The Effects of Bird City Texas on Nature Relatedness, Environmental Stewardship Behavior, and Other Factors Linked to Nature Engagement

Birds and their habitats are declining. Concomitantly, human populations in urban areas are growing and becoming increasingly disconnected from nature. Urban residents have been identified as a key stakeholder with potential to support urban bird populations. Bird City Texas (BCT), a community-based certification program co-created by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Audubon Texas, aims to promote both bird conservation and nature engagement in Texas cities through habitat restoration, threat mitigation, and community engagement activities. In this study, the potential effects of BCT on urban residents' participation in naturebased recreation, engagement in environmental stewardship behavior, knowledge of nature and conservation, and perceived availability of nature amenities were examined in the context of BCT activities. In addition, the potential effect of BCT on urban residents' nature relatedness was examined. I distributed surveys to adult residents of two BCT-certified cities and two cities not BCT-certified through door-to-door methods. After controlling for demographic variables, results showed that BCT did not have a significant effect on urban residents in terms of my five study constructs. This study serves as an initial assessment of the efficacy of the BCT program to engage its target audience of residents of Texas cities. This study also contributes to our knowledge of urban residents' nature engagement and nature relatedness, and thus serves to inform urban conservation programming in an increasingly urbanizing world.