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This year our conservation leaders, bird advocates, college students, ambassadors, volunteers, and scientists accomplished amazing things. Through early-December, more than 199,000 of us contacted decision-makers more than 783,700 times on behalf of birds. All of the accomplishments listed below come from the hard work and dedication of our members, chapters, volunteers, and staff. We're very proud of what we have been able to accomplish together over the past 12 months.

Keep reading to see the most important ways that our flock worked together this year.

Brought Young Climate Advocates Together for the Inaugural YES 2020

±¬ÁϹ«Éç and  (ACC) Campus showed how climate solutions are a unifying cause. Nearly 100 young climate advocates from the ±¬ÁϹ«Éç on Campus program and ACC tuned into the inaugural Youth Environmental Summit, a two-day event filled with opportunities for students to learn from and be in conversation with leading scientists, climate activists, and Congressional members at the forefront of bipartisan climate solutions.

±¬ÁϹ«Éç and ACC Campus staff say the attendees of the Youth Environmental Summit will be able to leverage their new advocacy training and tools to prove environmental protection breaks through political barriers, not just now when many campuses are closing due to coronavirus, but well into the future.

Teamed Up with Bower & Branch to Bring Native Plants to More People

The first-ever ±¬ÁϹ«Éç-branded line of native plants and trees launched this past spring. In partnership with , ±¬ÁϹ«Éç released a special selection of four species of ±¬ÁϹ«Éç-certified native oak trees online at Costco. Plants were 100% neonicotinoid-free and sourced by using the ±¬ÁϹ«Éç's Plants for Birds database. This new partnership makes native plants more accessible across the U.S. with robust ecommerce platform and revolutionary large-goods shipping solutions. As ±¬ÁϹ«Éç continues its work with Bower & Branch, the goal is to expand the offerings range across the country and to incorporate select retail distribution online and collaborate with brick and mortar stores.

Partnered with the International Dark-Sky Association to Protect the Night Sky for Birds and People

Twice each year, billions of birds fly between wintering and breeding grounds, facing innumerable threats along the way. In North America, 70 percent of bird species migrate and, of those, 80 percent migrate at night, using the night sky to help them navigate. Because artificial light at night and skyglow around buildings can be fatal to migrating birds, ±¬ÁϹ«Éç embarked on a new partnership with the  to help combat the threat as part of the Bird-friendly Communities conservation strategy. It is a commitment to the places birds need and the conservation of critical habitat, including the sky. The partnership will help provide both organizations’ chapter networks and the communities they serve with the tools, resources, and join collaborations to help return the night sky to a more natural state, and protect the dark skies sky for birds and people.