Bird-Safe Glass Outreach Toolkit
Activate your audiences to support Wisconsin’s first Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance!
Stunned yellow warbler, photo by Crystal Sutheimer
Thank you for volunteering signing on as a public supporter and outreach partner for Wisconsin’s first Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance in Madison! This ordinance has so much potential to make a positive difference for birds in Madison, as well as set an example for other Wisconsin communities to work from. We need your help to ensure it stays in tact.
To help make sharing information with your audiences easier and consistent, we have compiled a variety of resources below for you to use. Please contact Brenna (bmarsicek@swibirds.org) with questions or suggestions for this toolkit.
The resources include:
Websites with Background Info and Context
Madison’s Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance swibirds.org/bird-safe-glass. This includes:
The ordinance text
Wisconsin Institutes for Law and Liberty notice of claim
Importance of the ordinance
Costs of doing nothing
Petition
We Will Always Choose to Save Birds: swibirds.org/blog/2021/7/26/support-bird-safe-glass-ordinance
What’s the Price of Losing Birds?: swibirds.org/blog/2021/3/17/whats-the-price-of-losing-birds
Dead Birds That Didn’t Have to Die: swibirds.org/blog/2020/5/7/dead-birds-that-didnt-have-to-die
Bird Safe Glass Legilsation in North America: walkerglass.com/bird-safe-glass-legislation-in-north-america
Bird Collision Corps citizen science effort to monitor window collisions in Madison area: swibirds.org/bird-collision-corps
Social media text examples
Example 1: Up to a BILLION birds die from hitting windows every year in the US. It's a huge problem, and it's preventable. Wisconsin's first Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance in Madison works to prevent countless bird deaths, but it’s facing a legal challenge. If the challenge wins, it would prevent any city in Wisconsin from adopting a bird-safe glass ordinance. Our organization supports this ordinance and all it could mean for Wisconsin’s birds and communities.
Learn more and show your support for Bird-Safe Glass by signing the petition at swibirds.org/bird-safe-glass. And please share with your friends!
Photo by [PHOTOGRAPHER’S NAME]
Example 2: Wisconsin’s first Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance was passed in Madison last summer, creating a great example for how communities in Wisconsin can be thoughtful and proactive in building environmentally-friendly cities. But, this great potential could all come to a short end if the legal challenge put forth by developer groups is successful. Our organization supports this ordinance and all it could mean for Wisconsin’s birds and communities.
Learn more and please sign the petition in support of Bird-Safe Glass requirements here: swibirds.org/bird-safe-glass.
Photo by [PHOTOGRAPHER’S NAME]
Example 3: I love birds! My favorite is the [xxx] because it’s beautiful, it migrates / stays here all year, and it makes life better. But it also is susceptible to window collisions, which kill up to 1 BILLION birds a year. Join me in protecting birds by signing the petition in support of Wisconsin’s first Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance. Yay birds!
Images and Graphics
Please credit the photographer when sharing. To download, right click or tap and hold and press Save.
This is preventable. Photo by Madison Audubon.
Bird collision victim. Photo by Corliss Karasov, Bird Collision Corps volunteer.
This was one of the lucky ones that recovered after a window collision. Photo by Linda Crubaugh.
Victims of window collisions. Photo by Madison Audubon.
Where do bird collisions happen, and what can you do? Graphic by Madison Audubon. (Resized for web—email us if a higher resolution is needed.)
Mortality rates based on building height. Graphic by American Bird Conservancy.
Contact us
Brenna Marsicek - Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance director of communications and outreach
Email: bmarsicek@madisonaudubon.org
Phone: 608-255-2473
Matt Reetz - Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance executive director
Email: mreetz@madisonaudubon.org
Phone: 608-255-2473
Banner photo by Kevin Harbor
