Convened by Michelle Swinehart and Michelle Illuminato at Portland State University and Jamie Cornelius at Oregon State University

What happens when a group of scientists, artists and community members share a space designed for  inquiry? Little Bird Lab Collaboratory proposes the gathering of stories from humans and birds side-by side to discover patterns, ideas and shared wonderings that emerge from purposeful listening. Our  inquiry will address wildfire, an increasingly pervasive and pernicious part of our changing landscape – first through mobile story collection and secondly through community engaged convenings at Portland State University, Oregon State University and the University of Oregon. Wildfire smoke infiltrates our neighborhoods, invades our homes and even diffuses into our bloodstream. As our climate shifts to warmer and drier summers, and because of the complicated recent history of fire suppression in North America, the wildfire season is becoming longer and more intense. We will collect stories from birds and humans who are breathing the same air to explore how geography, culture and the necessity to meet basic needs influence responses to wildfire and smoke. Understanding how our life experiences shape our responses and how those responses are shared or differ from other species is central to understanding what it is to be a living, breathing being in the rapidly changing landscape of the American  west. 

Humans are animals after all, aren’t we? Are we? As biologists and artists, we believe humans are  extremely complicated and truly amazing animals, but that we are still fundamentally linked to the same natural pressures and processes that animals experience every day. Our interdisciplinary Collaboratory  team will explore human behavior with one of humankind’s favorite planetary roommates – songbirds – within the context of an environmental pressure that is nearly impossible to escape: wildfire smoke. Using radiotelemetry and a mobile recording studio, we will simultaneously collect bird and human stories across the complex cultural and ecological mosaic of Oregon state. Through the collection of parallel stories we hope to uncover how different factors influence behavioral responses to wildfire smoke and what the consequences of that might be for humans and birds alike. Does living on the smoky east slope of the Cascades make us more resilient or more sensitive to smoke? Do birds adjust behavior in similar ways to humans, or have humans disconnected from instinctual responses? Are there universal factors that limit behavioral flexibility during smoke? Do certain jobs or bird diets require some individuals to tough it out and remain active? What do people understand about smoke and what questions do they have? How do such questions reveal what it means to be a living air-breathing being in the rapidly changing American west? Are we animals? What is the role of of imagination when it comes to collaborative adaptation? Perhaps Smoke Stories can tell us.