Arkansas Audubon Society

Jennifer Norris, a graduate student at Arkansas Tech University, is pictured holding a young Loggerhead Shrike during her recent study of the species' nesting success and post-fledging survival in Arkansas. Norris' research was funded, in part, by a grant from the Arkansas Audubon Society Trust.

Click Here to see a report of the AAS Trust's recent funding activity.

The Arkansas Audubon Society Trust

Established in 1972, the Arkansas Audubon Society Trust is an independently functioning arm of the society. Its purpose is environmental: to help conserve natural resources by supporting scientific research and education.

Monies contributed to the AAS Trust are placed in an Endowment Fund. Twice each year, the five trustees consider requests for funding. Awards are granted to those deemed worthy, commensurate with the assets available in the Research and Education Fund (the interest earned off the Endowment). In recent years, most of the grants have been made to graduate students and professors from Arkansas' universities to help their studies of bird ecology and conservation. Many of the grants have led to publications in the scientific literature, and at least four former recipients now teach in the state's colleges and universities.

A very valuable feature of the AAS Trust is that gifts are permanent. That is, once money is placed in the Endowment, only the interest from the contribution is used for grants. Therefore, the original gift is never depleted, but continues to give, over and over again, year after year. At present, for example, the AAS Trust has over $50,000 in assets and, yet, as much or more has been given away in grants while the principle remains intact to help fund future projects. However, should one chose to have their donation used immediately, contributions may be placed directly in the Research and Education Fund.

The problem is that the AAS Trust consistently receives more deserving grant applications than it is able to fund adequately, and therefore the Arkansas Audubon Society is hoping to significantly enlarge the endowment. Please think about helping.

Supporting Research

When Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1962, warning of the dangers of indiscriminate overuse of pesticides, she was viciously attacked, in spite of being a meticulous scientist. Her warnings, which proved to be substantially correct, helped avert environmental disaster.

Today, as we struggle to understand the issues influencing bird populations, the support of solid scientific research remains one of the most important conservation tools for members of the Audubon family. Contributing to the AAS Trust is an excellent way to promote bird conservation.

Contributions to the AAS Trust can be sent to:

Barry Haas, Treasurer
Arkansas Audubon Society Trust
804 Konrad Court
Little Rock, AR 72223
bhaas@sbcglobal.net

Trust Giving

Memorial Gifts:
Members of the Arkansas Audubon Society have traditionally remembered deceased society friends with memorial gifts to the AAS Trust. The memorialized individual and the donor are both recognized in Arkansas Birds, the newsletter of the Society.

Wills and Bequests:
Arkansas Audubon Society members can remember the AAS Trust in their wills (or through other forms of charitable giving, as for example, making the Trust a beneficiary to a life insurance policy). The Trust has an attorney who will be glad to help structure a bequest. All contributions to the Trust are fully tax deductible.