Top Audubon Stories in 2023: Policy and Advocacy
Audubon protects birds, people, and the places they need to live and thrive. Here, a look back at a selection of our policy and advocacy achievements from the last 12 months.
Throughout 2023 Audubon continued its rich tradition of advocating for and securing the space, clean air, and clean water that birds and people need to live and thrive. Read on to learn more about Audubon’s most important advocacy and policy work across the hemisphere this year!
Advocated for strong federal investment in projects that benefit birds and people
During the current federal legislative sessions, Audubon urged for increased investment for federal agencies and programs that will reduce carbon emissions, conserve lands and waters, and recover bird populations. Major pieces of legislation affected include the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. Specific actions supported by Audubon for funding include climate smart advanced soil health, wildlife habitat planting, wetland restoration, forest songbird habitat maintenance, forest stand improvement to rehabilitate degraded hardwood stands, forest stand to increase on-site carbon storage, and sagebrush habitat restoration.
Secured a new native plants policy and conservation funding in North Carolina legislature
This year Audubon partnered with the North Carolina Department of Cultural and Natural Resources on a new policy requiring the use of native plants at all state parks and historic sites. To further solidify this policy into law, Audubon worked with Senator Bill Rabon to champion legislation requiring the use of native vegetation at state parks, historic sites, and roadways. Audubon members spoke up for this policy at Advocacy Day and have rallied support from landscapers, nurseries, and garden stores across the state. The policy builds on other recent native plants legislation supported by Audubon. The budget also includes $30 million in 2024 and $28 million in 2025 for the Land and Water Fund, and the same amounts for the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund. This represents a $4-6 million increase in annual funding.
Audubon partnered with the Cocopah Tribe to secure $5.5 million in public and private funds to embark on restoration of a significant area in the Colorado River Delta on their reservation in southern Arizona. The result will be improved habitat for birds and other wildlife and access for the Tribe to culturally significant native plants that have been hard to find in recent decades due to degraded river conditions. The funds will allow the Tribe to transform more than 400 acres in the Colorado River floodplain by removing invasive, non-native vegetation, planting native trees, shrubs and grasses, and using their water rights to sustain the restored area in the absence of Colorado River flows. The funding will also support development of a Cocopah Tribal youth corps to engage young people in the project and rebuild connections to the Colorado River.
Ensured that critical areas in the Alaskan Arctic are off-limits for oil and gas development
In September, the Biden administration announced a suite of constructive actions that would strengthen conservation protections and help address climate change in America’s Arctic. The Department of the Interior (DOI) released a much-needed environmental impact statement to formally recognize the conservation needs and Indigenous values connected to the Arctic Refuge. The DOI also issued a new conservation rule that would further protect, and possibly expand, the Western Arctic's designated Special Areas. Audubon’s Alaska Interim Executive Director David Krause and the Audubon public lands team worked tirelessly to educate and brief officials from the Biden administration about the threats to birds in the Arctic and to urge protections for priority habitats—including invaluable regions like the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area—and sacred lands through these policy mechanisms.
Helped secure $41 million for water savings across Arizona
The Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona (WIFA) awarded $41 million to applicants across the state to achieve long-term water conservation. The total projected water savings from these activities is 860,000 acre-feet to 1.3-million-acre feet (one acre foot is 325,851 gallons). Projects awarded funding include advanced metering infrastructure efforts, turf/grass removal projects, and agricultural system upgrades. This funding, which Audubon Southwest advocated for, came from the 2022 Arizona legislature’s investment of $200 million for water conservation efforts to save water and improve water reliability—a much needed boost for one of the driest states in the country. WIFA has since established an ambitious target to save more than 1.6 trillion gallons of water through this program.
Audubon continues to work with each of its Indigenous partners as their land and marine conservation efforts progress through the complexities of establishing Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs) and Marine Conservation Areas. This year Audubon participated in meetings within six communities across Northern Ontario facilitated by the Mushkegowuk Council. Audubon’s scientific data about birds of special importance to the area is expected to be incorporated into IPCA proposal(s) for the region and to support a massive proposed Hudson-James Bay National Marine Conservation Area.
Released the Birds and Transmission report
In August, Audubon released the report Birds and Transmission: Building the Grid Birds Need, which calls for rapidly expanding electric transmission to meet climate goals while also protecting wildlife habitat. In the report, Audubon shares science-based solutions for minimizing risks to birds and outlines how collaborative planning efforts can responsibly upgrade the grid.
Helped launch, with strong bipartisan support, a new conservation fund in New Mexico
After years of difficult negotiations, New Mexico created the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund during the 2023 legislative session. Audubon began working with a coalition four years ago, which included groups representing conservation, agriculture, state agencies, outdoor recreation, and industry, to make the fund a reality. The legislature appropriated $100 million to the fund, with $50 million slated to be spent over the next four years, and $50 million put into a permanent fund to generate interest. The legislature made a commitment to put an additional $75 million into it during each of the next three legislative sessions.
Defeated bills in the Texas legislature that would have doomed the Golden-cheeked Warbler
Fast, persistent advocacy by Travis Audubon Society, Bexar Audubon Society, Audubon Texas, and the City of Cedar Hill, stopped a set of bills that would have eliminated the ability of local governments to regulate the removal of Ashe juniper trees. Ashe junipers are required for the nesting success of the federally endangered Golden-checked Warbler. As it stands, landowners must get permits to remove any Ashe juniper on their property.
Advocated successfully for 30x30 land and biodiversity conservation in Vermont
On June 12, the Vermont General Assembly passed the Community Resilience and Biodiversity Protection Act in response to the growing recognition that Vermont, like the rest of the globe, is facing a catastrophic loss of biodiversity. In the legislation, the Vermont General Assembly set ambitious goals to conserve 30 percent of Vermont’s total land by 2030, and 50 percent by 2050. Audubon Vermont and local chapters advocated strongly for the inclusion of strategies and incentives to ensure the active participation of private landowners in stewarding the land, as more than three-quarters of the land in Vermont is privately owned.
Launched an ambitious plan to build a constituency for birds in Colombia
Colombia, the country of birds: The National Strategy for the Conservation of Birds (ENCA2030) launched in June in Bogotá, Colombia. More than 2,000 organizations helped design ENCA2030, which lays out strategies to engage development plans at the national and local level.
Engaged communities around the Louisiana Coastal Master Plan
Over late 2022, the Mississippi River Delta Coalition teamed up with the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to host events called "Community Conversations around the 2023 Coastal Master Plan" in different parts of coastal Louisiana. More than 500 people from communities like St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Lacombe, New Orleans, Gonzales, Abbeville, Larose, Lake Charles, and Gretna took part. These events included both small and large group discussions, where people could share worries, learn about the plan's benefits, and connect with others. Audubon was the key organizer of two of the meetings at Xavier University in New Orleans and in Gonzales, Louisiana. The Xavier meeting was co-hosted with Xavier University and the XULA Geaux Green student-based Audubon campus chapter.
Helped Advance the Strengthening Coastal Communities Act 2023
Thanks to advocacy from Audubon's Coasts team, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works voted to advance the Strengthening Coastal Communities Act of 2023, a bill introduced by Sens. Tom Carper (D-DE) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC). This bipartisan legislation will update and modernize the Coastal Barrier Resources Act, a law that for more than 40 years has protected undeveloped beaches, wetlands, and other coastal areas while saving taxpayers billions of dollars.
Engaged legislators on the importance of ocean protections at the Save the Seabirds Fly-In
More than 20 campus chapter members from around country convened in Washington, D.C. for the 2023 Save the Seabirds fly-in, to encourage their legislators to protect seabirds and people from the effects of climate change.
Audubon’s Coasts, Government Affairs, and Campus program teams helped organize the fly-in, with featured members from many Audubon chapters including Portland Audubon and campus chapters at University of California-San Diego, University of California-Berkeley, Stetson University, Xavier University of Louisiana, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Union College, Stony Brook University, Skidmore College, University of South Carolina, University of Vermont, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, and Claflin University.
Joined key committees and advisory groups
Audubon's Chief Conservation Officer Marshall Johnson was appointed to the North American Wetlands Conservation Council and Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act Advisory Group.
Secured funding and protections for birds in the face of budget cuts in California
Audubon was pivotal in protecting vital funding to entities such as the Wildlife Conservation Board and Department of Fish and Wildlife in the face of state budget cuts. Audubon also helped craft a compromise to Governor Newsom’s proposal to repeal the Fully Protected Species statues, which protect species such as Sandhill Cranes and Golden Eagles. The new rules will provide for a permit to take Fully Protected Species provided mitigation measures provide a net conservation benefit for the affected species.
Helped pass critical water legislation in Colorado
Audubon Rockies and local chapters helped pass SB23-270, Projects To Restore Natural Stream Systems, in Colorado. To support its passage, Audubon Rockies served as a technical advisor and hosted several webinars about the subject with the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. 1,266 Audubon advocates sent messages to their state legislators in support of the bill. After its passage, Audubon facilitated a training series to inform water managers, government agency staff, watershed groups, restoration practitioners, academics, and others on how to move stream restoration projects forward under the new law.
Leased and released water in the Rio Grande in New Mexico
Despite abundant spring flows, the Rio Grande is drying in Albuquerque, the result of hot temperatures, a very dry monsoon, and limited water storage in upstream reservoirs. Audubon Southwest brought 580 acre-feet (189,000,000 gallons) of water leased from local municipalities back to the Rio Grande to help the federally endangered Rio Grande Silvery Minnow, many bird species, and neighboring communities that rely on the river.
Advocated for a Tribal-led national marine sanctuary in California
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration proposed to designate the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, located between the Monterey Bay and Channel Islands national marine sanctuaries, which will protect thousands of square miles of ocean off California’s Central Coast. The Northern Chumash Tribal Council has been working for 40 years to establish this sanctuary, home to the Chumash Peoples both historically and presently. The underwater portion of the proposed sanctuary includes important sacred sites of the Chumash Peoples. Seabirds like Sooty Shearwaters gather in the thousands in this area, and Morro Bay, an Important Bird Area, hosts up to 20,000 shorebirds in its mudflats every winter. Sixty percent of the California Brown Pelican population is found within the proposed sanctuary. Almost 19,000 Audubon members and supporters submitted comments in support of establishment of the sanctuary.
Advocated for better public land management
Audubon Rockies elevated the collective voice of 194 chapters in 41 states in a supportive letter to the Bureau of Land Management’s effort to improve how our nation’s public lands are managed by putting conservation on equal footing with other land uses, via their proposed Public Lands Rule.
Secured funding for wetlands in Indiana and Michigan
Audubon Great Lakes policy staff gathered members and coalition partners at the Indiana and Michigan statehouses to meet with their representatives to advocate for wetlands protections, solutions to climate change, and conservation of important natural areas. In Indiana, this advocacy helped ensure that the final budget included an investment of $10 million in the President Benjamin Harrison Conservation Trust Fund to conserve important natural areas across Indiana, and $30 million to expand state trail.
In Michigan, this advocacy helped secure an appropriation of $10 million dollars of the state’s American Rescue Plan Act funds to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to accelerate wetland conservation work. This significant investment in wetlands restoration will minimize phosphorous entering Lake Erie to reduce harmful algal blooms while offering flood reduction, increased groundwater infiltration, fish and wildlife habitat creation, and improved quality of life for communities.
This year, Audubon North Carolina members rallied to support a longer closure window for coastal sanctuaries, a policy the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission approved after 900 Audubon members sent letters in support of it. The closure window is now March 1 to September 15 and allows state sanctuaries to provide a safe place for 40 percent of North Carolina’s coastal nesting waterbirds to raise and fledge chicks. Audubon North Carolina shorebird monitors saw positive results of the new closure window.
Kane Realty Corporation, one of the biggest real estate companies in Raleigh, joined Wake Audubon chapter’s Lights Out Wake initiative. As part of the program, the developer will turn off unnecessary building lights at its commercial buildings during migration season and is asking its tenants to do the same. Raleigh was the first city in North Carolina to join Lights Out, with other municipalities like Matthews, Greensboro, Asheville, Cary, and Chapel Hill building on that momentum.
Supported biodiversity protection under Washington State’s clean energy transition
Audubon Washington celebrated a significant milestone in the state’s transition to a clean energy future with the release of a new report that offers guidance on where utility-scale solar can be developed on the Columbia Plateau while also protecting sagebrush birds and their habitat. Through its collaboration with American Farmland Trust and its dedicated network of members and supporters, Audubon Washington secured bipartisan support for the funding for this innovative clean energy siting resource. Additionally, Audubon Washington collaborated with chapter leaders to bring science and local knowledge on bird occurrence and habitat needs to the table, ensuring that datasets like the Sagebrush Songbird Survey songbird data are used to make better siting decisions that minimize conflicts and garner support.
Co-launched campaign to declare Chuckwalla National Monument and expand Joshua Tree National Park
Audubon California, California Desert Protection Council, Representative Raúl Ruiz (D-California) and Indigenous representatives officially launched a campaign to declare Chuckwalla National Monument and the expansion of Joshua Tree National Park. This work will protect almost 700K acres of sensitive desert habitat for birds and other wildlife, as well as sacred areas and historic sites.
Uplifted the next generation’s voices for climate in Florida
Audubon Florida is empowering the next generation’s voice in advocating for birds and the places they need. Our innovative “Write for Climate” program was designed to work with students to write op-eds and Letters to the Editor (LTEs) to influence issues in their local communities. Write for Climate gives students the tools they need to advocate for crucial climate topics, including natural climate solutions, conservation, and renewable energy. The program spans three to four months: a typical semester. Upon program launch, students receive resources and a brief training on the value of op-eds and LTEs in the current media environment. Eight student op-eds were published in 2023.
Advocated for additional protections for the Wilson’s Plover in Florida
Audubon Florida has officially petitioned the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to list the Wilson’s Plover as a state-designated Threatened species under Florida’s Imperiled Species Rule. If additional protective action is not taken, this coastal bird species, with an estimated population of fewer than 1,000 birds in the state, could disappear from Florida’s shorelines forever.
Advocated for increased funding for wetlands work with Oneida Nation in Wisconsin
As a result of Audubon Great Lakes’ advocacy work, Wisconsin governor Tony Evers signed the most-recent state budget into law that included $350,000 over the next two years to fund an Audubon-led bird monitoring project. The project with Northeastern Wisconsin Audubon and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Cofrin Center for Biodiversity (UWGB) evaluates the success of Oneida Nation’s recent restoration of grasslands, marshes, and forests. Over many years, the Oneida Nation has restored 3,000 acres of the reservation's wetlands, grasslands, prairies, and forests—addressing water pollution and invasive plant species. This data from the bird monitoring project will be used to inform future conservation work on their lands, as well as vital knowledge-sharing for conservation across the region.
Engaged landowners on the importance of conservation easements in Nebraska
In September, the Crane Trust in partnership with Audubon Nebraska, Ducks Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, and Nebraska Land Trust, hosted a tour to discuss conservation easements, private land rights, and the importance of keeping agricultural land large enough to remain viable as working farms and ranches in the hands of local families. In Nebraska, conservation and agricultural land easements are a voluntary, free-market, incentive-based approach to protect privately-owned land for specific uses, such as habitat restoration or agricultural production. Habitat restoration can be costly yet is important for many landowners, so the combination of a conservation and agricultural land easement and habitat restoration helps private landowners achieve their goals they would be unable to afford without financial compensation.
Secured important funding and policy wins in Washington State
Audubon Washington and its 50,000 members successfully advocated for three pivotal conservation and climate bills, as well as a strong bird conservation budget. The Shoreline Assessment Program bill (SB 5104) represents a crucial step towards safeguarding and restoring the habitats of marine birds, salmon, and orcas. The clean energy siting bill (HB 1216) strikes a balance between preserving Washington’s natural and cultural heritage while advancing the necessary expansion of clean energy resources. And HB 1181, the Climate and Growth Management bill, marks a crucial step towards local climate change planning and action. This new policy mandates that local governments develop comprehensive plans to address the challenges of a changing climate. Finally, the investments in Audubon Washington’s “Bird Budget” totaled over $270M and reflect the commitment of the Washington state legislature to protect habitat in a changing climate.
Engaged lawmakers on the importance of protecting the Upper Mississippi River
Audubon and the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators took a cohort of Minnesota and Wisconsin legislators and staff on a boat tour to learn about critical habitat and floodplain forest loss along the Upper Mississippi River. In all, nine lawmakers and two congressional staff came along for the ride. Audubon works closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on the Upper Mississippi River National Fish & Wildlife Refuge on reforestation projects. Over the past eight years, Audubon planted more than 100,000 trees and improved more than 2,200 acres of bottomland forest through this collaboration.
Weighed in on important Colorado River management decisions
The wet winter of 2022-2023 followed more than two decades of drought in the Colorado River Basin. The snowmelt boosted system reservoirs by about 10 percent, an extremely fortunate turn of events. But the reality remains that system reservoirs are more than half empty. In the Colorado River Basin there will always be wet years and dry years, but climate change means the overall trend is warmer, drier, with less water availability.
In the midst of this variability, Audubon weighed in on new rules for sharing the Colorado River, working simultaneously on a short-term fix and a long-term reset adaptive to climate change.
Read more about Audubon’s vital 2023 Colorado River Basin work here:
How to Save the Colorado River? Use Less Water.
Living on a Smaller Colorado River Water Supply
Sponsored Climate Week NYC and engaged tens of thousands of participants
Audubon was a sponsor of Climate Week NYC 2023! Hosted annually by Climate Group in partnership with the United Nations General Assembly and the City of New York, Climate Week NYC is a global platform for all voices working to protect the planet and its people. From September 17-24, 2023, world leaders and changemakers will come together to showcase ambitious climate action and discuss how to do more.
Audubon hosted or participated in many events during Climate Week.
Audubon President and CEO Dr. Elizabeth Gray was featured as part of a panel discussion “Communicating Climate Change” on September 18.
Dr. Gray led the launching of the Americas Flyways Initiative (AFI), an Audubon Americas partnership with the Latin American Development Bank (CAF) and BirdLife, with an event "Discovering the Americas Flyways Initiative" on September 20. The Americas Flyways Initiative will promote the protection, conservation, and restoration of Key Biodiversity Areas by integrating and scaling up Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). It will also invest in natural climate solutions focused on restoring, conserving, and protecting ecosystems, coastal management to foster climate resilience, and promoting sustainable agriculture.
Chief Conservation Officer Marshall Johnson was a panelist for “Move Fast Without Breaking Things: The Opportunities of Ramping Up Renewables in a Sustainable Way,” hosted by WWF on September 19.
ICYMI
A few big stories emerged late last year after the 2022 yearly roundup was published.
Congress passed an Audubon-backed bill to assess and monitor saltwater lake ecosystems in the West.
Audubon celebrated a number of legislative wins in the Delaware Watershed region in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, including a bill to limit horseshoe crab harvests and a bond act in New York that raises $4.2 billion to mitigate the effects of climate change.