Photo: Pileated Woodpeckers, Jan Nickols/Audubon Photography Awards
Libby Lyons, President
For the last four years it’s has been a pleasure and an honor to be NVBA’s president. I want to take this opportunity to thank the great folks on our board, on our staff, in our volunteer ranks, and among our members and communities – and to highlight how, working with these groups, NVBA has been able to strengthen and grow its bird and nature conservation efforts.
My special thanks go to our board members, past and present, for their wise guidance and unflagging commitment. I have greatly appreciated their willingness to debate tough issues, to roll up their sleeves, and to dive into the hard work of advocacy, habitat restoration, communications, finances, and more. And as our board has grown it has come to better reflect the diversity of northern Virginia communities, providing new perspectives from different cultures and different age groups.
I also thank our executive director, Amanda Robinson, for her excellent and tireless efforts. In the year and half since she joined us, she has ably taken on the executive leadership role, helping NVBA to focus on strategic activities and issues, supervising our amazing staff members, improving our fundraising efforts during a difficult economic period in northern Virginia, and making NVBA a more professionally-run organization.
I send a huge shout-out to our many amazing volunteers. They are truly the lifeblood of NVBA. I am in awe of the thousands of hours these dedicated folks donate every year. For example, NVBA volunteers have for decades conducted year-round wildlife surveys and citizen science programs to monitor wild populations of birds, insects, and plants in our region. I am so grateful that NVBA can tap into our volunteers’ love of birds and nature as well as their many talents and experiences to help deliver on its promises.
All of these folks have helped us protect wildlife and conserve habitat in a rapidly-urbanizing area.
I am proud of our Nexgen Birders for Conservation program which has engaged more than 500 people from our younger communities by offering positive, hope-affirming conservation activities to generations in which anxiety about climate change is powerful.
My sincere gratitude goes out to the huge team that has made our Stretch Our Parks initiative a reality, helping to stretch wildlife-friendly habitat in and around parks, assisting park authorities meet their nature-related aims, and helping to build social capital for conservation within communities. I am excited that NVBA volunteers and our dedicated partners in this program have provided a pathway for expanding to increase its impact.
I also am very appreciative of the continued excellence and expansion of our Wildlife Sanctuary Program. My yard is a certified wildlife sanctuary, which lets me see daily the benefits of gardening for conservation. I also have seen how the program has engaged people across our region in improving habitat where they live to become part of a larger conservation effort.
It has been heartening to see NVBA expand its regional efforts by convening symposia for stakeholders from different organizations and communities, to help build networks and develop and share best practices in wildlife conservation across northern Virginia.
My thanks also go to our great advocacy team, which has bolstered NVBA’s standing as a respected voice for nature. Their efforts have been effective at engaging both the public and policymakers in local jurisdictions and in Richmond, across a wide range of issues that impact bird and wildlife conservation.
One of NVBA’s hallmarks has always been its ability to engage northern Virginians about birds and wildlife. I have been delighted to see this work continue and grow, for example, in our expanded range of high-quality communications. I marvel not only at the range of articles we publish (in English and in Spanish), but also at breadth of bird- and nature-related educational programs that we offer that reach many hundreds of people each year both online and in person. When I tune into one of our virtual programs or attend one of our bird outings, I can see NVBA helping to spread that infectious joy that comes from being engaged with nature and learning about birds and other wildlife.
And of course, I want to offer my deep appreciation to our many members who have supported us as donors, as volunteers, and as voices for nature. I am humbled that you have entrusted us with your donations and with the stewardship of this organization as it tackles these many responsibilities.
I look forward to continuing to work with NVBA. I will stay on the board and be active in bird conservation – what I love most to do. I am excited about supporting NVBA’s new president and to being a part of NVBA’s future work!