Latin America Committee Beginnings

Around 1993 the National Audubon Society established its "Birds in the Balance" program. Its purpose was to deal with the serious and growing declines of bird populations, with a focus on migratory species. Loss of breeding habitat in North America and of wintering habitat in Latin America was an obvious principal cause.

How could the Golden Gate chapter become involved in this national initiative? In early 1994 a notice was placed in The Gull, the newsletter of Golden Gate Audubon, inviting interested members to meet in the home of Miles and Mary Ellen McKey. Three people attended the first meeting, but soon we had a group of 12. After exploring various options we approached the Panama Audubon Society to find out if they would welcome our participation in those Panamanian environmental issues that they felt were important. Panama Audubon was, and is, a strong, active and concerned group of about 300 members, most of whom are native Panamanians. Their response was a clear "yes", and we became the GGAS Panama Committee, with Miles McKey as its first chairman.

Our initial focus was the organization of trips to Panama, partly to enjoy the incredible variety and quantity of birds, but also to spend time with PAS members to establish closer personal ties and to achieve a far better appreciation of the environmental problems in a Latin American country. To date there have been nine trips to Panama with the next trip planned for early 2010 (see our Field Trips page).

Environmental education became a major focus of Panama Audubon’s efforts. We have supported these programs by collecting and donating used binoculars - we have now sent over 100 pairs to Panama and about 100 pairs to groups in other Latin American countries including Cuba and the Dominican Republic. In the following pages are descriptions of two environmental education programs we have undertaken in collaboration with Panama Audubon. One was the preparation of a guide to common birds of the Panama City region, published in Spanish and English; another was the preparation of a poster urging protection of the Harpy Eagle, National Bird of the Republic of Panama.

After providing support to the Fundación Cocibolca in Nicaragua and the Grupo Ecológico de la Sierra Gorda in Mexico, we changed our name to the Latin America Committee, continuing as a committee of Golden Gate Audubon. However, we continued to develop collaborative programs with other groups, including the National Aviary in the preparation of a laminated guide to the birds of the Bahoruco National Park in the Dominican Republic. In order to remain or become full partners with Golden Gate Audubon, with other groups in the USA, and with organizations throughout Latin America, we have recently chosen to function as an independent group. Collaboration with (501)(c)(3) organizations in the USA permits us to benefit from tax-deductible contributions that support joint projects.