Event Info

Did you know your cup of coffee can help bird conservation? And that there’s a difference between bird-friendly and shade-grown coffee? How is coffee even produced, anyway?

For the answers to these questions and more, join us for a complimentary cup of coffee and a free talk by Kelly Smith of the American Birding Association (ABA). Kelly will be telling us about:

• The journey coffee beans take from the fincas in Central and South America to your kitchen

• How shade-grown, organic coffee helps preserve bird habitats and promote diversity, and benefits farmers and their communities

• Why RGV bird lovers in particular have a vested interest—many of the birds we enjoy here in the Valley depend on habitats around Central American coffee farms in their winter migration

• Why we should be looking for coffee that's certified Bird Friendly® by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center (the gold standard for shade-grown, organic coffees)

• The special coffee that the ABA has created with Thanksgiving Coffee, an award-winning, family-owned American roaster, to help support birds


ABOUT THE COMPLIMENTARY COFFEE

We'll be tasting Song Bird Coffee, a certified Bird Friendly® coffee that the ABA has created in partnership with Thanksgiving Coffee Company. A portion of the proceeds from each package benefits the mission, programs, and conservation efforts of the ABA.

ABOUT OUR EXPERT SPEAKER

You may recognize Kelly as the ABA representative at various regional bird festivals and events. A research and conservation-minded naturalist, Kelly has volunteered or served on the board of many nature organizations for the last 15 years, including the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival and Balcones Songbird Festival, the South Texas Border Chapter Texas Master Naturalists, the Friends of the Wildlife Corridor and the Friends of Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge, Texas Pelagics, the Texas Ornithological Society, and the Brandywine Zoo Kestrel Monitoring Program. Kelly has also spent years assisting raptor and songbird banding projects in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Kelly puts her business degree and volunteer experience to work for the ABA as the Conservation and Outreach Director, leading programs like Community Weekends, Birders’ Exchange, Song Bird Coffee, Bird of the Year, and ABA Sales. When not at work or volunteering, Kelly spends her time hiking and kayaking around San Antonio and scuba-diving in the Caribbean.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1647948402562094/