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:
Fall Meeting Saturday October 19
Laura's Best Bird EVER: A Lifetime of Magical Encounters Have you ever had such a perfect look at a bird, or watched it in such perfect circumstances, that you thought it had to be the [...]
Brookline Bird Club “Extreme Pelagic” September 21-22, 2019
Thanks to Nick Bonomo for this trip report. On the heels of a weather cancellation of our August overnight pelagic trip, we were a bit nervous that the September trip might suffer the same fate. [...]
Remembering Ida Giriunas
Ida Giriunas, long-time birder and trip leader, passed away on August 20. She was 91. Ida was a force of nature, fierce and passionate about birding. She led and participated in many trips for [...]
Habitat Gardening for Birds workshop a success
The Habitat Gardening for birds workshop was attended by 30 people on Aug 25, 2019 at the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary. Attendees enjoyed the talk and the tour of the garden. Catherine Carney Feldman was [...]
Conservation Advocacy and Initiatives
The BBC is engaged in ongoing conservation advocacy on its own initiative and in alliance with the other eighteen member clubs of the Association of Massachusetts Bird Clubs. In June 2019 the BBC supported a [...]
Habitat Gardening for Birds with Master Gardener Catherine Carney-Feldman
Sunday, August 25, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, Topsfield All species on our planet need habitat—a place to call home. Habitats provide shelter from the weather and predators, a place to raise young, [...]
Fall Meeting Saturday October 19
Laura's Best Bird EVER: A Lifetime of Magical Encounters Have you ever had such a perfect look at a bird, or watched it in such perfect circumstances, that you thought it had to be the [...]
Brookline Bird Club “Extreme Pelagic” September 21-22, 2019
Thanks to Nick Bonomo for this trip report. On the heels of a weather cancellation of our August overnight pelagic trip, we were a bit nervous that the September trip might suffer the same fate. [...]
Remembering Ida Giriunas
Ida Giriunas, long-time birder and trip leader, passed away on August 20. She was 91. Ida was a force of nature, fierce and passionate about birding. She led and participated in many trips for [...]
Habitat Gardening for Birds workshop a success
The Habitat Gardening for birds workshop was attended by 30 people on Aug 25, 2019 at the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary. Attendees enjoyed the talk and the tour of the garden. Catherine Carney Feldman was [...]
Conservation Advocacy and Initiatives
The BBC is engaged in ongoing conservation advocacy on its own initiative and in alliance with the other eighteen member clubs of the Association of Massachusetts Bird Clubs. In June 2019 the BBC supported a [...]
Habitat Gardening for Birds with Master Gardener Catherine Carney-Feldman
Sunday, August 25, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, Topsfield All species on our planet need habitat—a place to call home. Habitats provide shelter from the weather and predators, a place to raise young, [...]
Fall Meeting Saturday October 19
Laura's Best Bird EVER: A Lifetime of Magical Encounters Have you ever had such a perfect look at a bird, or watched it in such perfect circumstances, that you thought it had to be the [...]
Brookline Bird Club “Extreme Pelagic” September 21-22, 2019
Thanks to Nick Bonomo for this trip report. On the heels of a weather cancellation of our August overnight pelagic trip, we were a bit nervous that the September trip might suffer the same fate. [...]
Remembering Ida Giriunas
Ida Giriunas, long-time birder and trip leader, passed away on August 20. She was 91. Ida was a force of nature, fierce and passionate about birding. She led and participated in many trips for [...]
Habitat Gardening for Birds workshop a success
The Habitat Gardening for birds workshop was attended by 30 people on Aug 25, 2019 at the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary. Attendees enjoyed the talk and the tour of the garden. Catherine Carney Feldman was [...]
Conservation Advocacy and Initiatives
The BBC is engaged in ongoing conservation advocacy on its own initiative and in alliance with the other eighteen member clubs of the Association of Massachusetts Bird Clubs. In June 2019 the BBC supported a [...]
Habitat Gardening for Birds with Master Gardener Catherine Carney-Feldman
Sunday, August 25, 10 a.m.–12 p.m. Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, Topsfield All species on our planet need habitat—a place to call home. Habitats provide shelter from the weather and predators, a place to raise young, [...]
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Upcoming Field Trips
Quabbin Reservoir
Quabbin Reservoir - Gate 10 235 Daniel Shays Hwy, Pelham, MA, United StatesJoin Glenn on a 5-to-6-mile walk through a very birdy area with species ranging from Broad-winged Hawk to Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Blue-headed Vireo, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Baltimore Oriole, and lots of stuff in between. (Maybe a moose or a bobcat!) Co-sponsored with the South Shore Bird Club.
The Quiet Beauty of Birding at Winthrop Beach
Winthrop - DCR Winthrop Beach Reservation - Sturgis St 59 Winthrop Shore Drive, Winthrop, MA, United StatesJoin DCR park staff for a leisurely walk across sandy stretches and areas of loose rocks at this Massachusetts State Reservation, a well-known hot spot for birdwatching. We'll be on the lookout for shorebirds, waterbirds, and gulls. Binoculars are recommended. Suitable for adults and children ages 8 and up (with an accompanying adult). Sponsored by [...]
Fruitlands Museum, Harvard
Harvard - Fruitlands Museum 102 Prospect Hill Rd., Harvard, MA, United StatesAll the nesting birds will still be around, with good views of young out of the nest being fed by parents: Veery, Indigo Bunting, Catbird, Red-winged Blackbird, Tree Swallow, Bobolink, Wood Thrush, Baltimore Oriole, and Warblers. Expect to walk about 2 miles on trails through meadow and woods with some steep sections. Heavy rain cancels [...]
Birch Hill WMA
Royalston - Birch Hill WMA Royalston, MA, United StatesIncludes three to five miles of walking relatively flat terrain. Might include some bushwacking. Driving on hard packed dirt roads. Co-sponsored with the Athol Bird & Nature Club.
Southwick WMA
Southwick WMA - Suffield WMA entrance Point Grove Road, Suffield, CT, United StatesWe will hike the fields focusing on grassland breeders, particularly Eastern Meadowlark and Grasshopper Sparrow.