Lori Danielson, president of Eastside Audubon Society.
President’s Letter: Looking Toward a Better Year Ahead
By Lori Danielson
One personality trait I’ve discovered about myself, among others good and bad, is that I don’t like to look back. I have no strong nostalgia for my younger years and I don’t like to re-examine old events. Instead, my preference is to always look forward. I ask myself: What needs to be done next? What can I do now to improve things? What’s possible in the next week, month or year?
This reluctance to look back isn’t always good, since I know that re-examination of past failures and successes can result in improved future performance. But the trait is what gets me through bleak times and propels me to envision something better in the future. So I’m using it, plus the proximity to 2021, to look beyond this sad, abnormal time of the pandemic and imagine a better, more positive year to come.
What I envision for Eastside Audubon in the coming year is to celebrate and build on our 40-year history by strengthening our programs in education, conservation, birding and community outreach. We have recently begun to offer our adult education classes online, allowing more participation, and believe we can increase our offerings in the coming year. We have created a framework to mentor new birding trip leaders, which we can start once it’s safe to come together again. We plan to add new variety to our birding trips and engage more people. Our Conservation Committee is ready to advocate for important local habitat conservation issues and make our voices heard in climate change measures in the state legislature. And we are looking to partner with other environmentally-focused organizations to share our passion for birds with more people in our community.
To do all this, we just need you. We depend on volunteers to help develop our plans and turn them into reality. Join me and this organization of dedicated people to envision and create a better future for our birds and community. For information about volunteer opportunities, contact me (president@eastsideaudubon.org) or go to our website at https://www.eastsideaudubon.org/volunteer.
I hope you have a safe and happy holiday season!