LCAS Program Meeting Tuesday, October 25, 7:00 pm–Back to the Night

To view the 10/25/22 program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_z-WQ–TmbE&t=14s

Mary Coolidge comes to us from the Portland Audubon Society to share ideas about helping night flying migrants as they pass through our local skies.
For eons, the night was lit only by the moon and stars, and life on this planet evolved under regular cycles of bright days and dark nights. All that has changed in the last 130 years. The night we know now is liberally colonized with artificial light. Most of us live in cities that are ablaze with light, from billboards to parking lots to street lights, even while we sleep. Not only does this obscure the Milky Way from 80% of North Americans where they live, but the overabundance of light at night also has dire ecological consequences, not just for the millions of migrating birds that use the stars to navigate, but also for mammals, amphibians, fish, and plants, as well as for human health.
Join us for an exploration of the night’s wondrous mysteries and the impacts of light pollution, and to learn about how you can help in the effort to preserve our starry skies while simultaneously maintaining safety and vibrant nighttime cityscapes. Mary Coolidge has been on Portland Audubon’s Conservation team since 2008. Today she serves as Audubon’s BirdSafe Campaign Coordinator, working to reduce hazards for birds in the built environment.
Mary is dedicated to improving efforts to make urban environments more hospitable to wildlife, and helping connect people to nature and place, right in their own cities. Mary splits her time between Portland Audubon and the Oregon Zoo’s California Condor breeding program.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]