Writing bird outing event descriptions

You’re planning to hold an accessible, inclusive bird outing — fantastic! Advertising a bird outing just as “accessible” does not provide nearly the amount of detail that most people with disabilities and other health concerns need to decide if that’s an event they could attend. Below is some additional information that’s important to include in your event write-up.

Whether this event description will be found on your website’s events calendar, in your newsletter or pinned to a notice board at your local park, we have found that adding this level of detail can help folks with accessibility challenges feel comfortable attending. Knowledge is power! It can be exhausting for many people if they have to request key information every time they are interested in attending any kind of event — bird outing, concert, farmers market, restaurant… After a while, they may just stop trying. Providing this level of detail up front shows you've considered the needs of many different folks, and allows them to opt in. This can help make your outing that much more welcoming and inclusive.

It’s important to remember that different people with accessibility challenges have different kinds of needs; not everybody will need the trail to be flat and paved, for example. We would love to see this kind of information provided in every bird outing event description (whether it’s been planned to be an accessible outing or not), inviting folks to attend whenever possible!

• Day, date, time, meeting point
  Quite important to know for any birding outing!

• That it is an accessible, inclusive bird outing
  This is so welcoming! Stating this explicitly may help folks know they are definitely invited, and that you want to include them. Some folks may not be confident in attending unless this is clear. Also share if this is a family-friendly outing, and if infants or children are welcome to attend.

• If this outing is specifically open to beginner birders
  Some folks may be hesitant to join a group of perceived experts, so letting them know they’re welcome as beginners may encourage them to attend.

• Detailed information about the physical accessibility of the birding location
  The easiest way to do this is to submit a Birdability Site Review to the Birdability Map, and link directly to it from your event description! Not only does it mean you’re covering all potentially significant information for your attendees, but it helps this resource grow to be more helpful for more people in your community.

  State key information in your event description too:

  • Distance covered, and if there are turnaround points along the way. (Some folks may only have the capacity to attend for some of the distance, or for some of the time, so knowing this option is built in may help them feel more comfortable to attend.)

  • Types of trail surface/s, and approximate distances of each surface type. (Some folks have a harder time navigating some surfaces than others.)

  • Maximum gradient/slope. (“Flat”, “almost flat”, “moderately steep” or “very steep” are OK if you can’t find the exact information. If there are steep sections, describe how frequently, and far, that steepness lasts, eg “Moderately steep sections for approximately 20’/6m three times over 0.25 miles/0.4km as the trail climbs the small hill.”)

  • Rest areas or benches available, and where along the route these are located. (So folks know if they will have the opportunity to take a load off, and how far they must travel until the next rest opportunity.)

  • Bathroom availability at the location, including if there are accessible stalls/cubicles or not. (Please don’t forget this crucial detail!)

  • Transportation to the site, including parking information. State the number of van accessible parking spaces available. (Van accessible parking spaces have the aisle/side space with the diagonal lines.)

  • The maximum number of participants. (Some people with PTSD, social anxiety, or sensory sensitivities may not feel comfortable attending if there’s likely to be many others there too.)

• Information about the outing leader/s

  For each outing leader, share if they experience an accessibility challenge as a result of a disability or other health concern, or if they have prior experience leading accessible outings. This information can help some folks feel more comfortable to attend the event, as they may have more faith that the outing will be catered to their needs.

• If binoculars or other adaptive birding equipment will be available to borrow
  This immediately signals that beginner are welcome, and those who don’t own their own optics will not be excluded from participating. (It can be easy for new birders to think they ‘must’ have binoculars to go birding.) For some ideas of adaptive birding equipment you might like to have available to borrow, check out our Adaptive Birding Equipment page. Include how many, and what kind, will be available.

• Phone number or email address of the outing leader/s
  As well as being helpful on the day if someone gets lost, inviting potential participants to call or email with any questions about the outing feels very welcoming. Some folks may need more information to decide if they can attend safely or not.

Using bold type or subheadings can make it easier for interested people to scan quickly for the information they’re looking for. Using plain language, including shorter sentences, can help people with reading disabilities understand easily. For more information, check out our How to maximize the readability of text Birdability Blog post.

For some examples of intentionally welcoming and inclusive bird outing event descriptions you’re welcome to borrow from, check out the Examples of accessible, inclusive bird outing event descriptions Birdability Blog post.

A double-sided, printable handout is available if you would like to have hard copies of this information at your site. Please be sure to attribute this resource to Birdability, so others will know where to come to find more! If you do this, please also consider making a donation to support us in creating more resources like this so we can ensure they’re freely available to all who do not have the ability to pay. Thank you!

Photo in page header: Tucson Audubon and Southern Arizona Adaptive Sports accessible bird outing at Sweetwater Wetlands. Photo by Rhianyon Larson.