Bird-friendliness Index
Western Meadowlark. Photo: Yousif Attia
As a dependable, scalable, and actionable biodiversity indicator that is adaptable to a variety of working landscapes, the BFI addresses the challenge of quantifying biodiversity impact at a farm level and then communicating those impacts throughout agri-food supply chains.
Therefore, the BFI, originally developed by the National Audubon Society and adapted to the Canadian Prairies by Birds Canada, can play a key role in in enabling a market environment that rewards positive biodiversity outcomes, reversing biodiversity loss in Canada’s working landscapes, and building a resilient agricultural system where both people and biodiversity can thrive.
Read our new case study on the Bird-friendliness Index (BFI) on a farm in Western Manitoba.
Just released, this case study delves into the rich bird life at Hodgins Farm, a farm in Western Manitoba managed using the principles of regenerative agriculture, to demonstrate how the BFI effectively measures and communicates the Hodgins’ positive impacts on birds and biodiversity.
Grassland Conservation Manager Ian Cook talks BFI in this episode of The Warblers.
Grassland Conservation Takes Flight: Innovative Project Aims to Conserve Declining Grassland Bird Populations
Birds Canada and the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation have just launched the Bird-friendliness Index Incentive Pilot Program to address the decline of grassland birds. Ranchers and community pastures can sign agreements to participate in the program and receive payments based on their BFI scores, rewarding their conservation efforts.
Thick-billed Longspur Photo: Yousif Attia
Thanks to our partners and funders for making this work possible:
Environment and Climate Change Canada (Funder)
Manitoba Habitat Conservancy (Funder)
United States Fish and Wildlife Service (Funder)
Knobloch Family Foundation (Funder)
Saskatchewan Fish and Wildlife Development Fund (Funder)
Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation (Partner)
Nature Conservancy of Canada (Partner)
South of the Divide Conservation Action Program Inc. (Partner)
Weston Family Foundation
The Bird-friendliness Index Incentive Pilot Program is in partnership with the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation, and supported by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Northern Great Plains Program. The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation received generous support for this project from The Bezos Earth Fund, with additional support from Capri Holdings Limited, Nestle USA and Cargill Inc.
