"Celebration" Web Site
Frequent updates are being made to the web site to include more and more fun and informative material on the Celebration, urban conservation concerns, ideas of ways to get involved, suggested resources, and other important information.

Special Note: We are adding a page to the web site with a list of organizations currently registered for "Celebrate Urban Birds!" to give people an idea of what types of organizations will be participating. If you do not want your organization listed, please send an email to urbanbirds@cornell.edu

Visit us: www.urbanbirds.org/celebration

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Artist Found!
Urban Bird Studies invited individuals of all ages and backgrounds to submit samples of their work to be considered for a "Birds in the City" poster that will be used in "Celebrate Urban Birds!" events in cities throughout the continent in May 2007.

We received an overwhelming response! Artists of all ages and abilities from across the globe sent in their work for consideration. We felt privileged to receive so many wonderful, creative submissions. It was extremely difficult to select one from among all the top-notch entries. We have now created a database of artists for future projects and will feature selected artists on the Celebrate Urban Birds web site.

After much consideration we chose artist, muralist, and teacher Katie Yamasaki from New York City. We are excited by her incredible work!  Click here to learn more about her and see some of her artwork.

The poster will feature illustrations of  the 15 target species of birds selected for the Celebration in a colorful urban backdrop.  It will be used as an identification guide and educational tool.

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Workshop Held at the Lab of Ornithology in December
Educators and group leaders from around the country traveled to the "Lab of O" to learn about, provide input on, and connect with Lab staff  on December 14th. Exciting presentations on the science behind urban greening, gardening for the birds in cities, marketing ideas, and facilitated discussions about regional celebration plans were included.

Participants who went on the early morning bird walk were even treated to close views of Pileated Woodpeckers.

Presenters included Vice President for Bird Conservation for the National Audubon Society and director of Audubon's Seabird Restoration Program, Stephen Kress, Elissa Wolfson, editor and writer at the Cornell Plantations, Caren Cooper, research associate at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez, doctoral student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell.

Gretchen Ferenz and Lisa Babcock from Cornell Cooperative Extension in New York City also were an integral part of the day.

You can view selected workshop presentations and see some of the ideas shared by regional partners by visiting the web site.

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Interesting Research
The Pigeon Paradox: Dependence of Global Conservation on Urban Nature by Robert Dunn, M. Gavin, M. Sanchez, and J. Solomon.

  Dunn et al, 2006.pdf

Read an exciting article in December's issue of Conservation Biology that discusses achieving global conservation by promoting direct experiences with urban species. It is thought that people are more likely to become involved in conservation action when they have direct experiences in the natural world. 80% of people are found in cities, therefore, humans mostly experience nature though much maligned urban species such as pigeons and other introduced species thought of as urban pests. The paper examines the idea that perhaps global conservation will depend more and more on people's interactions with urban ecosystems.

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Got a great idea for "Celebrating Urban Birds?" We want to feature you!!
We are currently working on a "Featured Partner" section of the "Celebrate Urban Birds!" web site.

Here, we'd like to include lots of real-word examples of people/organizations devoted to conservation, particularly in urban environments.  We want to feature the stories of partners that are engaged in conservation activities and that plan to "Celebrate Urban Birds!" in May.

Are you interested?

If so, please send a brief statement to urbanbirds@cornell.edu. Please highlight your organization's mission, current involvement with conservation of birds or other urban nature, and address how you plan to integrate "Celebrate Urban Birds!" into your programming? Also, it would be great if you could provide a few pictures of your organization in action.

This is a great way to gain additional exposure for your organization. Along with the story, we are happy to link to your web site and feature any other information you would like included.

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"Celebration!" Materials
We are making great progress on the materials for the Celebration. In fact, our selected artist, Katie Yamasaki, has already completed the design for the "Celebration" poster. We will be sending it to press very soon.

We will continue to keep you updated on our progress and the expected date for the release of materials. We are anticipating the materials will be available late-March/early-April.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology will provide the following for "Celebrate Urban Birds!" May 10-13, 2007 :
--- Bilingual Celebration Kit (includes an original poster by artist and muralist Katie Yamasaki,  educational material about city birds and urban greening, data forms, and flower seeds to plant in pots and gardens in cities)
--- Bilingual Celebration web site, including information for partners and participants, contests, educational materials, photos and links to community partners, art connections, online data collection, and much more.
--- Bilingual Results Publication featuring summaries of data and findings, photos, contest winners, stories, art, and more.

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Interested in other Urban Bird Studies projects? The Urban Bird Studies DVD is a great way to learn more about our current projects!
We've had a great response to our new Urban Bird Studies' bilingual DVD. Educators and group leaders tell us overwhelmingly that it is a wonderful tool for introducing groups to citizen science. The bird guides have also been invaluable. All of our introductory and instructional videos are available on the DVD. It also features bird guides with cool facts for each of the projects, navigation in both Spanish and English, PigeonWatch color morph guide, and much more. Included is a handy bird identification guide of five common city birds that you can take with you to watch birds. If you'd like to purchase the DVD please send $5 per DVD to Urban Bird Studies, 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850 or email us at urbanbirds@cornell.edu. Let us know if the cost is a hardship for you or your program.

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Anyone can sign up to receive updates by registering for "Celebrate Urban Birds!" on www.urbanbirds.org/celebration or by emailing us at urbanbirds@cornell.edu.