The 5th Annual Butterfly Day on May 5 will be hosting two internationally acclaimed environmental organizations: the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation and the National Wildlife Federation.
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, founded in 1971, is a non-profit organization based in Oregon and dedicated to protection of endangered invertebrates and the conservation of their habitats. https://www.xerces.org
They have been a valuable collaborator of the Topanga community for multiple years, supporting the development of pollinator habitats with special reference to the endangered monarch butterfly. In 2019 Xerces awarded Topanga a “plant grant” of 1,600 native plants, selected for our specific geographic location, which the community planted to establish pollinator gardens at numerous schools, businesses, and private properties around the Santa Monica Mountains and adjacent valley communities.
The National Wildlife Federation (NWF), founded in 1936, is the country’s largest conservation organization. They are especially focused on wildlife conservation, addressing environmental issues, and habitat protection. The NWF has been an active partner with the Butterfly Day organizing committee for several years, supporting efforts in Topanga and surrounding areas to bring awareness of challenges faced by wildlife at the Wildland Urban Interface, (WUI) including our beloved P22 mountain lion. The federation has also supported our community’s efforts to remove pesticides from public highways and assisted in environmental educational initiatives at our local elementary school. www.nwf.org
“It is a great honor to count these two esteemed agencies among our panel of environmental and community partners participating in this year’s Butterfly Day event,” event host and organizer Bill Buerge writes. For tickets and information, please visit butterflyday.org.”
Written by Rebecca Land Hill
