The Flocks Team attended American Ornithological Society’s (AOS’s) 2024 Annual Meeting in Estes Park (for more information about the Flocks project, you can read this press release) to meet with ornithologists interested in founding affinity groups. An affinity group—what we are calling Flocks—is a network or community established around a shared identity, topic, or interest. At AOS 2024 our team also led a panel session to provide more information about the project for society members, which offered space for discussion with and feedback from session participants. One of the principal investigators (PIs), Dai Shizuka, also delivered a plenary talk which emphasized the importance of social connections and a sense of belonging amongst birds and the people who study them.
Following the annual meeting, we held an informational webinar detailing information about what the Flocks Project is, what we have learned and accomplished so far, and what the next steps are for building and establishing flocks across the AOS, Wilson Ornithological Society, and the Association of Field Ornithologists. If you missed us at AOS 2024 or missed the recent webinar you can access a recording of the webinar here.
The Flocks Team is now working with our co-creation team—a diverse group of members that have been engaged in discussions about the details of the Flock design process. We are committed to working through these efforts through a model of co-creation, where input from flock organizers, our team, and the societies come together to strengthen our program and approach. The team will meet monthly to build out foundational documents and make decisions about how to structure Flocks so that we can establish our pilot Flocks by summer 2025.
Looking forward, we are excited to continue building relationships with ornithologists who share our passion for working to make ornithology more diverse and inclusive. While only a piece of the puzzle, we hope that establishing Flocks will in turn aid in the building of sustained communities of support within our ornithological societies so that all ornithologists can find belonging and community within their professional lives. If you want to know more about the Flocks project, have a question for the Flocks Team, are interested in joining a Flock, and/or want to get involved in helping to organize a Flock please fill out this interest form.
Sincerely,
The Flocks Team
Principal Investigators
- Dai Shizuka, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
- Ashley Dayer, Virginia Tech
Senior Personnel
- Kristen Covino, Loyola Marymount University
- Tim O’Connell, Oklahoma State University
- Jennifer Smith, Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Staff
- Nathan Thayer, Postdoctoral Researcher
- Amani Edwards, AOS D&I Coordinator/Flocks Project Coordinator
- Anuradha (Anu) Sen, Evaluator
Header photo: Mixed flock of Red-shouldered and Yellow-headed Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus & Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) by Qualisule | Getty Images.
