Partners in Flight
Our network of government, non-government, and industry partners are committed to voluntary solutions that reduce the need for regulatory action. Because birds are indicators of overall environmental health, successful conservation provides healthy habitats for birds as well as for people who depend on those same landscapes for their economic and social well-being. Please see our What We Do pages for more information.
History of Industry Involvement in PIF and Benefits of Participation
Since 1990, the private sector continues to realize many benefits from involvement with PIF. Over 15 leading companies in the forest products industry engaged early in the formation of PIF. Additional industries are now involved, including the electric utility, communication tower, coffee, agriculture, wind energy, and optical & animal tracking equipment sectors. New efforts are ongoing to reach out to the tall building architectural & glass manufacturing sectors. All these private sectors find multiple benefits from involvement in PIF:
- Maintaining an awareness of the current state of science and emerging issues on landbirds.
- Becoming knowledgeable and receiving help with the various assessment, conservation, and educational outreach tools available for your company’s projects and strategies.
- Discovering opportunities for partnership and bridge-building among the various stakeholders for win-win projects that advance common goals.
- Understanding and placing your company’s projects and efforts into a great context so its role will receive credit for conservation values.
- Bringing awareness and education to various audiences of your company’s or industry’s efforts that promote landbird conservation.
See below for examples from:
- Forest Management
- Agriculture
- Communication Towers
Forest Management sector –
Science-based information on bird conservation helps landowners efficiently allocate resources to specific conservation objectives where they can make a difference. The forest products industry, for example, has a long history of contributing to all aspects of the conservation. Contributions have ranged from science and data input for species such as Bald Eagle, Rusty Blackbird, Swainson’s Warbler, and Cerulean Warbler to planning efforts such as Partners in Flight and State Wildlife Action Plans. Industries have carried out species specific plans and practices on working landscapes such as Habitat Conservation Plans for Northern Spotted Owl and Red-cockaded
See page 41 of the 2016 Landbird Conservation Plan.
Woodpecker and forest management practices such as retention of snags and wildlife trees for Brown-headed Nuthatch and Lewis’s Woodpecker. In the future, forest industry partners will continue to engage with partners on science collaborations, coordinated landscape planning, and implementation of bird conservation practices. They will also strive to manage forest habitats to achieve a range of stand ages and structures to provide proactive benefits for species in steep decline, reducing the potential for state and federal listings. Future actions will also involve research investments so that science based recommendations can be used to direct conservation actions on forestry lands.
Agriculture example –
A collaboration among farmers, a pivot irrigation company, and the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture provided a win-win situation where farmers were better able to optimize high quality cropland while conserving wetland bird habitat. Read story here.
Communication tower lighting –
Each year, approximately 7 million birds collide with communication towers in North America. The communications industry has been a leader in developing ways to reduce bird mortality using voluntary guidelines. More here.
How to Become Involved:
There is no membership fee, meeting attendance obligation, or other required actions to become a partner, other than a commitment to engage voluntarily in landbird conservation, from science, research, planning, and policy development, to land management, monitoring, education, and outreach, all related to PIF’s simple, proactive mission:
Keeping common birds common and helping species at risk through voluntary partnerships.
- Become involved through a Joint Venture in your entity’s operating area
- Become involved through the PIF steering committee or the Industry Working Group (see contact above)
- Provide financial support to any number of bird conservation projects or initiatives that intersect your entity’s mission. PIF can assist with options and partnership opportunities.