SANTA CLARA VALLEY BIRD ALLIANCE

Environmental Advocacy SCVBA is one of the most active and successful environmental advocacy organizations in the South Bay area. Our staff Environmental Advocates and volunteer members of the Environmental Action Committee (EAC) engage in a large spectrum of activities with focus on the protection of birds and wildlife habitat as development in our region intensifies. This includes advocacy for the protection of open space, riparian corridors, wetlands and the Bay as well as advocacy for ecological urban design that focuses on increasing canopy and green infrastructure, planting California native vegetation, and implementing dark skies and bird safe design policies. We also advocate for local species such as the Burrowing Owl, Black Skimmers, Egrets and more. Audiences of our advocacy efforts include decision makers, advisory boards and staff in many of our local cities, agencies and jurisdictions. Advocacy work includes: engaging as stakeholders in Conservation planning efforts, Master Planning and Strategic Planning processes; writing comment letters on CEQA documents for Master Plans and development projects; writing advocacy letters to and/or meeting with community members, local agencies' staff, commissioners and elected officials; Preparing educational materials, including webinars and short videos, for a wide audience; and informing our members to issues of interest where their engagement is encouraged. We also partner with other conservation and natural history organizations and/or work with local neighborhoods, encouraging community members to plant trees and native landscaping to support biodiversity and to advance conservation of birds and wildlife habitats. conservation and natural history organizations in the south bay. Conservation Burrowing Owls: SCVBA continues to manage habitat for Burrowing Owls on a 200-acre site in San Jose. This work includes population surveys for Burrowing Owls and predator species, vegetation management, and reporting to the City of San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency, Our biologists continue to create strategies to improve the habitat and increase breeding success. Cavity nesters: Since 1997, SCVBA has led the Cavity Nesters Recovery Program, which trains volunteers to establish and monitor nest box trails for cavity-nesting birds across Santa Clara County. In addition, our program provides nest boxes for volunteers who collaborate with other local organizations and authorities to install nest boxes at parks, open spaces, schools, businesses, etc. Nest boxes provide crucial habitat for 24 species of cavity-nesting birds in the county, species that continue to suffer from increased habitat loss from urban development. In addition to serving as crucial habitat mitigation, nest boxes also give volunteers a way to monitor bird populations through weekly checks, where data on fledging and predation can be recorded. This data is submitted to the California Bluebird Recovery Program at the end of each nesting season, and then statewide data is available to scientists nationwide. Bio Blitzes: We lead and/or collaborate with other organizations to offer bioblitz events in parks and open space. The data is recorded with iNaturalist, a community-science platform available to all.

Education and Outreach The Wetlands Discovery Program has been inspiring young minds to become more involved in conservation since 1988. We aim to show students, grades 3-5, the value of wetlands and how they support the birds and other wildlife that inhabit them. By giving students practical hands-on experience with these concepts, we hope to encourage them to consider the impact they are having on the earth, and to determine ways that they can make a difference. Key conservation concepts are first covered through materials that are provided to schoolteachers by SCVBA. SCVBA docents then visit the schools to reinforce these concepts by helping students work through activity stations that cover environmental topics ranging from bird adaptations and migration, to human impact and ecosystem interactions. Students are also trained to use binoculars in preparation for the field trip. On the day of the trip, docents lead students on a nature walk around local baylands and challenge them to apply their newfound knowledge. This experience allows students to see and understand how the concepts they have learned play out in the real world. We have also found through student evaluations that most have never been bird watching or visited a wetland prior to our program. After the program's completion, an overwhelming majority of students show an interest in bird watching at the wetlands again. Though we continue to receive positive feedback on this program, we regularly use student and teacher feedback to evaluate our curriculum and make changes to increase its effectiveness. Beyond the Wetlands Discovery Program, we offer several other education programs that are targeted towards both adults and families. These include beginning bird identification by sight and sound, nest box building workshops to create bird habitat, owl pellet dissections, community science activities, and customized programs on local birds and bird adaptations. We are proud to offer a variety of education programs to promote the enjoyment, understanding, and protection of birds and other wildlife, to audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Currently we are initiating a new set of school programs with walkable field trips, allowing us to take classes on trips to wildlife habitat while circumnavigating the issue of bus funding. PUBLIC FIELD TRIPS: SCVBA considers the field trips we offer to be an equally important part of our education program. Open to members and to the public, our carefully selected itinerary of destinations, seasonal planning, and experienced field trip leaders ensure attendees leave each trip having had a learning experience. From bird behavior, vocalizations, migration, anatomy, and obviously identification, the trips are not merely show-and-tell, but observe-and-understand. The firsthand experience of seeing local birdlife in all its variety is an experience of a lifetime-one that can be had not just once, but several dozen times a year. We strive to make that available to everyone who wishes to spend a few hours with us, and care about and appreciate our birds. These virtual offerings include an extensive library of "self-guided field trips" covering more than 100 locations in Santa Clara County, an online speaker series featuring artists, authors, and scientists, as well as a growing library of educational content on Youtube. We are continuing to build and support the Oak Savannah Citizen Science Project, inviting high school volunteers and nature-oriented clubs programs in the Coyote Valley. We continue to broaden our outreach efforts with Mandarin Language walks, LGBTQ+ and Women's Walks-all programs that encourage inclusivity and building an accepting community.