Here we are - the birds are in the midst of migrating and the first signs of fall are starting to happen including all our field trips, the fall bird count and of course the start of our fall general meetings/presentations. I am very much looking forward to Mark’s & Trent’s talk about the health of the migrating birds especially the Whooping Cranes that we have come to appreciate each autumn!
I have to say I have been thrilled to see the bird-friendly dots going up on the north side of City Hall – some have dubbed this Death Valley citing so many bird collisions on that side of City Hall. To think that it was just a year ago, Mercy Harris and Jan Shadick and others started petitioning the city for affixing dots to the windows. Over 500 signed the petition (many of you helped out as well!) in a few short weeks at Broadway Street Fair and 33rd St Fair and the City listened! A big shout out to the Saskatoon Environmental Advisory Committee for providing funds for this project! Stay tuned for more news as we hope to profile this in the media as a very good bird friendly event!
Speaking of Bird Friendly, things are moving here as well, we are getting close to tying up our application for certification – This is very exciting and thanks to Sabine Kirsch for putting this altogether, not an easy job! If you want more information, check out Nature Canada’s website on bird friendly cities. You can follow us on our Facebook page Bird Friendly Saskatoon as well. Watch for our bird monitors watching for bird collisions downtown, this data is important for our advocacy!
Bird Friendly Saskatoon will be hosting a table at the 33rd St Fair (Sept 19). If you would like to help out on these projects, please send me a note at president@saskatoonnature.org.
The SNS board has been busy over the summer in committee work – one area is about keeping our bylaws current. In the last few years, the provincial government updated its Non-Profit legislation. Two updates are particularly relevant to our end of year activities. The first is about how we prepare our financial reports.
Because the size of our financial activities are less than $100,000/year we are not required to have an audit or financial review as we have been doing. Our annual financial numbers are about $15,000 to $20,000 at the max so we should be thinking about what would work best for us. The second change is that the Annual General Meeting must be held 4 months after our year end instead of three months. This is to allow more time to prepare end of year reports. What do you think of these changes? Should we have our AGM in April instead of March? Let me know if you have some thoughts here!
Elsewhere in our newsletter, you will see a Save The Date announcement regarding the restarting of our Conservation Committee, a vital part of our organization. We have an outstanding reputation for being strong advocates for conservation here in Saskatoon, whether it’s for the swales and green spaces or doing diligently our three annual bird counts. We should get the committee fired up again! If you are interested in this, please send me a note at president@saskatoonnature.org. and I will send you a Zoom link to this meeting - Please join us!
We have had a busy summer with many issues ranging from the WCVM college considering stopping wildlife services, the federal government’s proposed changes to critical environmental protection legislation, the City’s newly announced Climate Action Strategy to the revamped Diefenbaker Irrigation Strategy, all of which we have been watching closely!
On a sad note, we learn that Andre Bouthillette, who served as president of the Saskatoon Natural History Society (later Saskatoon Nature Society) in 1977 and 1978 and was a board member for 5 years, has died. His leadership led the society to lobby for more green space in Saskatoon and greater protection of the Saskatchewan River delta. He passed away on July 28 at the age of 100.
Members, as we turn to fall, we think about how we can participate in different ways and help out! Volunteering is what makes this society work. We do so many things and we make a difference whether it’s in the fall tours, the programming, the youth initiatives, or the advocacy - it’s the people who keep it going! We have some positions still to fill for example on the programming committee and we may be looking for a new treasurer – if these opportunities sound like they might fit you, please reach out to us! And Fall Bird count day is Sept 12th so please volunteer!
