Cat Fribley

Save the Date for the first ever Blind Birder Bird-a-Thon, a groundbreaking national event celebrating birders who are blind or have low vision. Designed by a group of blind birders and set to take place on Sunday, May 18, 2025, this 24-hour birding marathon is all about connecting with nature and community, enjoying birds, and fostering inclusivity in the birding community.

We are thrilled to announce that the Accessible Birding Internship (formerly the Birdability Internship) developed by Birdability, in partnership with Environment for the Americas’ (EFTA)  and the National Park Service (NPS), has been honored as a 2025 Project of the Year by The Corps Network. This groundbreaking initiative is dedicated to creating inclusive outdoor experiences for individuals with disabilities while fostering professional development in conservation.

My daughter Kathleen never looked or acted like the birders she encountered each spring during the songbird migration. From April to June, southern Ontario abounded with bird enthusiasts, most of them able-bodied. They would stand with necks craned upward and binoculars at the ready, scanning the tree tops for a glimpse of the songsters they knew were overhead. Nearby, Kathleen would sit in her wheelchair with her shoulders hunched and head bowed, seemingly oblivious to the activity happening around her. The able-bodied would flock together and chatter about what they had heard, what they had been lucky enough to see. Kathleen was silent and made do with the company of only her dad Chris and me.

People of all abilities can and should participate in birding. My mission is to enhance and enrich experiences in order to create a more inclusive New York City birding public. As a NYC Bird Alliance guide, I use my training and experience as a school counselor to make my tours accessible to all. Being familiar with notoriously tight school budgets, I’ve learned that small enhancements can make a big difference to learning and success for students. I try to do the same for my birding tours in New York City’s parks, tailoring my tours using various tactics and mechanisms to create more inclusive experiences. The results have been the ability to welcome a more diverse population, as well as cultivate a heightened sense of community and connection to our parks among participants.

Birding doesn’t always require traveling to faraway places. The joy of observing birds can begin right outside your window, in your yard, or on your balcony. During Birdability Week 2024, we were thrilled to host the (Accessible) Joys of Backyard Birding Workshop, featuring virtual yard tours and stories from Birdability Captains Heather Weber Langvardt, Eric Clow, and Mark Roser. These incredible leaders shared their tips, experiences, and passion for making birding accessible and deeply fulfilling, no matter where you are.

For over a century, the Christmas Bird Count (CBC), or Winter Bird Count, has brought together birders and families as community scientists to count birds and contribute to one of the largest and longest-running citizen science projects in the world. Whether in the bitter cold of northern states or the mild climates of southern regions, thousands of volunteers annually gather to document bird populations and provide invaluable data that shape conservation efforts. But for too long, these events have often overlooked a critical element: accessibility and inclusion.

We are excited to kick off 2025 by celebrating the transformative power of creativity, community, and connection with nature just as Amy Tan beautifully illustrates in her book, The Backyard Bird Chronicles. Inspired by her journey back to art through nature journaling lessons with John Muir Laws, our January and February events invite you to explore your own creative spark while deepening your connection to birds.

Birding, the practice of observing or enjoying birds in their natural habitats, offers more than just an opportunity to connect with nature—it provides significant mental and cognitive health benefits. At Birdability, we are dedicated to making birding accessible to everyone, ensuring that people of all abilities and health concerns can experience these benefits firsthand.

Birdability is excited to announce the launch of the Birdability Captains Conservation Corps (BC3), a new initiative aimed at professionals working in conservation, park management, nature preserves, arboretums, land trusts, and other public lands, as well as bird and other wildlife organizations. This program is designed to create a community of practice dedicated to enhancing accessible and inclusive birding opportunities and infrastructure.

For nearly a decade, I had a dream job: traveling around the country championing toys and games alongside players, designers, and artists from around the world. Full of energy, and burning the candle at both ends, it wasn’t until I experienced a catastrophic shift in my health that I was forced to abandon my life as I knew it and began to question who I was beyond my career, and ultimately, beyond the illness that upended my life. Four years later, I live with dysautonomia, a dysfunction of my autonomic nervous system that developed after contracting COVID-19 on a business trip in the early pandemic.