When guests of Chan Chich Lodge told me last evening about their local Audubon Center in Connecticut (USA), my first thought was a memory of the Audubon Center in my hometown, also in Connecticut, and how essential it was to the decisions I made to do what I do today.

Then they mentioned Bird Tales, and I had never heard of anything like this before, but it made so much sense to me I thought I should excerpt the description here and point it out to the many bird-centric visitors to our platform here (click the image to the left to go to the website of the Center that created the program):

…Initially working with four facilities operated by Transcon Corporation, our Audubon Center Bent of the River Education Program Manager, Ken Elkins, incorporated Audubon at Home environmental principles into the goals of these facilities to improve the quality of life for their residents.The pilot program consisted of therapeutic programs that encouraged participants to connect with birds on a multisensory level— sight, sound, smell, and touch. Ken also worked with facility staff to improve the quality of bird habitat at each facility, incorporating practices like organic lawn care and landscaping with native species, which resulted in the first corporate grounds being recognized as bird-friendly habitats by Audubon Connecticut.

To work on this unique project, Ken was one of 40 environmental professionals to receive a 2011 TogetherGreen Fellowship. Supported by a conserva­tion alliance of Audubon and Toyota, the TogetherGreen Fellowship offers specialized training in conservation planning and execution; the chance to work and share best practices with gifted conservation professionals; and assistance with project outreach and evaluation. Each Fellow receives $10,000 towards a community-focused project to engage local residents in conserving land, water, and energy, and contributing to greater environmental health. To read more about Ken’sTogetherGreen Fellowship, click here…

Read more about the Bird Tales program here.