2025 marked ten years of I Bird I Vote, Audubon Mid-Atlantic's annual conservation summit. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation generously provided the space for the third year in a row for this sold-out event at their headquarters in Annapolis, MD, which offered beautiful views of the Chesapeake Bay throughout the day.

A robust range of speakers joined to share their insights into the changing political environments in Washington DC and Annapolis. Our keynote speakers included two of the state’s environmental leaders, Department of Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain and Department of Natural Resources Secretary Josh Kurtz, who shared how Audubon’s priorities and the conservation goals of their state agencies can support each other. Recently retired U.S. Representative John Sarbanes also spoke about the need to continue advocating for the environment at both state and federal levels.

Audubon staff and partner conservation organizations provided insight into upcoming state legislative priorities and promoted advocacy strategies. Jesse Walls from Audubon’s national policy office discussed Audubon’s federal policy agenda and tangible ways to align advocacy efforts with the Healthy Birds, Healthy Planet agenda while Sam Wojcicki shared findings from Audubon’s recently released Off-shore Wind Report.

Local marsh and coastal conservation efforts were also featured in a presentation by Audubon Mid-Atlantic staff and other partners active in these projects. The rest of the day was spent with participants and organizers discussing action items for Audubon’s and our partners’ state level policy goals in conservation budget goals in Annapolis during the 2025 legislative session.

Click here for more information on our Maryland legislative efforts.