“Can you share a specific way you’ve educated others about bird conservation through your sanctuary? What’s one engaging method you’d recommend?”
Hands-on workshops
At my sanctuary, one of the ways I’ve educated others about bird conservation is through hands-on workshops where visitors can interact with rehabilitated birds and learn about the challenges they face. One workshop I led focused on the importance of native plants in supporting local bird species. We had a guided walk through our sanctuary, pointing out specific plants that provide shelter, food, and nesting opportunities for various birds. It was powerful for people to see firsthand how their everyday choices, like planting native species, could directly impact bird populations.
One engaging method I’d recommend is creating interactive, immersive experiences. For example, setting up birdwatching stations with binoculars and bird identification guides encourages people to engage actively with nature. By involving them directly in the process, they not only learn but also become more connected and invested in the conservation effort. It’s been amazing to see how these experiences can spark genuine interest and long-term commitment to bird conservation.
Nikita Sherbina, Co-Founder & CEO, AIScreen
Our little rehab aviary down in Arkansas
Ever watch kids’ eyes light up the first time a great horned owl swivels its head like a slow-motion periscope? At our little rehab aviary down in Arkansas, I double-dip education and wonder by handing visitors a thermal scope so they can see each bird’s heat signature—suddenly that heartbeat is a shared secret, not just a science fact. The trick is tactile: when folks feel the pulse of conservation, they remember the lesson long after the feathers fly off. Same goes for healthcare:
Direct Primary Care thrives on letting patients hold the proverbial scope—transparent pricing, same-day chats, zero insurer fog—so ownership and empathy stick. Best DPC is a comprehensive directory and educational hub that helps people discover top-rated DPC clinics by zip code or name in seconds, and—y’all know this line—finding quality care is easy when the barriers are gone. Whether you’re banding a red-tailed hawk or onboarding a new patient panel, give people tools that turn curiosity into stewardship; that’s how you grow both healthy ecosystems and thriving practices.
Wayne Lowry, Founder, Best DPC
A custom “Birds of Mexico City” guide link
We transformed a rooftop flat into a little urban bird sanctuary, and it changed everything.
In 2023, one of our furnished rentals in Condesa began attracting hummingbirds from a small feeder left on the terrace by a guest; I happened to see it simultaneously on a welcome check-in. So, I took a chance and experimented with adding native flowering plants and a quiet nook with bird-safe water bowls. Within two months, I was noticing more birds, and some guests even began sharing videos.
What started off as a stumble became a whole initiative. Now several of our furnished apartments have rooftop “micro sanctuaries” made with native plants that protect local species like the Vermilion Flycatcher and the House Finch. Each unit has a QR code that links to a custom “Birds of Mexico City” guide we created with the help of local biologists, highlighting birdwatching tips and other things guest can do to help with conservation even from a rental apartment.
The engagement has been real: guests confirm seeing birds from more than 70 % of these rooftops. It has helped them to connect with the ecology of the city – and to connect us, to something much bigger than hospitality.
My advice: Don’t only put up a sign. Make it personal. Establish conservation as part of the guest experience. Awareness resides there.
Martin Weidemann, Owner, RentMexicoCity.com
Backyard Bio-Blitz
Have you ever seen a child’s face light up when a hummingbird hovers just a few inches away? During our “Backyard Bio-Blitz” days, foster kids spread out around our cottages with binoculars and clipboards, tracking every bird they spot. Later, they bring those sightings to life by painting the birds onto a big migration mural that now brightens our dining hall. It’s part scavenger hunt, part art project—and along the way, they’re learning about things like habitat loss and how even one plastic bottle left on the grass can have a ripple effect.
In operation since 1936, Sunny Glen has learned that when youth become storytellers of the natural world, they also reclaim agency over their own narratives; one teen told me spotting a kestrel felt like finding “proof the sky still makes room for survivors.” We follow up with low-cost counseling sessions that weave their bird discoveries into resilience exercises: each feather taped into a journal marks a coping skill they’ve mastered. If you run a sanctuary, try pairing citizen-science bird counts with a creative project kids can showcase—art, podcast, TikTok reel—because pride cements memory far better than a lecture. And just like fostering a child, tending a flock starts with giving them a safe perch; that’s the ethos guiding both our aviary walks and our family-placement program.
Belle Florendo, Marketing coordinator, Sunny Glen Children’s Home
At a recent “Brew & Birds” cupping
There’s something unexpectedly calming about hearing birdsong rise above the clatter of a roastery’s loading dock. It’s the kind of moment that makes you pause mid-pour just to take it in. At a recent “Brew & Birds” cupping I hosted at a local sanctuary, we leaned into that connection—pairing each coffee with a live bird call game. As guests sipped a honey-processed Costa Rican, a volunteer mimicked the tanager whose habitat includes the very trees that shade those coffee plants.
That sensory layering—flavor on the tongue, birdsong in the air—anchors conservation facts the way a good pre-infusion locks flavor in the grounds. We roast in small batches at Equipoise Coffee because high-quality beans and precise heat deliver a smoother, less bitter cup—no cream needed—and we leaned on that principle: fewer people per station, more depth per story, so every attendee left tasting balance and remembering why habitat balance matters. Our name, “Equipoise,” literally means perfect harmony, and that harmony between ethical sourcing and feathered ecosystems sticks far longer than a slideshow. Hand folks a field notebook, a tasting spoon, and ten quiet minutes at sunrise; the mix of aroma and birdsong will have them fundraising before the last drip lands in the Chemex.
Rory Keel, Owner, Equipoise Coffee
at our family’s small sanctuary near Edinburg
It’s one thing to talk about bird migration in a classroom—and another to show kids exactly where a sandhill crane stopped to rest, right in your own backyard. Out at our family’s small sanctuary near Edinburg, we turn those sightings into something tangible. Every bird gets a dot on a giant plywood “flight board,” right where the mesquites meet the fence line. Then visiting students add the next arrow pointing south. It’s hands-on, memorable, and gives them a sense of ownership over the journey—and the importance of protecting it.
Funny enough, that mirrors what we do at Santa Cruz Properties: our in-house, no-credit-check financing puts land stewardship in everyday folks’ hands so they’re not just reading about habitat—they’re living in it. Since 1993 we’ve watched new landowners turn scrub corners into native-plant pockets that pull warblers like magnets, proving that when people have skin in the soil, protecting birds feels personal. So my go-to teaching trick? Give them a plot—physical or on paper—where their choices matter, then watch curiosity take wing.
Ydette Macaraeg, Marketing coordinator, Santa Cruz Properties
