ANC and Habitat for Humanity Revitalize Urban Neighborhoods for Birds and People
Toyota TogetherGreen, a conservation grant program of the , has announced its 2013 APP Toyota TogetherGreen Fellows. After a competitive, nationwide selection process, Bird-Friendly Communities Coordinator Kim Brand has been awarded $10,000 to lead a year-long partnership between and to revitalize an urban neighborhood for birds and people.
Targeting the Boston-Thurmond community, the focal neighborhood for Habitat for Humanity's neighborhood revitalization initiative and located north of Winston-Salem's urban core, community partners will work together to create six bird-friendly yards and two public area habitats designed to provide the range of food sources birds need to succeed during migration and throughout the year. As of now, 75 percent of the area’s plants are invasive and non-native.
“Toyota TogetherGreen Fellows help people engage with nature. They look like America: diverse, passionate and patriotic,” said APP President and CEO David Yarnold (). “They are environmental heroes, and we’re excited to give them a chance to invent the future.”
“The goal is to engage residents of this economically challenged, predominantly African-American neighborhood, to work to beautify their own neighborhood, and at the same time support bird populations,” says Kim Brand. “Volunteers from APP North Carolina and Habitat will work together to assess and plan the bird-friendly sites, and plant 220 trees and shrubs that will provide much needed habitat and food sources for birds.”
APP and Toyota select 40 high-potential conservation leaders to receive Toyota TogetherGreen Fellowships each year. With their $10,000 grants, Toyota TogetherGreen Fellows conduct community projects to engage diverse audiences in habitat, water or energy conservation. In addition to receiving support to help launch their conservation initiatives, Toyota TogetherGreen Fellows also benefit from specialized training and membership in a diverse national network of conservation professionals.
Brand is a resident of Winston-Salem, and an advocate of North Carolina’s bird population. She has organized Lights Out programs in several major cities including Winston, and is currently assisting former Toyota TogetherGreen Fellow Curtis Smalling in developing Bird-Friendly Communities statewide, which will work to restore sustainable habitats for high-priority conservation bird species. To learn more about the conservation efforts of APP North Carolina and Toyota TogetherGreen visit .
About APP North Carolina
With a century of conservation history in North Carolina, APP strives to conserve and restore the habitats we share with all wildlife, focusing on the needs of birds. achieves its mission through a blend of science-based research and conservation, education and outreach, and advocacy. APP North Carolina has offices in Corolla, Boone, Wilmington and Chapel Hill.
About Toyota TogetherGreen
Toyota and the APP launched the Toyota TogetherGreen initiative in 2008 to foster diverse environmental leadership and invest in innovative conservation ideas. Toyota TogetherGreen funding recipients have improved more than 30,000 acres of habitat, mobilized 420,000 individuals, conserved 15 million gallons of water and leveraged $10.5 million in volunteer hours. For more information, visit .