BCR 185: Holly Merker, Environmental Educator

Holly Merker is passionate about outdoor education, and the therapeutic value of connecting all people to the natural world, Holly Merker works with people of all ages towards that goal. In recent years, Holly has worked as a birding instructor and guide for National Audubon’s Hog Island Camp, Red Knot Outfitters Birding Guides, and the American Birding Association.

Holly recently co-founded the Crossley ID Boot Camp, with author Richard Crossley, to help people better learn bird identification.She has taught many workshops, classes, and programs on birds, bird identification, and citizen science. In addition to her bird-focused endeavors, Holly can also be found teaching watershed ecology to thousands of school students at a non-profit organization in South Eastern Pennsylvania.

Focused on bird distributions and populations, Holly serves as the Pennsylvania State Reviewer Coordinator for Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s eBird.org, and is the Chair and Voting Member of the Pennsylvania Ornithological Records Committee. A strong believer in giving back to her community, Holly currently serves on the Boards of Directors for: Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology, the Delaware Ornithological Society, and is a Founding Member and Co-Chair of the annual Frontiers in Ornithology: A Symposium for Youth.

Show Notes:

• Art therapy. Using birds and nature therapeutically in your work.
• 2002 was a tough year and period in your life.for you and your family.
• toes in many endeavors; tell us about the professional organizations that you have worked with.
• You serve on the Board of Directors of multiple organizations. Why do you devote so much time giving back to the birding and conservation community through volunteer hours?
• Devote a lot of your time to working with young people.
• Co-founder, and current Co-Chair of the successful Frontiers in Ornithology: A Symposium for Youth.
•  the role of Chair of your state bird records committee. Share with us some of your records committee’s challenges, goals, and why you think records committees remain a vital part of the birding community.
• Citizen science and why are you so keen on it?
• Your role with eBird, and how long have you been involved with the project?
• You have a new business and are the co-founder of ID Boot Camp, with noted bird guide author, Richard Crossley. 

Mentioned In Episode:

BCR 187: Richard Crossley, The ID Boot Camp

The Crossley ID Boot Camp Website

Frontiers in Ornithology: A Symposium for Youth

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