TogetherGreen Fellowships have recently been awarded to forty of the nation’s most promising conservationists. Meet Keith Russell, a Fellow who has been involved in conservation efforts for two decades. The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania man is the recipient of a new national fellowship designed to advance the work of individuals with outstanding potential to help shape a brighter environmental future. He is one of only 40 people selected from competitors nationwide for the TogetherGreen Conservation Leadership Program, part of a new conservation initiative of the National Audubon Society with support from Toyota.

Fellows receive specialized training in conservation planning and execution, the chance to work and share best practices with gifted conservation professionals, and assistance with project outreach and evaluation. Each Fellow will also receive $10,000 towards a community-focused project to engage local residents in conserving land, water and energy, and contributing to greater environmental health. For his fellowship, Keith will focus on organizing a volunteer monitoring effort to collect data on bird collisions with building windows, combining citizen science and wildlife conservation efforts. This study will help reveal how building lights and building glass in downtown Philadelphia affect many of the migratory birds that pass through the city each spring and fall, allowing Russell and others to work towards making the city a safer place for these prodigious travelers. Turning off lights and reducing the transparency and reflection caused by building glass will help protect these birds from deadly collisions, educate community members and business owners about the perils migratory birds face in cities, and ultimately help slow the rate at which many of these species are now declining.

The efforts of the Fellows will aid people and wildlife around 39 cities in 24 different states—a full list can be found at http://www.togethergreen.org/fellows.