Birder boosts protections in Beijing

"These aren't just birds," he says. "They're stories of endurance and interconnection."

One of his key messages is that migratory birds are a shared natural heritage beyond nationalities and cultures. The swifts that nest in Beijing's Summer Palace may winter in Botswana. The godwits that stop in China's coastal wetlands connect indigenous communities in New Zealand and Alaska.

At an event last year, Townshend witnessed how a bird species could bring people together when Maori visitors from New Zealand and representatives from Alaska met and shared stories about the godwit, a bird their cultures have followed for generations."It was powerful," he says. "If we could do that for more species, imagine Beijingers meeting with communities in Africa who host their swifts; it would build such a sense of shared responsibility."