04/15/2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 8, 2026
TORONTO – Concerned community members, environmental organizations, researchers, industry groups and birdwatchers are gathering this Saturday for a solemn occasion marking the loss of millions of wild birds to collisions with buildings in Ontario. Together, we are renewing the call for federal and provincial governments to adopt bird safe design into policies for building construction.
To mark the arrival of spring bird migration, the Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) Canada is hosting a public art event: thousands of bird victims from over 100 species, including Species at Risk, collected by FLAP volunteers across the Greater Toronto Area are put on display to reveal the impact of their loss. An annual tradition, this year’s layout coincides with a devastating blow to local progress, at a critical juncture for conservation of declining bird populations.
For the first time since FLAP Canada began raising awareness of bird collisions with buildings in the 1990s, migratory birds are now less protected from colliding with buildings in Canadian jurisdictions than they are in the United States, where numerous municipalities and state governments have since adopted policies for bird-safe building design. Experts warn that new legislation introduced by the Ford government threatens to erase decades of progress on implementing bird-safe building design across Ontario through municipal planning processes.
“Bill 98 is now before the legislature, and Bill 17 before it, both seeking to remove the authority of municipalities in Ontario to enforce green building standards, including for bird-safe design. Dozens of municipalities have democratically adopted bird-safe design into their local policies since the first Toronto Green Standard in 2009, which suggests this is something that Ontarians want for buildings in their communities,” says Dr. Brendon Samuels, FLAP Canada’s BirdSafe Buildings Coordinator.
“Regulating construction is provincial jurisdiction, yet the Ford government continues to ignore calls from the public and from the opposition to update Ontario’s Building Code to prevent unnecessary bird deaths and curb losses of biodiversity, in line with Canada’s international commitments. Meanwhile, despite the recently announced ‘Strategy to Protect Nature’ with a $3.8 billion commitment to reaching Canada’s targets under the Global Biodiversity Framework, the federal government continues to fund building projects that are unsafe for wildlife and thus contravene federal laws like the Migratory Birds Regulations and Species at Risk Act, which prohibit killing birds by causing collisions with buildings.”
For buildings to be safe for birds, exterior glass up to the fourth story must be covered with visual markers that birds can detect and avoid, such as frit, etch or film patterns of dots. Samuels says the cost of implementing bird safe design in new buildings is negligible in terms of construction budgets, and highlights that many developers have recognized the public appeal of bird-safe design by successfully complying with standards like CSA A460 to meet municipal requirements.
FLAP Canada’s 2026 bird layout focuses on partnerships for bird conservation. Held at the Mississauga headquarters of Feather Friendly Inc., a world-leading manufacturer of bird collision deterrent technologies celebrating its 20th anniversary, the event brings together FLAP volunteers with stakeholders from across private and public sectors to support greater awareness and action.
A new international partner for this year’s event is the New York-based Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is proud to support our partners at FLAP Canada with their upcoming annual bird layout in Ontario,” says Cady Netland, Coordinator for Bird Safety at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, “We commend the organizers and volunteers for the considerable effort made to raise awareness on the importance of preventing bird-glass collisions. It is our hope that the emotional message of this work of art will move people to take action against this great and preventable tragedy.”
FLAP Canada’s Executive Director Michael Mesure expects that the organization’s charitable work will continue despite setbacks in Ontario. “Because migratory birds do not know borders, partnerships are key to helping people on both sides of the Canada-US Migratory Birds Convention treaty to save the most birds possible,” says Mesure. “Today there is more happening in the United States than in Canada to address this issue, while there continues to be greater and greater threats close to home. Although we are dismayed by the Ontario government’s recent changes to municipal green standards and the Endangered Species Act, we will continue to strive for dialogue with provincial and federal authorities, and with the private sector, to find solutions.”
For more information about attending the bird layout event, please contact [email protected]. The event will take place on Saturday, April 11, 2026 at Feather Friendly, 2207 Dunwin Dr, Mississauga, Ontario from 10 am to 1:00 pm. Speakers will be available on-site for interviews.
Media Contacts
Michael Mesure
Executive Director,
FLAP Canada
[email protected]
Dr. Brendon Samuels
BirdSafe Buildings Coordinator,
FLAP Canada
[email protected]
