Boletin Audubon
March 2008
Newsletter Archives

The Newsletter of Sociedad Audubon de México, A.C.

March Events

BEYOND THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG, AUDUBON’S MARCH PRESENTATION

AUDUBON'S NEW BOARD

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BEYOND THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG, AUDUBON’S MARCH PRESENTATION

Despite its frigid climate, Antarctica is fast becoming a hot spot for tourism. Sallie Kravetz, photographer and digital storyteller, was one of a group of fourteen intrepid travelers, most from San Miguel, who ventured there this past December.

Photo by Sallie Kravetz

Kravetz has crafted a presentation designed to take others along for the adventure, Antarctica: Sharing the Splendor, A Multimedia Journey. It will be the March Audubon presentation at the Villa Jacaranda on Tuesday, March 18, at 4:00 p.m. 

With a history of challenging even the most heroic explorers, what draws people to want to become a member of the “frozen chosen?” Isn’t such travel too risky and harsh for the untested? Maybe, but Sallie Kravetz and her compadres yielded to the call. She wanted to see giant blue-green icebergs, get a glimpse of penguins in the wild, experience light-filled nights and breathe the clearest air on the planet. Now she shares the journey, “at a very propitious moment in the modern history of Antarctica,” according to Kravetz. “Every fifty years, the world’s scientists join together to shine the spotlight on both poles and collaborate on a massive scale about current and future issues. The first project like this started in 1832. Last time around, in the fifties, it was referred to as the International Geophysical Year. This time around it’s called the International Polar Year and we are right in the middle of it now. It is dynamic and exciting.”

Kravetz has mined the depths of the Internet to augment her own photography and create what she refers to as a “media-rich” digital story. “I think that the presentation will hold a few surprises and will be as much fun for the audience as it is informative. Of course, it is a given that you are bound to run into a few penguins.”

Kravetz has been a fine arts photographer for the past thirty years. One of her San Miguel images was selected as a prizewinner by Women In Photography International. Her work has also been selected for the past two Garden Club calendars; this year for May and September. She lives in Baltimore, but is a frequent visitor to San Miguel.

The Audubon presentation is, as always, free to members and 50 pesos admission to others. The Villa Jacaranda is on Calle Aldama.

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AUDUBON'S NEW BOARD

The Annual Members Meeting for the election of officers and board members of Audubon Mexico took place on Wednesday, March 5th, at the Villa Jacaranda. After a presentation by PEASMA, the group that educates schoolchildren on the environment (and which Audubon supports), Bob Haas, who headed the nominating committee, gave a short talk on the organization's history. 

Bruce Carruth thanked retiring board members, including Fen Taylor, Robin Luxmoore, Ross MacDonald, Cynthia Sterling and Jean Goodrich. All five agreed when Carruth expressed the hope and conviction that they would continue to consult with the current board and help make things happen for the organization. 

The slate proposed by the nominating committee was voted in unanimously.

New Officers and Directors

President: Bruce Carruth
Exec. VP: Linda Whynman
VP: Carol Wheeler
Treasurer: Leigh Gersnoviez
Secretary: Debe Moscowitz

Directors:
Mario Hernandez
Al Lerner
Augustin Madrigal
Debe Moskowitz 
Ricardo Vidargas 
Walter Meagher 
Will Smith

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AT LAST! A BIRD BOOK WILL SOON TAKE FLIGHT

As a bird watcher, an environmentalist or just an appreciator of nature, you wouldn’t be the first person to wish there were a field guide to the birds of San Miguel—and to be disappointed when you found it didn’t exist. Your time is coming! Audubon is at work right now on a field guide to our abundant, beautiful local birds. The guide will follow the style of Flores Silvestres de San Miguel de Allende, the wonderfully successful and useful field guide to our local wildflowers that appeared in 2006—sized to fit in a pocket, with full-color pictures and brief descriptions of each bird (and a ruler on the back). We’re hoping to have it available some time this year.