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In addition to offering Audubon International certification for your sustainability efforts, we look for other ways you can receive cash prizes and recognition. Here are three opportunities, which relate to economic development, health, and innovation in sustainability and have deadlines in the next month. Contact me if you would like assistance in submitting an application to any of these.

The Ocean Exchange invites businesses, organizations, and individuals from around the world to register their solutions for reducing use of nature’s resources and waste for their annual monetary awards or Industry Excellence Awards. Solution Creators seeking financial support can register their Solutions to compete to be one of the top 10 entries chosen to present at the Exchange in Savannah, Georgia on Sept. 30 & Oct. 1 2013 and be eligible for one of two $100,000 awards. Corporations and organizations with Solutions registered in the Ocean Exchange Gallery may also be eligible for the Excellence Awards, and the top 3 of these Solutions chosen by the global review panel will be invited to present at the opening reception on September 29, 2013.

Deadline: May 19, 11:59PM (GMT)

Website: http://www.oceanexchange.org/register-for-gallery/

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Roadmaps to Health Prize is awarded annually to honor outstanding community efforts and partnerships that are helping people live healthier lives. Winning communities each receive a $25,000 cash prize and have their success stories celebrated and shared broadly with the goal of raising awareness and inspiring locally-driven change across the country.

Deadline: Thursday, May 23, 3pm ET

Website: http://www.rwjf.org/en/grants/calls-for-proposals/2013/robert-wood-johnson-foundation-roadmaps-to-health-prize-2013-201.html

Find Financial Assistance for Economic Development of Stressed Areas -

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) EDA provides strategic investments that foster job creation and attract private investment to support development in economically distressed areas of the United States. EDA is currently soliciting applications from rural and urban communities to develop initiatives that advance new ideas and creative approaches to address rapidly evolving economic conditions. Under this Opportunity, EDA solicits applications to provide investments that support construction, non-construction, technical assistance, and revolving loan fund projects under EDA’s Public Works and Economic Adjustment Assistance programs.

Deadline: June 13

Website: http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do;jsessionid=knDpQzXGJ6gWnzy1h6Tn3D1fjKBNK9Fw40vlTDxWx3xrJGpLpCN4!-861966415?oppId=208353&mode=VIEW

 

What better way to spend Earth Day 2013 than celebrating the environmental accomplishments of the Lake Placid/Saranac region of New York State generally and those of lodging and tourism sector specifically?!

On April 22, I was invited to represent Audubon International at a media event held at one of the most environmentally friendly lodging facilities in the country, the Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort. Located on the shores of beautiful and aptly named Mirror lake, the Golden Arrow boasts the highest rating (Platinum) within the Audubon Green Lodging Program, a prestigious designation that has currently only been bestowed to two other lodging facilities in the region – Gauthier’s Saranac Lake Inn (Saranac Lake, NY) and the Lake Clear Lodge (Lake Clear, NY).

The environmental spirit of the region, as evidenced by these properties, made for a perfect backdrop to celebrate Earth Day 2013.

It was doubly fitting that Audubon International staff had an opportunity to take part in these Earth Day activities in the region given that the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses (a 2,000+ member program that has now been in existence for over 20 years) had its roots in Lake Placid, New York. Furthermore, our organization is currently engaged in exciting new discussions with leaders from local commerce and municipalities in the Adirondack Region who are interested in aggressively advancing their collective commitment to sustainability at the facility-, community-, and regional-scale.

Feeding off of the energy and enthusiasm of local stakeholders, each week we are helping businesses and communities in the Adirondacks identify new ways to safeguard their natural resources while simultaneously enhancing social and economic well being. We look forward to being back up there real soon!

Last week, Katie and I visited three coastal communities in South Carolina and Georgia making great strides in the field of sustainability. We had a chance to see firsthand how each community uniquely expresses itself using the same basic palette of maritime forest, marshland, and ocean dunes. 

In each community, sustainability leaders eagerly pointed out to us their native wildlife and described the strategies they use to ensure peaceful coexistence of humans and native species. As part of the Atlantic Flyway, birding opportunities abound on these islands, and they have set aside nesting areas for pileated woodpeckers, osprey, wood storks, snow geese, and so much more. Residents and visitors also enjoy sightings of dolphins, alligators, horseshoe crabs, and turtles, making these places truly feel wild. I saw alligators (for the first time!) in every community: one floating in Hilton Head Island’s garden pond at Town Hall, two babies in the Camp St. Christopher’s Herpetarium on Seabrook Island, and several adults sunning on lagoon banks on Skidaway Island, including one visible from a Club dining room.

Katie and I met Joellen at The Landings community on Skidaway Island to discuss how the Sustainable Communities Program could build on their many resident-driven environmental and social initiatives. Previously they completed an environmental assessment and a few projects for AI’s Green Neighborhoods Program, but the Community Association wants to further their commitment to sustainability. They have been working with Joellen for years, and all six of their golf courses are certified. We had the great opportunity to see short presentations by 15 community groups who work on everything from the turtle hatchery to the community garden. I explained how a sustainability planning process will help them to better communicate about their assets and values to community residents (prospective and current) as well as help coordinate existing initiatives. After the presentations, I received many comments that residents and Board members were surprised how much they learned – either about community projects they didn’t know existed or aspects of sustainability they hadn’t considered before.

Being in the region also offered an opportunity to check in with two communities that are in Stage Two of the Sustainable Communities Program: Hilton Head Island and Seabrook Island. A visit by AI is always a good time to bring new committee members up to speed on past accomplishments and make a case for the benefits to pursuing sustainability. It also gives us a chance to connect members from our golf course and Green Lodging programs with the local planning process to draw more of the community into conversations about goals, priorities, and projects. By fostering an ethic of sustainability in the region, AI is helping these communities contribute to an overall sustainable regional economy and the protection of important coastal ecosystems.

Following the lead created by initial developers of Hilton Head and Seabrook, such as Charles Fraser, town staff and dedicated volunteers are responsible for many innovative policies and projects that have created the beautiful atmosphere you see in these special communities. Strongly enforced tree preservation policies ensure that live oaks dripping with Spanish moss stretch over most neighborhood streets and beach boardwalks. Even the Walmart had integrated its building and parking lot into the existing landscape.

Now that green infrastructure and water conservation are catching on everywhere, it seems like no big deal that these communities used parkland for stormwater management and reuse community wastewater on golf courses – but these were cutting edge strategies when they were originally implemented.

While each of these communities faces its own unique challenges, they are all seeking to create more sustainable economies based on their place-based identities. With more tailored promotional branding, they will be able to attract the type of resident who will value the natural beauty and not expect to knock down every tree on their lot, have a non-native lawn, or avoid wildlife interactions. These communities offer a variety of housing stock that encourages a diversity of income levels and recreation options that include golf, biking, kayaking, and birding, drawing families looking for an active lifestyle. Recreational opportunities based on wildlife and open water in turn encourage environmentally-sensitive lifestyles.

Through the sustainability plan process, active and engaged community members will now join forces with community leadership to identify projects needed to enhance their natural and cultural assets. Check this space in the coming months to hear more about forthcoming projects at Seabrook, Skidaway, and Hilton Head such as converting malls to open air shopping, supporting new farmers markets, and installing solar panels on community centers, just to name a few.

As anyone in the northeastern U.S. (and other northerly points) can attest, this past winter ended up "lingering" for a time (I'm really starting to think that Punxsutawney Phil may not know as much about predicting the weather as we've been led to believe all these years). So, when the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA) asked me to come down to Reynolds Plantation (Greensboro, GA) and speak at their annual meeting it was not hard to accept the invitation. Not only did the late-April weather more than exceed my expectations, but the meeting itself was very enjoyable and highly productive.

The ASGCA annual meeting is the seminal event for interaction, innovation and education relating to golf course architecture and design in the U.S., and it was a great honor to be invited to speak about the environmental education and certification programs that Audubon International has been delivering on golf courses for over two decades.

Reynolds Plantation and the surrounding area are well known for its distinctive natural features (Lake Oconee, mature pine forests, scenic vistas, abundant wildlife, and more), and any visitor will come to quickly understand why golfers and other guests come from far and wide to enjoy the local golf courses (all six of which are certified members of the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses!) and other outdoor recreational opportunities.

In addition to the formal presentation I was invited to give, attending the meeting enabled me to speak with a wide range of golf course architects and designers (ASGCA members and non-members alike) about the benefits of registering planned new and redesigned golf courses in the Audubon Signature and Classic Programs. Many of the folks I spoke with have designed courses in the past that became certified members in our program, and had very positive remarks to pass on regarding the long-time director of our Signature and Classic Program, Nancy Richardson. Anyone who knows Nancy knows that she is a top-notch professional with extensive knowledge and expertise that adds considerable value to membership in the programs she administers.

It was very encouraging to have so many attendees at the meeting (including a number of folks who haven't worked with us on certification in the past) tell me they plan to register their next project in the Signature Program. They expressed a genuine excitement over the many benefits that membership in our program can provide, including greater potential for environmental protection (what you might call “preventative medicine”), greater long-term operating and capital cost savings than can be achieved by certifying a golf course after it has been designed and constructed, accelerated permitting (the technical credibility and reputation of our organization is positively received by local planning boards), and enhanced opportunities to effectively engage area stakeholders from “day one” to reduce the likelihood of conflicts.

I really can't say enough about the professionalism and overall "good-natured-ness" of the ASGCA staff members. The organization's Executive Director, Chad Ritterbusch, has surrounded himself with some truly stellar folks. The ASGCA is also fortunate to have very capable leadership in the form of Bob Cupp (outgoing president), Rick Robbins (incoming president) and other officers. ASCGA staff, leadership and members understand the importance of sustainable natural resource management, and Audubon International looks forward to partnering on a wide range of fronts in the near future to advance goals of mutual interest.

Very re-energizing after a long winter!

In my last blog entry, I talked about seeing with new eyes and used The Links at Fancourt in South Africa as an example. Today we received an email showing two more pictures taken by their camera trap and I think it is worth including, in its entirety, partly as an example and partly for the wonderful education regarding a species found on the other side of the world from our chilly NY office. Enjoy!

Good Morning.

I hope you are well on this beautiful day?

I am extremely excited to share with you that we have finally got photographic evidence of a Lynx (known locally as Caracal, Rooikat or Nghawa) caught on our camera trap last night just to the south of Hole 16 on The Links. I am also glad to say that we did not have to deprive anyone of their Chanel #5 to get this shot. We have often see these beautiful animals before while driving through the course but because they are so shy we have never been able to get a photo until now.

They are an extremely important part of our ecosystem here on The Links as they feed primarily on Rats and Mice, Guinea Fowl (which we witnessed a kill this past Saturday), Egyptian Geese and small Antelope such as Grysbok (of which I have also added a photo taken at the same place 2 evenings earlier). In fact they will catch almost any animal they can and have been known to take young Kudu. Although caracals are known for their spectacular, bird-snaring leaps, mammals make up over half of their diet. Unique among cats of their size, Caracals can take down prey two to three times their mass. Small prey such as hyraxes are killed with a bite to the nape, while large prey, such as gazelles are killed with a suffocating throat bite.

Caracals are solitary, except for the duration of mating and rearing of kittens. Litters of 1-6 kittens are born between October and February depending on availability of food. Both sexes are territorial and maintain an active home range. Although primarily nocturnal, caracals can be seen during the day.

Females are smaller and at or below 13 kg, while males can be up to 20 kg. It is possible for a large female to weigh more than a small male. Although the tail is short, it still makes up a significant portion of the total body length. Tail length ranges from 18 cm (7 in) to 34 cm (13 in). Head and body length is measured from the nose to the base of the tail and ranges from 62 to 91 cm (about 24 in to 36 in). Even the smallest adult caracal is larger than most domestic cat.

It is important to note they are no threat to people as long as you do not corner or try to capture one!

So next time you are on The Links, keep an eye out as you might just see one. One was even seen roaming casually across #16 Fairway just in front of Brandon Grace’s group in the final round of the Origins of Golf held recently and was not too worried about all the people.

Kind Regards,

Spencer Cooper

Golf Course Superintendent - The Links

One of my favorite quotes is by French novelist, Marcel Proust: "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands, but in seeing with new eyes." As an environmental educator, I feel that one of my most important missions is to help people really see things that they look at every day. By asking people to put together a wildlife inventory or figure out where runoff goes after leaving a parking lot or take pictures of natural areas, we are asking them to focus their attention, at least for a little while, on an area of their property that usually does not fall under their day-to-day responsibilities.

Camera technology is getting into the act of providing us with the opportunity to witness aspects of nature that were not available to our human eyes in the past. Take night cameras combined with a motion detector, also called camera traps. The staff at the Fancourt Links Course in South Africa has successfully used these “traps” to add to their wildlife inventory.

Nest cams are also becoming more popular, whether they are small cameras set up in bluebird nestboxes, such as at Royal Oaks Country Club in WA, or the multiple cameras focusing on a bald eagle nest at The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay golf course in TN.

The images created by these cameras can be shared as part of these members’ Outreach and Education programs. We enjoy, along with a long list of others, regular emails from Fancourt Links. Royal Oaks has a feed into their clubhouse and Harrison Bay, along with a number of sponsors, is sharing their images with the world. We continue to add images and link to different websites through other technological wonders, Facebook and Twitter.

Just this morning I caught Elliot and Eloise, the two bald eagles at Harrison Bay, as one relieved the other of nest duty, allowing a quick peek at the eggs. New eyes indeed!

I recently had the pleasure of visiting our newest member in the Signature Program.  The project is a 320-unit multi-family apartment community located in University Research Park (URP) on a 27-acre parcel in Charlotte, North Carolina.  The goal of this visit was to get acquainted with the project property and surroundings, meet the development team, develop a Site Classification for the property, and discuss the Signature Program requirements. 

Owned by Crescent Resources LLC, the site is currently raw land of the Piedmont landscape and is covered 100% in woodlands, predominately hardwoods.  University Research Park was originally designed as a corporate and light industrial park in northeast Charlotte, but was recently re-master planned to bring in a mixed live-work-play environment. This then provided the opportunity to introduce housing for a percentage of the 25,000 employees working within the park.  Crescent's total 60 acre parcel which includes the multi-family site is located at one of the primary gateways into the park.

Construction was begining the week of my visit and the first rental units are planned for delivery July 1, 2013.  Project completion is planned for February 28, 2014.  Amenities for this new community will include a clubhouse, fitness center, carwash, scenic pond, and dog park.  Crescent Resources set as its primary goal for this project to "help with the effort to locate housing options within walking, biking, and short commute distances to the University Research Park".  This project will do that by bringing the housing close to where the jobs are and cut down on commute time, fuel, costs, and vehicle upkeep for those URP employees renting in Alexander Village. 

Signature Program members host a minimum of three site visits for Audubon International staff during various periods of development.  The next visit to Circle at Alexander village will occur in early summer.  

Golf Digest recently released their 2013/14 ratings for America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses. As I do every couple of years, I examined the list for old friends and was pleased, once again, by the number of these highly rated courses that have been working with Audubon International over the years.

If you look at the golf courses in the United States, about seven percent of them are a member of the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses, the Audubon Classic Program, or the Audubon Signature Program. Just over three percent of the golf courses have been certified through one of these programs.

Now when we compare this to the America’s Greatest Golf Courses list, we find that 56% are a member of one of our programs and 30% have been certified.

One of the primary explanations that people give me as the reason they do not participate in an environmental program is golfer expectations. “My golfers won’t accept the weedy look”, “my members won’t allow brown turf”, and “I have the worst golfers in the world and I need to have huge playing surfaces to accommodate them” are three common complaints.

That thirty percent of the top rated golf courses in the country have put into place and documented their environmental stewardship efforts shows the falsehood in the economy vs. the environment argument. Having strong environmental plans have certainly not diminished the splendor of the likes of Bandon Dunes, Pebble Beach Golf Links, and Prairie Dunes Country Club. Indeed, these courses take full advantage of their natural beauty and make efforts to protect and enhance it. And those efforts are appreciated by the wildlife that makes these courses their home, the golfers, and Golf Digest.

Like everyone else, I get a lot of e-news on a daily basis, most of which is dumped even before I take time to read past the headline. But there is one newsletter that I look forward to receiving each month.  It is The Birding Community E-Bulletin.  This is an email newsletter concerning birds, birding, and bird conservation.  Co-edited by Paul Baicich (Great Birding Projects) and Wayne Petersen (Director, Massachusetts Important Birding Area Program), the newsletter is distributed by email at the start of each month and is "intended to keep friends and associates abreast of important bird sighting and conservation news."

Not only does the newsletter focus on those rare species sighted within North America and how to locate those birds yourself, it also informs about other issues that could impact birds.  For example, this month there was a brief update on the new $975 million stadium being planned for The Minnesota Vikings and scheduled to begin construction this fall.  Doesn't sound bird-related?  The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources thought it did.  They went on record to urge project designers to make the stadium "bird-friendly". Melissa Doperalski, the DNR regional environmental assessment ecologist stated  "If the new stadium is to have prominent glass features, the designers should consider using angled glass or 'fritted glass' which can provide visual cues to birds to prevent collisions." As we know millions of birds are killed annually through building and glass impact.

Also in the most recent newsletter issue is an update on the plight of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken.  On November 30, 2012, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service started a 90-day process to consider whether the Lesser Prairie-Chicken should be recognized as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Once found in abundant numbers across large parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico,  and Colorado, the bird's native grassland habitat has been reduced by an estimated 84 per cent.  This is clearly a bird in trouble.

And last but not least is the Panamanian Important Birding Area on the upper Bay of Panama where millions of shorebirds rest on their way south after breeding.  The bay was also declared a Ramsar site (Wetland of International Importance) in 2003, and was included in the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network in 2005.  In 2009, over 80,000 hectares of the Panama Bay Wetland became a National Protected Area.  Sounds very much protected in perpetuity, doesn't it?  However, last spring, this legal protected status was withdrawn because of pressure from urban and resort developers, including those  developing hotels and golf courses.  This risk to shorebirds is grave.

Paul has helped me over the years to identify bird species from photos when the quality of the photos was  less than great.  For that I thank him, and I look forward to future opportunities to quiz his ability with fuzzy, out-of-focus, dark photos of black blobs in the air. 

If you are interested in learning more about The Birding Community E-Bulletin, you can access an archive of past E-Bulletins hosted on the website of the National Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA): 

 http://refugeassociation.org/news/birding-bulletin/

It doesn't matter whether you are an expert birder or an amateur or just interested in the conservation status of species around the world, I believe you will enjoy the information that E-Bulletin provides.

First and foremost, Happy New Year and best wishes for a healthy and happy 2013.

As we wrap up the holidays, I thought I would throw out some ideas for the greenery that is a part of so many holiday decorations. This coming weekend we will take it our Christmas tree and reuse to hang suet blocks and fruit for the birds. After it has served that purpose, we will then cut off the branches to mulch around our berry bushes.

In the past we have also collected our neighbors' trees left out at the curb to pile up along the driveway to help cut down on snow drifts. Thankfully, the trees we have planted are fulfilling that job now, but I thought it worth mentioning in case you have the same issue.

Many of our members will collect trees and sink them in their ponds to provide fish habitat. If the ponds are frozen, placing them on top of the ice to await the melt can be effective. Either way, be sure to attach some type of weight so they don't end up floating on top of the water.

Either composting or chipping is another popular method of recycling Christmas trees. If you do not have the space or equipment to do this yourself, many municipalities have compost facilities that will collect trees. To find a facility in your area, go to earth911.com.