylvania Audubon Council
FALL CHAPTER GATHERING!
Fall 2024
The Pennsylvania Audubon Council is planning a Fall Chapter Gathering for our Pennsylvania Audubon Chapter Leaders! We are recruiting individuals who would be willing to serve on a planning team to select the date and location of the gathering, work out the logistics and costs, and to put together an agenda of presentations, speakers, and field trips. We envision the weekend to include a range of topics on birds and conservation, invite presentations from our conservation partners, and forums for chapter strengthening and sharing as part of the weekend. We have a great example to follow in the Fall Council Meetings in New York that have been conducted each spring and fall over many years. The first order of business is to select a venue, lodging, potential field trip outing, and date in the central part of the state when there is no Penn State home football game scheduled!!!
We are long overdue for a Pennsylvania in person statewide gathering since the last weekend gathering in recent memory took place years ago in Wellsboro. Heidi Shiver is taking the lead with a couple of other members of the Council Executive Committee to organize this gathering. We need several interested chapter leaders to help! Please contact Heidi Shiver at pabirdtown@gmail.com and/or Leigh Altadonna at paauduboncouncil@gmail.com
|
|
"Saving Birds: The Science Behind Bird-Glass Collisions
and the Need for Bird-Friendly Buildings"
6:30 PM to 8:30 PM, Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Bonchek Lecture Hall, Barshinger Life Sciences and Philosophy Building,
Franklin & Marshall College, 850 Harrisburg Ave., Lancaster, PA
(Map showing event venue and parking location available at:
Lancaster County Bird Club and Franklin & Marshall College are excited to invite you to an enlightening event, "Saving Birds: The Science Behind Bird-Glass Collisions and the Need for Bird-Friendly Buildings" being held next week in the heart of Southcentral Pennsylvania. This event is meant to foster greater awareness on this important conservation issue with members of the general public and local and state officials.
Learn from Dr. Daniel Klem, a renowned ornithologist whose pioneering research on bird-glass collisions has brought significant attention to this critical conservation issue. His work emphasizes the need for bird-friendly building designs to mitigate these collisions and protect bird species. The event will feature opening remarks from Dr. Dan Ardia from F&M, remarks from Dr. Klem and Paul Groleau of Feather Friendly. It will wrap up with an engaging moderated panel that will feature a question-and-answer period.
Engaging displays from conservation organizations, including the Pennsylvania Audubon Council, glass manufacturers and companies striving to make glass bird-friendly will be available prior to the formal program. Arrive early to explore these informative tables starting at 5:30 PM. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with the leaders on this important conservation issue.
For those unable to attend in person, an online broadcast will be available. A link to the online broadcast will be added to the event page (listed below) closer to the event date. In-person attendance is however strongly encouraged!
For more details, visit our event page at:
|
|
Addressing Light Pollution: Impacts and Best Practices
7:00 PM, Thursday, May 23, 2024
VIA ZOOM
Audubon chapter members are welcome to join this special webinar sponsored by Bird Town Pennsylvania! Our speakers, experts in the field, will be sharing the negative impacts of lighting on night habitat and the animals that occupy it from plants, birds, insects and humans (including health, crime and environmental justice areas) and what the best practices are for addressing it.
Speakers include: Mark Grosz, PA Chapter President of DarkSky International; Diane Turnshek, Carnegie Mellon University; and Bill McGeeney, DarkSky International.
|
|
Share Your Chapter Posts on the Council Facebook Page!
The Pennsylvania Audubon Council Facebook Page is up and running as a public Facebook group. It has been established as a means for our Pennsylvania Audubon Chapters to share posts that spotlight special projects, events, and other significant activities. The goal is to demonstrate the contributions that our chapter network makes to benefit the conservation and protection of birds and the environment. It is a public Facebook group intended as a vehicle to highlight our important work in communities throughout the Commonwealth.
The Council will continue to issue invitations to any representative designated by a chapter with authority and access and post items to the Council Facebook. Please continue to alert us with contact information for any specific individuals you would like to have your authority to post to the Council Facebook! Let us know at: paauduboncouncil@gmaii.com.
We Need Your Updated Chapter Contacts!
Many chapters have their elections for officers and directors on a fiscal year schedule. Please share your updated list. We also welcome requests for chapters for any names and contacts to be added to the DRUMMER mailing list. Similarly, contact us if individuals whose names are on the current distribution list should be removed. Members of the Council Executive Committee will also follow up as needed to confirm any changes, additions, or deletions to the contacts listed for your chapters. We simply need you to include the name and preferred email address for each person listed. Please send your most current and updated list to: paaudubncouncil@gmail.com.
|
|
MANAGE YOUR EMAIL IN BOX
Be Sure to Receive Messages from the Council:
The Pennsylvania Audubon Council uses a Gmail address for many routine communications. Because Gmail uses a “.com” in its address, many recipients will find messages routed to a “junk” or “spam” folder. This can be avoided by a simple step as you manage your email at home or work. Simply add paauduboncouncil@gmail.com to your email mailbox and future messages will appear in your regular “inbox” of incoming emails.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
