Session Organizer(s): 
Nicole Sault
*Contact the session organizers if you would like to contribute to this session.*

Around the world birds speak to us on many levels. They can be messengers, ancestors, spirits, teachers or representations used by political leaders. Each of these papers considers the cultural meaning of birds, how people interact with birds, or how the boundaries between birds and people overlap. The papers explore changes over both time and space, as history, politics and the environment influence relationships between birds, people, and their surroundings. Specific paper topics include: the spiritual meaning of birds and bird song, relationships between birds and plants or other animals, the changing meaning of the same bird species within a region, cultural differences in community bird knowledge, and the politics of conservation efforts to protect species or reintroduce species that have disappeared due to human actions. By focusing on birds we can deepen our understanding of relationship to place and etiquette, as bird representatives show us ways of being in the world that carry associated responsibilities. Rather than simply being pretty adornments with lovely voices, birds carry us through cultural doors that open onto vistas of core values for each society.