Birding organizations, nature museums, advocacy groups, and the good folks at PBS are coming up with lots of great online and broadcast programing (and shopping), especially for Earth Day/Earth Week, for those of us staying home during the pandemic. Here’s a roundup of what is on tap for the coming days:
Shop for a good cause. For Earth Day, Bird Collective, a Brooklyn-based company selling bird-themed clothes and accessories, is donating a portion of its proceeds from its Vintage Collection to American Bird Conservancy to assist its work on behalf of native birds and habitats. You can get a glimpse of the birdy offerings in this tweet posted yesterday:
https://twitter.com/bird_collective/status/1252711572146962433
Earth Day at the virtual museum. Today, for Earth Day, the American Museum of Natural History’s EarthFest event has a full slate of family-friendly online offerings. Topics include gardening, icebergs, earth trivia, and more.
Earth Day Network. Beginning at 9 am Eastern time, Earth Day Network will feature 12 hours of programming at earthday.org. The day will feature personal video messages from actors, musicians, political leaders, Pope Francis, activists, and others.
I Saw A Bird. Tonight’s edition of National Audubon Society’s weekly show will welcome climate scientist and Texas Tech Climate Center director Katharine Hayhoe. It begins at 7 pm Eastern time. Register here. Archived shows are on YouTube.
Saving Life on Earth. The Center for Biological Diversity has a weekly webinar series on Wednesdays at 4 pm Pacific/7 pm Eastern time. Today for Earth Day the discussion will be about the nonprofit’s ambitious goal of protecting 30 percent of wildlands and waters by 2030 and half of them by 2050. The presentation will include the Center’s Executive Director Kierán Suckling and Public Lands Director Randi Spivak. Register here.
Climate Change. Tonight on PBS, natural historian Sir David Attenborough will host a one-hour documentary, “Climate Change—The Facts.” The film brings together leading climate scientists who explain what might happen if global warming increases 1.5 degrees Celsius. Experts examine the consequences of rising temperatures on ice sheets, fragile ecosystems, developing communities, and extreme weather events. The film premiers at 8 pm Eastern time on PBS, PBS.org, and the PBS Video App. Attenborough, of course, is famous for a long list of nature documentaries, including “The Life of Birds” (1998).
What the world looks like when humans stay home. Speaking of PBS, Tuesday’s “PBS Newshour” featured a five-minute segment on the impacts of so many people around the globe staying home. Part of the story reports on how our suddenly quieter world may be affecting birds, and it includes a comment from John Fitzpatrick, the head of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
International Crane Foundation. This week’s topic in the webinar series from the International Crane Foundation is: “A Long and Narrow Flyway: The Last Wild Whooping Crane Population.” Liz Smith, ICF’s North America Programs Director, will lead the presentation followed by a Q&A. It is slated for 11 am Central time on Thursday. Register here. If you can’t get enough about Whooping Cranes, ICF has a fantastic new article from its co-founder George Archibald in which he provides detailed field notes about three Whoopers in Wisconsin and their behaviors over six days in late March.
Science on Tap. The topic for this week’s show from Via Productions is “Hope Is The Thing With Feathers: Finding Joy In Birds.” Nicole Michel, a senior quantitative ecologist with the National Audubon Society’s Science Division, will discuss birds you can see in your neighborhood or local park and how you can attract more birds to your yard. And she’ll talk about bird migration and how advanced technology – machine learning, space stations, and more – lets us delve deeper into the wonders of bird migration. The episode will air on Facebook and Zoom at 7 pm Pacific time on Thursday.
Stay-at-home science. If you want to get closer to nature while social distancing, check out this expert advice from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It has features about becoming a citizen scientist, enjoying backyard birds, identifying invasive plants, and more.
Birds, Birds, Birds. The latest episode of the Smithsonian’s Sidedoor Podcast features conservation biologist Peter Marra. He talks about the alarming loss of bird species we’ve seen over the past few decades and what people at home can do to help protect birds from future decline. Told through a nature walk, the episode features fun tips for seasoned birdwatchers and newbies alike. It’s a great escape for people spending more time indoors during these uncertain times.
Caribbean Endemic Bird Festival: From the Nest! Every day for the next 30+ days, BirdsCaribbean will feature daily posts on the Endemic Bird of the Day, coloring pages, online puzzles, eBooks, videos, webinars, at-home activities, and more.
