Through Trillium Funding, FLAP Announces New Staffperson
January 25th 2012
Thanks to a generous grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF), the Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) has had the great good fortune to hire Paloma Plant as our full-time Program Coordinator.
A FLAP founding member and tireless volunteer, Paloma will be starting her new job in mid-February. Well-liked by FLAP’s core of rescue volunteers, Paloma brings strong credentials to the job. She worked for many years in wildlife rehabilitation at the Toronto Humane Society, and gained over 20 years worth of knowledge and experience rescuing birds in the downtown core.
Paloma will be crucial in the pursuit of our goal of creating an urban environment for birds that is collision-free by taking on volunteer coordination, organization of media/public education events, and internet outreach. Not only will her contribution free up FLAP’s two other staff to tackle large projects such as the Great Lakes Lights Out Initiative, it will increase donations, moving us towards greater self-sustainability.
This said, we were disturbed by a recent article in the Toronto Sun by Christina Blizzard that attempts to cast doubt upon FLAP’s use of OTF funding (entitled Need to Make Cuts? Trillium Fund Strictly for the Birds in the paper and online at: http://www.torontosun.com/2012/01/12/trillium-grants-puzzling-to-a-g ).
The article focuses on Auditor-General Jim McCarter’s report (published in December) on OTF grants. It questions the validity of funding given to a broad range of non-governmental organizations including the Fatal Light Awareness Program.
Here is what the article says about FLAP:
“In 2004, Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) a group that’s trying to develop ‘bird friendly’ buildings by getting folk to turn out their lights, received $175,000 over five years.
Then in 2011, they got another $82,000.
According to the Trillium website the money is, ‘to hire a volunteer and outreach coordinator who will increase public engagement, create new volunteer opportunities …’
Okay, but surely a volunteer is just that – a volunteer. In any other organization, a volunteer works for free and doesn’t get paid $82,000.
Never mind. I’m sure the birds are happy.”
This is inaccurate, misleading and condescending. The original $175,000 – over a five-year period – gave us the funds necessary to establish a second full-time Program Assistant and Volunteer Coordinator staffperson and a fundraiser for a limited period of time, both essential elements of an effective organization.
The recent $82,000 grant – over a three-year period – enables us to hire not only Paloma but also a consultant who will help us develop a business and marketing strategy to start a bird-safe consulting service for architects, developers, and building owners and managers. Trillium’s financial assistance has been invaluable to FLAP. Without it, we simply could not accomplish all we need to do to keep migratory birds safe around buildings.
Contrary to what Christina Blizzard wrote, a Program Coordinator is and should be a paid employee – the person in that position is not a volunteer. Using FLAP (and other organizations mentioned in the article) Ms. Blizzard is attempting to discredit the OTF and community organizations and dismiss the huge contributions they make for a healthy, biodiverse environment for humans and wildlife.
FLAP’s efforts are not limited to “getting folks to turn out their lights” although we have made huge strides in that sphere. (Among many other achievements, we’ve influenced the City of Toronto to implement a Lights Out Toronto! program that has resulted in significant energy savings, reduced CO2 emissions, and, of course, countless birds saved.)
Our volunteers form the backbone of the organization, rescuing birds that hit buildings – well over 1,000 birds rescued and released every year. These birds are beautiful, beneficial insect-eaters and pollinators – warblers, vireos, woodpeckers, hummingbirds, orioles, thrushes, nuthatches, jays, and many more species. Their numbers are falling rapidly due to a variety of factors from pesticide use to predation by cats to collisions with buildings. We believe we need to do everything we can to protect them.
Like most small non-profit organizations, we are feeling a painful funding crunch in this era of economic uncertainty. We struggle to raise funds to continue our important work.
It is vital for foundations like the OTF are for the birds.
