BBC’s new Code of Ethics and Conduct

If you are involved with the Brookline Bird Club, we know that you have a great love for and appreciation of birds and nature. The BBC is committed to providing programs in which all participants have a safe and welcoming space to explore their own personal connection to birds and nature. 

In keeping with this commitment, the BBC board thought it was time to take a fresh look at our Code of Ethics and Conduct and Trip Leader Guidelines. The resulting updates emphasize the importance of respect for birds, the environment, and for each other. 

The board has also formed a Committee on Community and Culture that will assist the club in working toward its mission of building a more diverse, more welcoming community and a culture of inclusion and respect. To learn more about our work or to get involved, please contact the committee at community@brooklinebirdclub.org.

Across Massachusetts and the country, the birding community is moving forward with a new focus on programming that is more accessible to all who want to enjoy nature and policy that promotes safety and inclusion. The BBC is excited to be part of that movement! 

We recommend following resources to learn more and get involved. If you have meaningful resources you would like us to add to this list, please let us know!

Resources on safer bird watching:

Safety Tips For Better Birding 

The Murmuration, a crowd-sourced document of eBird hotspots in Massachusetts, including information on safety concerns.

Further reading on inclusivity in birding and nature: 

It’s Time to Build a Truly Inclusive Outdoors, Corina Newsome (Audubon Magazine, Summer 2020)

Birds are Here for Everyone: How Black Birders are Finding Community, Aliya Uteuova, (The Guardian, June 2021) 

Murmuration is the Movement: Panelists discuss diversity in birding, Jon Stinchcomb (Port Clinton News Herald, May 2021)

Birding While Black, J. Drew Lanham (Literary Hub, September 2016) 

How to be a Welcoming and Inclusive Birder, (Ray Brown’s Talkin’ Birds)

Creating Safe Spaces: Promoting more-inclusive experiences for all (National Wildlife Federation, August 2021) 

Organizations to check out and consider supporting:

Birdability

Outdoor Afro

Black Kids Adventures 

The Feminist Bird Club

Black & Latinx Birders’ Fund

News Categories

Upcoming Field Trips

  • Members Webinar with Tiffany Kirsten – Birdie Big Year: Elevating Women Birders

    DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES THIS WEBINAR HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED FROM MARCH 10 TO MARCH 24. IF YOU PREVIOUSLY SIGNED UP, YOUR REGISTRATION AND ZOOM LINK WILL STILL WORK FOR THE MARCH 24 DATE. Please join the BBC on the evening of March 24 from 7PM to 8:30PM for a member only webinar with Tiffany Kirsten,

  • Woodcock Walk, North Easton

    North Easton - Edwin A. Keach Park Chestnut Street, Easton, MA, United States

    From the playground, we will walk a short distance to an open area where we can observe 2 fields for Woodcock. Sunset is around 6:30 pm so bring a camp chair and relax for the Woodcock flight.

  • CANCELLED Pine Hill Road Grasslands (was rescheduled from March 14)

    Lancaster - Pine Hill Road Grasslands Pine Hill Road, Lancaster, MA, United States

    We scheduled this trip too early. It was a mistake in retrospect. We are cancelling this trip. The birding will get better in mid to late April. We have trips in May and June that will be in prime season for this location.

  • Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge

    Mount Auburn Cemetery 536 Mt Auburn St, Cambridge, MA, United States

    Mount Auburn Cemetery is lovely in all seasons.  In late March, we may see the very earliest migrants from the south (Red-winged Blackbird, others) as well as the remaining seasonal visitors from the north (e.g. White-throated Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco).  And our usual year-round resident species will have just started to sing!

  • Franklin Park – Scarboro Pond

    Boston - Franklin Park Tennis Courts (Meeting Spot) Roxbury, MA, United States

    We will look for early spring migrants in Franklin Park. Beginners welcome and encouraged. Expect to walk up to 2 miles on paved paths. Loaner binoculars available. Co-sponsored with the Franklin Park Coalition and Franklin Park Tennis Association.

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