Nature Blog Network

Last week, more than 14 nature bloggers descended on the New River Birding and Nature Festival in West Virginia. “Bird Nerds” we may be, but we’re also a sociable, fun-loving, talented group of people. I was one of “The Flock” and I was delighted to meet new friends with whom I had so much in common, introductions eased by our reading of each other’s blogs beforehand.

As we’ve often discussed here, bloggers and birders both come in many varieties. There are serious listers and backporch birders, serious technologists as well as the technically challenged, bloggers for fun in addition to bloggers for profit, and many, many other varieties of both. But for all, I highly recommend getting out and meeting your colleagues in the field as well as online.

Why?

Because it’s fun. In addition to great birding, we spent time looking at other flora and fauna. We ate good food, laughed a lot, shared with great generosity and greater good humor, even sang and danced and played with puppy dogs.

We learned a lot, from our knowledgeable and enthusiastic trip leaders, the guest speakers, and from each other. We swapped photo tips and tried out each other’s bins; shared what we knew about blogs, twitter, facebook, and computers; helped each other ID birds and other animals; shared tips on rain gear and sunscreen.

We helped the local economy by shopping, eating, and staying in the area. We showed that nature lovers could be good guests and contribute to the communities they visit. We reinforced the message of local conservationists that there is something well worth preserving in our last unspoiled places.

We helped the nature blogosphere by handing around our business cards and talking about our blogs. We answered questions from non-bloggers and recommended websites to visit. We explained Twitter and Facebook and prompted new readers and perhaps even new bloggers to emerge. We busted stereotypes, made friends, and raised awareness of both content and container.

The best blogs and best websites are those that understand their reason for being, whether that reason is education, entertainment, activism, community building, or something else entirely. A week in the woods with friends helps a nature blogger focus on the “why” questions as well as the science and technology. It reminds us of how we first came to this interest, and how much we want to give back to the community.

In the upcoming weeks, I’ll be posting about different ways to build readership for and influence by your blog. As you read those and other blogging tips, remember why you are blogging, and most of all, remember why we call this technology social networking.