By ABAS Board of Directors

ABAS would like to thank all who shared their voice in our community survey considering a name change for the organization. Beginning in November 2024, the Board of Directors carefully considered the input collected from a community survey, promoted and gathered over a period of three months, allowing for any interested members and those of the public to voice their opinions on the topic.

In order to align with our chapter’s mission “to promote the enjoyment and stewardship of birds of Central Indiana,” the ABAS Board embarked on a discussion of the important issue regarding our chapter name.

To refresh our collective memory, ABAS is named in honor of two historical figures in ornithology. As we shared in our name change consideration survey:

“Our namesake, Amos Butler, is widely considered to be one of Indiana’s greatest naturalists. In 1890 he published The Birds of Indiana and is considered the ‘Father of Indiana Ornithology.’  Amos Butler was a part of the American Eugenics Movement, advocating for forced sterilization. 

Our other namesake, John James Audubon, was a famous naturalist and illustrator whose paintings and illustrations contributed greatly to the field of ornithology in the mid-nineteenth century. He was an enslaver, wrote prominently in defense of slavery, and committed plagiarism.  

Today more than 100 years later, we are called to re-examine Amos Butler’s and John James Audubon’s legacies through a different lens.”

On December 9, 2025, after a year of discussion and community input, the ABAS Board came to a majority vote to proceed with a change to remove the names John James Audubon and Amos Butler from our organization’s name. The Board also voted to create a four-person ad hoc committee to navigate the specifics of the Board’s next steps. We will remain an active chapter of the National Audubon Society and Audubon Great Lakes.

Moving forward our aim is to: 

  • Partner with and engage communities who are not historically represented within the birding community. 
  • Discuss ways to expand diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging within and outside of our organization.
  • Uplift the work of all founders, legacy members, past Board members, donors, and volunteers who have previously and continue to promote our chapter’s mission. 

We acknowledge the time and funds that our membership has invested in the ABAS chapter over the past 87 years and are incredibly grateful for this. Our mission remains the same, and we look forward to your continued support as we work to welcome even more of the community to birding and bird conservation in Central Indiana and beyond. 

For those interested in learning more about this process, below is the timeline the Board is following for this name change. More information will be posted on our website in the coming months. 

November 2024 to February 2025: ABAS board discussions around the topic of name change and creation of an online community survey.
March 2025: Online survey opens.
May 2025: Online survey closes with 203 responses.
August 2025: Survey committee reviewed results.
August 2025 to October 2025: Board discussions and analysis of survey results.
September 2025: Virtual panel discussion with the Board.
October 2025: Board voted to form a Name Change committee.
December 2025: Board voted to change the chapter name.
December 2025 to May 2026: Name Change committee meetings.
May 2026: Board votes on new name.