How Can I Help the Birds? - May 2020
May’s Saving the Planet With Plastic Girl
Saving the Planet With Plastic Girl is a newsletter/blog containing three sections with practical ways to enact change to help heal our planet. The three sections include an upcycle maker activity (video, pics and/or link) to do at home, local action item to promote sustainable communities, and at least one national/global action item to mitigate the climate crisis. The newsletter is sponsored by Wicked Tree Press, and written by Jessica Maison, author of the Plastic Girl series. Eva and Iris, Jessica’s daughters and the inspiration of the two main characters in the novel, help pick the upcycle activity each month and help create a how-to video with their mom and dad.
The challenges facing our world with the climate crisis are urgent and critical, but we are not helpless. Making our household less wasteful is in our control. Supporting groups in our community that are working to make our neighborhoods more sustainable is manageable. Participating in at least one action items that demand larger global changes and keeps pressure on our leaders to enact those chances is something we can fit into a month’s schedule.
Birds, birds, birds!
With human’s sheltering in place and not rushing around as much, one of the things people have been commenting on and connecting with is that there are so many more birds hanging around, at least in the cities. I am from Los Angeles and the birds are taking over this year, but in the best way. Also, we, as a society, are sitting still and taking the time to notice our amazing feathered friends. Birds are one of the best indicators of the health of our planet around climate change. If they are in danger, we are in danger. Unfortunately, two-thirds of North American bird species are in danger of becoming extinct. Fortunately, there are simple ways to help protect them that involve going outside and looking up as well as making a few changes around your yard to make it more hospitable to the bird population.
Two fledglings learning to fly in the backyard. We had never seen a mom teach her babies like this before. I wish I had a better pic, but I got caught up in the moment.
Act Locally to Promote a Sustainable Community
During this time people are discovering the magic of observing birds or as the pros call it – birding. One very profound thing to do this month to nurture, understand, and protect these wonderful creatures is to go outside and find them. Download a bird app and venture outside your home, into your neighborhood or into a local nature area. Look for the birds.
Another great action you can do that will also beautify your lawn and get you outside is to plant a native plant for birds. First, find out the best plant for your area and/or a specific native bird through the Audubon’s Plant for the Birds online resource. Second, procure the plant. Third, plant it. My family and I planted a bunch of native plants last year, and the amount of birds, bees, and butterflies increased dramatically. It is a powerful act of conservation that also improves your environment.
You can order your native plants at a great local nursery or sometimes, you can get clippings from a neighbor and grow them yourself (cheaper but a little more effort.) Post that you are looking for a certain plant in local neighborhood online groups. Sometimes, a neighbor may be giving away what you want.
A local nursery is my area (Northeast LA) that is currently delivering is Artemisia Nursery.
Feel free to ask questions in the comments. I am happy to help when I can.
Reuse and Make something - Eva and Iris’s Upcycle Activity — Plastic Bottle Bird Feeders
According to Wikipedia, Upcycling, is the process of transforming by-products, waste materials, useless, or unwanted products into new materials or products of better quality and environmental value. People love to do crafts, but often projects send us to the store to purchase items that will end up in a landfill. Simply by looking around your house or going to a local thrift store, you can find many or most of the items you need to make so many cool projects.
Before making a bird feeder and putting one up, read this article to assure you are helping the birds not harming them.
To make a simple upcycle feeder will need:
· used and sanitized plastic bottle with lid
· Two sticks or dowels
· sturdy twine, string or yarn
· scissors
· bird seed
I will be adding Eva and Iris’s video soon, but for now, I like this simple instructional video by Eco Sapien.
Take Global Initiative
Research and engage with an environmental non-profit.
This month’s highlighted organization is the Audubon Society so most of the links I am sharing today are from their website and for good reason. Their website has so many great, high-quality resources.
The National Audubon Society’s mission:
The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow, throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation.
If you have kids, Audubon launched a kid’s site which has great lessons, resources and activities. It is also available in Spanish. My daughters and I have been enjoying watching the birds in our yard make nests and collect nectar, but this month, we are going to take our observing up a notch and try to do some research with these wonderful resources provided for free from the Audubon Society.
Research the Audubon Center closest to you and see what kind of birds you can find it that area and what events are happening near you. Go on a bird hunt (with binoculars, of course.) Right now, most centers are offering free online events, and many will open up when it is safe, and then you can go look for the birds at the center. If you end up loving it, ask about volunteering.
My local center is Audubon at Debs Park. The center is offering some cool online bird events and has a wonderful facility for kids and adults to enjoy.
Research a political, social action climate or environmental group.
I don’t usually pick the same group for both of these categories but in the case of birds, I think it is appropriate to do so. The National Audubon Society is not only a conservation and education group, but an advocacy and policy group. They have many resources and ways for members and non-members to get involved.
Click here to learn more about their advocacy and the policies they support to protect birds and their habitats. If you feel nervous about becoming an advocate, check out the below article. It is a simple and quick guide.
Three Steps to becoming an effective Advocate.
Two-thirds of the North American bird species are in danger of going extinct because of climate change. Don’t despair, you can take action today. I did. It was simple, and I pledge to continue to do so.
Of course, becoming a member always helps. If you can afford it, think about becoming a member of The National Audubon Society. Most important, get to know this great organization. They have done the research for you and make it simple and fun to get involved in conservation.
Bonus: A few of bird themed books recs:
For kids and parents:
I can’t say enough good things about the author and illustrator, Coralie Bickford-Smith. This book allows you to appreciate the beauty and fleeting nature of life and its cycles. I adore it. It is a gorgeous, meaningful book. I love flipping through its intricately illustrated pages and glancing over at my bookshelf and seeing its lovely binding. I bought it for my youngest, but I have gotten just as much out of it.
The Boy Who Drew Birds: A Story of John James Audubon – I have not read this one yet, but it gets glowing reviews, and we are going to check it out in honor of the Audubon Society, art, and birds.
“Davies related her story with immediacy, evoking Audubon's keen curiosity and the lure of the outdoors as she describes his gradual discovery of some important facts about bird migrations.” - Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
For middle readers and YA fans:
Hoot – This is a fantastic middle reader book about conservation and owls. It also has a film that you can watch as a family after reading.
Feathers Comic Series – I love this short comic series. It is beautifully drawn, and the story is so unique. The main character has feathers and can fly. Discovering the secrets of the main character’s mysterious past and his role in his city’s future is a wild ride.
The Girl Who Drank the Moon – This is a wonderful, dark, and magical novel. The bird imagery is used masterfully. It explores how misunderstanding or being misled about our history, others, or a place can truly have devastating consequences.
Hunger Games series – I love the use of the Mockingjay as a symbol in this book. The exploration of war and exploitation and their effect on young people is masterfully done. If you are a YA reader and have not read this series, you must.
For adults and teens:
H is for Hawk. This book is so many things at once. It’s a story of a relationship between bird and woman, a memoir, an exploration of grief, and so on and so on. I can’t recommend it enough.
"Helen Macdonald's beautiful and nearly feral book, H is for Hawk, reminds us that excellent nature writing can lay bare some of the intimacies of the wild world as well. Her book is so good that, at times, it hurt me to read it. It draws blood, in ways that seem curative. . . . [An] instant classic." – Dwight Garner, New York Times
As far as social, Wicked Tree Press is on Facebook. I am on Instagram and Twitter. Please feel free to follow me on either. I would love to hear from you in the comments below, directly through e-mail - (jessica@wickedtreepress.com) or on any of my social media platforms.
Thanks for joining us, loving the planet, and getting involved. We need to prevent future generations from actually living in the world of Plastic Girl, and I know we can, together.
