Leica Birding Interview
I first met Kristi two years ago during the predawn hour at our bird banding station along the Animas River in Colorado. I remember she was sipping a fragrant homemade chai while we waited for the rest of the crew to arrive. We exchanged small talk and quickly realized each other’s love for birds. Once the bird banding got hoppin’ Kristi and I had a chance to do a few net runs together where she shared something that piqued my curiosity.
She told me that she was in the midst of creating a course for beginning birders. It wasn’t going to be your typical birding class where when all is said and done your mind is full of super fascinating facts and soon-forgotten identification marks. Kristi was committed to helping people develop an intimate connection with the birds of their backyards.
She said she doesn’t care much if a person can tell her how many wing bars a particular sparrow has or what the bird’s Latin name is, she wants people to develop a relationship with the chickadees and wrens of their backyards in the same cherished way they have with their best friend or parent. The knowledge of the details will come with time, she says, but now from a very different place within our minds.
Later on, while she was in Albuquerque for a weekend, we sat down over some scrumptious waffles so I could ask her to tell me a little bit more about her new website, BirdMentor.com, and the upcoming course release. The following Leica Interview is the result of that brunch date.
Click on the image above to check out the interview as well as the Leica Birding Blog.
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