Writing
Access and inclusion in birding and the outdoors
Birding from a Different Perspective: Jerry Berrier and Gary Peters
Commissioned for the Biggest Week in American Birding’s Festival Guide — a full color magazine packed with information about the annual 10-day long bird festival held in northwest Ohio during peak songbird migration. Read about Jerry’s experience as a blind birder, and Gary’s as a birder who uses a manual wheelchair.
Published in the Biggest Week in American Birding’s Festival Guide, May 2024. Read about Jerry Berrier here, and about Gary Peters here.
Increasing access and inclusion at the Biggest Week in American Birding
Written for the Biggest Week in American Birding’s Festival Guide — a full color magazine packed with information about the annual 10-day long bird festival held in northwest Ohio during peak songbird migration. This article discusses the various strategies that the festival’s staff and host organization, Black Swamp Bird Observatory, are working to make the festival more disability-friendly.
Published in the Biggest Week in American Birding’s Festival Guide, May 2024. Read it here.
Easy ways to improve access to interpretation materials
Written for interpreters and environmental educators, this article provides easy-to-follow strategies to increase the readability, contrast and usefulness of interpretation materials such as trail signage, maps, flyers and web-based information.
Published in the National Association for Interpretation’s Legacy magazine, Sep-Oct, 2022. Read it here.
It’s easier than you might think to make birding more accessible to more people
Op-ed discussing the inaccurate assumption that the Americans with Disabilities Act Standards equates to completely accessible outdoor places for all people, and some Southern California examples of oft-overlooked access considerations at birding locations. Encourages readers to share detailed access information about birding locations as the easiest way to make birding more accessible.
Published in the LA Times, April 21, 2022. Read it here.
Accessibility in birding
Describes, with photos, some of the physical barriers to accessing birding locations, such as trails and bird blinds, which many disabled birders face when trying to go birding. Explains why, if nature preserves don’t go beyond minimum federal access standards, many birders with disabilities will still not experience equitable access to birding locations.
Published in the American Birding Association’s Birding magazine, March-April, 2022. Read it here.
How you can help make birding more welcoming and inclusive
Discusses simple, concrete strategies birders and outing leaders can take to help ensure everybody feels welcome on bird outings and in the birding community, particularly beginner birders, disabled birders, BIPOC birders and queer birders.
Published in Audubon magazine, January 2022. Read it here.
It’s time to redefine ‘birding’
Encourages readers to reconsider who is a ‘birder’, and who might be excluded when ‘birdwatcher’ — and the assumption that we must see birds to appreciate them — is used. Proposes a new definition of ‘birding’ which removes historic cultural gatekeeping so that all who enjoy wild birds can feel comfortable identifying as a birder, regardless of experience, method used or skill.
Published in Audubon magazine, August 2021. Read it here.
Birds, birding and birding locations
Five Central California wildlife refuges you can enjoy without leaving your vehicle
Overview of various winter car birding opportunities in Central California, including which birds are likely and key access features of these locations.
Published by Roadtrippers Magazine, March 2023. Read it here.
Photo in header: Brown Thrasher, Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Photo: Freya McGregor.
Last updated July 2023.
Being intentionally inclusive is one way of being kind. And it always feels good to give — and to receive — kindness.
From How you can help make birding more welcoming and inclusive,
published in Audubon magazine, January 2022.