[Tweeters] Inclusion in Birding

[Aadu Prakash via Tweeters]

Hi Tweeters community,

Longtime lurker, but felt the need to write in. I'm a 31 y.o Indian
American who has been birding for 25 years. Throughout my life, I've met
many wonderful people who have welcomed me into the world of
birding/ornithology. But on the flipside, I have often felt like the odd
one out in many of the communities I participated in.

It's disappointing that the discourse around changing eponymous bird names
is being shut down. Almost like we're being told to "shut up and bird". I
applaud folks like Steve and Carmelo who bring up reasons why this is an
important initiative, and how it can lead to more diversity and inclusion
in the birding world.

Many underrepresented groups are faced with the task of "terraforming" the
communities they engage with. They have to put in serious work to make
these communities "habitable" for them. But through censorship and lack of
support from leadership, they often burnout and disappear into the
background (or leave the group altogether).


>From Carmelo's Op-Ed:


"Human beings at the AOS have committed their time, money, and resources

> toward this endeavor for the last several years. They’ve clearly stated an

> intention to actively involve the public in the process of selecting new

> bird names, as well as including a diverse representation of individuals

> with expertise in the social sciences, communications, ornithology, and

> taxonomy."



 These people are actively trying to "terraform" our birding community in a
way that is inclusive and respectful to us all. They should be supported,
not shot down. Otherwise things will largely stay the same.

I plan on unsubscribing from Tweeters and hope that the work is put into
making this a more inclusive community that can attract AND retain folks
from underrepresented communities.

Best,
Aadithya (Aadu) Prakash
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