Video Stories of the Coastal Solutions Fellows

Coastal Solutions Fellows Program at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Every year, millions of shorebirds undertake epic migrations to and from the Arctic and Latin America, but as human development expands, coastal habitats are disappearing. Our Coastal Solutions Fellows Program brings together early-career professionals in Latin America to create solutions for ecosystem management and coastal development.

Maipo River Bird Festival (Chile) – Sharon Montecino. Over three days, and with the support of more than 15 organizations collaborating in its development, the first Maipo River Bird Festival reached a diverse audience from the Maipo basin, who were able to enjoy a wide range of activities including interesting talks, entertaining workshops, puppet shows, theater, mural painting, guided birdwatching tours, flora recognition, local exhibitions, and more.

SNOWY PLOVER | How to care for shorebirds | Ensenada (Mexico) – Jonathan Vargas. Learn about the conservation efforts of Jonathan Vargas and Terra Peninsular to protect the Snowy Plover in the Bay of Todos Santos in Ensenada, Baja California. Video available on the Ale y los Animales platform.

Bird Friendly Shrimp Farms (Guatemala) – Varinia Sagastume. You can make a difference! We have seen that birds use some shrimp farms for feeding, resting, and even breeding. Learn more about these efforts to protect shorebirds in shrimp farms on the Pacific coast of Guatemala.

Cohuín and Chamiza Bird Festival (Chile) – Gabriela Contreras. Learn about the 3rd edition of the “Cohuín and Chamiza Bird Festival 2023”! Around 250 bird and nature enthusiasts gathered on Saturday September 30 to participate in this festival. We thank all the individuals and organizations that made this festival possible, including Manomet, WHSRN, Coastal Solutions Fellows Program, Marine Conservation Foundation, and a dozen friendly and collaborating organizations and institutions.

Punta Soldado: Displaced by the Sea (Colombia) – Johann Delgado. How does a town adapt to the climate emergency when it has had to relocate at least three times in the last 60 years? The inhabitants of Punta Soldado, a district of Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca, resist the hardships and government abandonment. This documentary was developed with funds from the journalistic production grant on forced displacement in Latin America and the Caribbean, granted to Mutante by UNHCR and Factual, in collaboration with the Coastal Solutions Fellows Program.

Presentation of Hydrogeomorphological Management Plan for Huizache Caimanero (Mexico) – Román Canul. On June 15, 2022, the presentation of the Hydrogeomorphological Management Plan for Huizache Caimanero was held before authorities and fishermen at the Lola Beltrán Museum in El Rosario, Sinaloa, organized by Conselva, Coasts and Communities, A.C.

Guatemala and Shorebirds: A Conservation Story Depicted on a Mural – Varinia Sagastume. El Paredón Buena Vista, a village in the municipality of Sipacate on the Pacific coast of Guatemala, is one of the most important places for migratory shorebirds. Due to its significance, institutions such as WCS – Beringia, the United Nations Program, and other local entities conduct a series of activities such as bird monitoring, educational programs, and the creation of interactive spaces, to raise awareness about the importance of protecting this group of birds and the ecosystems they depend on.

Tubul – Raqui Wetland Nature Sanctuary – Manuela Erazo (Chile). The Tubul – Raqui wetland is one of the most relevant ecosystems in South America. It plays a fundamental role in the conservation of waterbirds, and thousands of life forms converge in it. However, it does not have a designation to facilitate its protection and to serve as a platform to conserve the wetland, birds, and cultures that inhabit it. This work documents part of the process of declaring the Tubul – Raqui Nature Sanctuary, a process carried out participatively, with the Tubul community as protagonist and coordinated by the Coastal Solutions Fellows Program of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Marina, the Snowy Plover of the Californias (Mexico) – Jonathan Vargas. This is the story of Marina, a female Snowy Plover (Charadrius nivosus), born in California, United States, in 2016. Since 2018, she has been the face of the “The Beach Belongs to Everyone” campaign by Terra Peninsular A.C., and the Coastal Solutions project in the Bay of Todos Santos, Baja California.