Urban Bird Collective

Help us move into 2026 as we grow our organization and the impact we can have for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ folks to be out in nature, feel safe, and enjoy the health benefits of being with our feathered friends. This year, your donation has an extra special impact: we are beyond thrilled to announce that, in 2026, we are launching our first-ever satellite chapter along the North Shore!! This is possible because of our passionate and committed Walk Leaders; longstanding partnerships with fantastic local organizations like Hawk Ridge; and DONORS LIKE YOU who believe in our work to create transformative outdoor experiences!

In 2025, donations empowered Urban Bird Collective leaders and our members to: 

• travel by kayaks and canoes with staff from the Minnesota River Wildlife Refuge & Mississippi Parks Connection to experience the incredible gift of water;
• take our binoculars out on bicycles to enjoy a group ride and birding in many different habitats;
• trek up to Duluth with to enjoy fall birding and bird banding that supports conservation and research with local youth;
• journey out to Crex Meadows in Wisconsin to welcome thousands of sandhill cranes during fall migration;
• host more than 70 outdoor experiences across Minnesota;
• AND SO MUCH MORE!!

We increased our efforts this year to provide meaningful outdoor experiences, not only for the communities that we center but our allies as well. We hosted the 5th Annual Birdwatching Festival with the support of transportation from the Minnesota River Valley Wildlife Refuge and additional Walk Leaders. We expanded the number of Walk Leaders to meet more program requests and partnerships to engage more groups out in nature.

The UBC does our work through these 45 Walk Leaders that 100% represent the communities we center: our leadership is completely BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA+. In addition to our outdoor events, we participate and recruit volunteers for many Winter Bird Counts, the largest outdoor community science project in the world. This effort, which was the first to identify climate change, tracks bird populations and movements worldwide. The Urban Bird Collective was instrumental in the formation of the first Native American led count circle and the resurrection of the Minneapolis count circle, an area with a large BIPOC population. In 2024, we contributed over 700 volunteer hours to collecting bird data at spots across the Twin Cities metro. 

What can we accomplish together in 2026?! Your donations determine what is possible! Each and every contribution allows us to continue bringing joyful, birdy programming to the Twin Cities and beyond as we have since 2018. 

We would also love to celebrate our expansion and successes with you in person! Join us on Give to the Max Day 2025, Thursday November 20, 5-8pm, at Broken Clock Brewing Collective in Northeast Minneapolis! There will be games, prizes, and of course, our fabulous community. Broken Clock has also generously agreed to donate $1 of select pints to our organization to support our new North Shore chapter. We will also be hosting a winter gear drive to support another local organization that uplifts queer youth: the Arise Project.

Thank you for your support! 

Mission Statement 

The Urban Bird Collective creates a welcoming and inclusive space that centers BIPOC and the LGBTQIA+ communities in order to realize and reap the benefits of being out in the natural environment while building birdwatching skills. In addition, in order to do this work, we are active stewards of the environment who protect habitats for not only the birds, but for all living things. 

How we do this:

We welcome people with all levels of experience birding into a nonjudgmental and inclusive space.

We mentor participants and each other as lifelong learners.

We foster passion and stewardship for the environment.

We respect the gifts and purpose of all living things in the environment as a way of healing and self-care.

We offer collaborative and shared opportunities with other organizations that align with our values.

We are an organization that is led by and for the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities, and we will advocate for equity, diversity and inclusion in the natural outdoor communities. 

We are community scientists.

Vision Statement

The Urban Bird Collective envisions a world in which BIPOC and the LGBTQIA+ communities enjoy the benefits of birding in the outdoors and feel welcome and included at all levels of organizations and agencies that engage people in the outdoor environment. 

The Urban Bird Collective In the Media/News

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