Wings of survival
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to join the approximately 4 billion birds that migrate south from Canada into the United States each fall? Two incredible athletes are about to find out. Join us on October 5, as Leanna Carriere welcomes TWS to her home town and shares a message of passion, perseverance and hope.
Many organizations highlight the importance of conservation. One group, though, is raising awareness in an entirely new way — through emulating the epic journeys of migratory birds on unmotorized expeditions. Wings of Survival has a mission to portray the wonder of bird migration through the human lens, empowering an #Athletes4Nature movement in pursuit of the United Nations’ 30×30 biodiversity target to protect and rewild no less than 30% of land and water by 2030.
The Wildlife Society is excited to announce that one of the co-founders of Wings of Survival, Leanna Carriere, will be joining us at TWS2025 to discuss the initiative, her journey, and the unbelievable adventure she and co-founder, Dr. Timm Döbert (Conservation Scientist and IUCN Commission Member), are planning for next year….
An unmotorized, 30,000km expedition along the spine of the Americas, from the remote reaches of Alaska’s High Arctic to the wild landscapes of untamed Patagonia.
By emulating, as humans, the arduous and perilous journeys of birds (the world’s greatest athletes), their stories become more tangible and relatable to our own. Their story of resilience and passion is sure to leave you not just in awe, but hopeful for the future.

Leanna Carriere
Wings of Survival Co-founder | Canada’s first female decathlete | Former international track & field athlete | Ironman athlete | Personal Trainer | 7 Summits Snacks co-founder | Women of Vision award recipient | EcoAthlete champion | Global Sustainable Sport ambassador | Athlete Media Group ambassador | Mum
Community Birding Challenge
Before we meet Leanna in Edmonton, let’s embrace the connection we all have to birds and complete a challenge of our own. From Friday, 10/3, at 5pm, through Sunday, 10/5 at 5pm, let’s hit the trails and record all the birds we can find using Birda app. More details to come. The top birder (and one randomly selected participant) will receive a pair of Vortex binoculars after Leanna’s presentation — Must be present to win. Keep an eye out for TWS Community-led birding walks in Edmonton. Connect with nature and each other at TWS2025.

Did you know?…
According to a study conducted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, approximately 4 billion birds move south from Canada into the United States during fall migration. In the spring, researchers estimate that only 2.6 billion birds return to Canada from across the northern U.S. border (a 64% return rate). Comparatively, 4.7 billion birds cross the southern border of the U.S. each fall, with 3.5 billion birds returning (a 76% return rate).
Given the extraordinary geographic scale of avian migration, one might expect to see fewer birds returning to their summer breeding grounds. However, the lower return rate across the northern US border is surprising because it includes many short-distance migrants who spend their winter in the contiguous U.S. So, despite having on average a shorter migration, cumulative mortality was significantly higher for birds overwintering in the U.S. than for those overwintering in the Neotropics.
While some of this variation can be explained through differences in the breeding strategies and life history of the migrating birds, researchers from the study also point to anthropogenic changes. Even small changes in habitat quality can contribute to population declines, and in highly industrialized countries like the U.S., migrating birds face a wide array of challenges. This includes things like direct mortality from collisions with structures and predation by cats, to the indirect effects of climate change and habitat degradation.
Lot’s of organizations highlight the importance of conservation efforts for migratory birds amidst a changing landscape. This includes efforts like the North American Bird Conservation Initiative’s 2025 State of the Birds Report, which reveals that bird populations in almost every habitat are declining, and the National Audubon Society’s interactive Bird Migration Explorer, which visually demonstrates the conservation challenges that over 450 bird species face during their migration.