Don’t forget, the NBN board isn’t just for announcing events! If you have contests or promotions, want to share a new project you’re involved in, share a cause you believe in, have items you wish to sell, want to solicit feedback from the NBN community, or anything else that might be of interest to our members, don’t hesitate to send it in!
Submissions can be sent to sanderling [at] symbiotic [dot] ca, with the subject line “NBN Bulletin Board”. Don’t forget to include your blog’s name and URL. The weekly board will be posted every Sunday.
Member-supported causes
Looking for green gift ideas for your Christmas shopping? Know a coffee-lover who likes to support a good cause? Are you one yourself? Julie at Coffee & Conservation is encouraging bird-lovers to buy Counter Culture coffee this holiday season. Counter Culture’s Holiday Blend is made from beans from the Finca Nueva Armenia in Guatemala, a small family-run farm that uses organic, shade-grown coffee practices, and is a Certified Bird-friendly farm. Counter Culture ensures that its farmers all receive a minimum wage that exceeds those set by the Fair Trade program. For each bag of Holiday Blend sold, Counter Culture will be donating $1 to a native-tree planting program at the Finca Nueva Armenia to strengthen and diversify the native forest used to shade their coffee plantations. Julie is going to match this donation for all bags purchased by Coffee & Conservation readers. For more information, visit Julie’s post at Coffee & Conservation.
Still buying the main brands? Learn more about the reasons to buy certified shade-grown at this post. As Julie says, “Of all people, aren’t we as birders the ones who should be setting the example for others? Certainly we are far more informed about the habits, natural history, and declines in many migratory birds than the general public. If we can’t translate our love for birds into action in our daily lives, who are we to criticize the “drill, baby, drill” mentality of others?” These days, shade-grown coffee is so easy to find, in store or on the web, at only a few dollars more, there’s no good reason to still be buying sun-grown that requires the destruction of tropical habitat. Try a few, find a favourite. Start by buying a bag of Counter Culture - you’ll not just be donating $2 to tree-planting, you’ll also be telling coffee companies that rainforests are worth conserving.
Contests and Promotions
Dave Ingram at Dave Ingram’s Natural History Blog has just produced a 2010 West Coast Wildflower Calendar featuring wildflowers from Vancouver Island, British Columbia. He plans to give away one calendar to a randomly selected person who can successfully identify a mystery flower on the calendar post page. The draw date is set for November 30. That’s next Monday! For more information, visit Dave’s blog post about it.
Amber of Birder’s Lounge also reminds members that her photo ID challenge and Do Something! (Good) campaign are always ongoing. Some great causes benefit from both of these, so swing by and participate, if you haven’t already!
