All entrants must register at www.torontobotanicalgarden.ca/birds under one of the following categories:
1. Individual Category sponsored by Canadian Living: adult over the age of 18
2. Student professional: currently enrolled in the study of any of the Professional disciplines listed in #3 below.
3. Professional: architect, landscape architect, interior, industrial or environmental designer, artist, or professional in a related field.

Please note:

1. Entrants may enter once and in one category only.
2. Individual Category sponsored by Canadian Living entrants must register by 17:00, June 7th, 2010.
3. Professional and Student Professional entrants must register by 17:00, May 10th, 2010.
4. Group registration is accepted.
5. Entrants must select one of the following bird species to design for:

Bluebird
Chickadee
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Screech Owl
House Wren
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow

Submission Requirements for Individual Category sponsored by Canadian Living:
No design proposal (Stage 1) required for this category.

Upon registration each participant will receive an email containing a confidential entry number which should be included on all pieces of submitted materials.

Participants are responsible for delivering their finished birdhouse to The Shop at the TBG between 12:00 and 16:00 on June 12th and 13th, 2010.

The birdhouse must be received by a member of the TBG ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee or a TBG volunteer.

For identification, please attach your confidential entry number on the under-side of the birdhouse. As well, the following should be handed in at the same time as your birdhouse:
1. a written description of your birdhouse of no more than 200 words,
2. the name of your birdhouse,
3. your confidential entry number.

Submission requirements for Professional and Student Professional Category:
Stage 1:
Participant must submit a design proposal for the birdhouse in the form of a
photograph, sketch, rendering or drawing or any combination of these, and must
consist of: two 11”x17” jpegs. These jpegs will be used as presentation pieces.

A 250-word maximum design description, as a PDF, and a name for your birdhouse must accompany the design proposal.

To ensure anonymity, at registration, each participant will have received an email containing a confidential entry number which should be included on all pieces of submitted materials.
Both documents must be forwarded as attachments in an email containing participant’s name and return email address to: birds@torontobotanicalgarden.ca, by 17:00, May 10, 2010.

Stage 2:
Upon review by the TBG ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee, Stage 1 entrants selected to proceed to Stage 2 are required to build their birdhouse according to their Stage 1 design proposal, recognizing that changes/refinements may occur during the building stage.

Participants are responsible for delivering their finished birdhouse to The Shop at the TBG between 12:00 and 16:00 on June 12th and 13th, 2010. The birdhouse must be received by a member of the TBG ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee or a TBG volunteer. For identification, please attach a card with your confidential entry number on the under-side of the birdhouse.

Please note:
If you are unable to deliver your finished birdhouse to the address shown below on either of the above dates please email: birds@torontobotanicalgarden.ca for alternative instructions.

Toronto Botanical Garden
777 Lawrence Street East
Toronto, ON
M3C 1P2

Evaluation Process for the Individual Category sponsored by Canadian Living

Each participant’s completed birdhouse will be juried by the esteemed panel.
The top entries, along with One Best Overall Design will be chosen for display and auction.
Please note: Those participants whose entries are not selected by the jury, will be notified by email.
Details for pickup will be included in this email.

Evaluation Process for Professional and Student Professional Category

Stage 1:
Each participant’s design description and design proposal will be printed, reviewed and judged by members of the TBG ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee.
The participants selected to proceed to Stage 2 will be notified by email.

Stage 2:
Each participant’s completed birdhouse will be judged by an esteemed jury.
The top entries, will be chosen for display and auction.

Please note: Those participants whose entries are not selected by the jury, or deemed species inappropriate by our Advisors, and therefore unsuitable for auction, will be notified by email. Details for pickup will be included in this email.

Selecting the Winners
The esteemed jury will select, in addition to the top entries in each category, the Best Overall Design.
During the display of birdhouses at the Summer Showcase visitors will have an opportunity to vote on their favourite birdhouse which will be given The People’s Choice Award.

The competition jury is expected to comprise:

Karen Kirk, Editor
Canadian Living magazine

Marianne McKenna, Architect
Partner- KPMB Architects

Heather Rolleston, Project Architect, Associate
architectsAlliance

David Sisam, Principal
Montgomery Sisam Architects Inc.

Joanne Tod, Artist and Art Teacher U of T

Ian Carr-Harris, Artist and Professor at OCAD

The advisory panel will comprise:

Dr. Bridget J. Stutchbury, ProfessorDept. Biology, Faculty of Science & Engineering
York University

Dave Taylor
Education Program Director/Consultant
The Riverwood Conservancy

A. Registration:

• Professionals and Student Professionals must register via website from March 1st, 2010 to May 3, 2010
• Individual Category sponsored by Canadian Living entrants must register via website from March 1st, 2010 to June 7th, 2010

B. Stage 1 – Submission & Judging

•Design proposal and design description for Professionals and Student Professionals, must be received via email, birds@torontobotanicalgarden.ca, by 17:00, May 3, 2010

•Judging of Stage 1 completed on or about May 7, 2010

•Email notification from competition committee to Professionals and Student Professionals chosen to proceed to Stage 2 on or about May 9, 2010

C. Birdhouse Submission, Delivery, Jury & Display

•Delivery of birdhouses to TBG on June 12 or June 13, 2010 between 12:00 and 16:00

•Judging of Stage 2 (complete birdhouses) on June 14, 2010

•Display of birdhouses at Summer Showcase from June 19, 2010 to September 14, 2010 at the TBG

D. ‘Flocktail’ and Installation

•’Flocktail’ Party September 15th, 2010

•Installation of a select number of the winning birdhouses at TBG in Fall 2010

Design Criteria:

It is expected that the entrants will undertake the necessary research to understand the design criteria for their selected species of bird and design the birdhouse accordingly. The TBG ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee reserves the right to disqualify any submission, that, in the opinion of the Advisors, does not meet species requirements.

The birdhouses must be species appropriate and:

• be made with environmentally-sound materials
• be considered long-lasting
• be easily cleanable
• have drainage holes
• provide protection from predators
• if designed to hang, include an attachment
• if designed to be mounted on a pole, include a mechanism for attachment to the pole
• if designed to be mounted on a tree, include provisions for doing so without damaging the tree

N. B. – Only full size, usable birdhouses will be accepted by the ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee. No small scale models will be accepted.

For your reference, the TBG ‘For the birds’ Competition Committee has provided a chart indicating the requirements for each species of bird.

For information, our advisory panel suggests consulting one of the following websites:
www.nabluebirdsociety.org
www.purplemartin.org
www.audubon.org

http://www.audubonmagazine.org/backyard/backyard0201.html

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=1189

Ownership:
All birdhouses and Stage 1 design proposals submitted by participants as
part of the competition process will become the property of the TBG, and
will not be returned to the participants. Completed birdhouses may be
retained for review, exhibition and auction by the TBG. Each participant
acknowledges that as part of the submission, and in consideration for the
chance to win the competition, such participant will contribute the
birdhouse to the TBG and acknowledges that (i) TBG may affix a tag
identifying the name of the author and/or the purchaser of the birdhouse;
(ii) TBG may photograph and distribute photographs of the birdhouse in
promotional materials and on TBG merchandise without compensation to the
participant; and (iii) TBG may, from time to time, repair, refurbish, or
restore the birdhouse to its original condition. Each participant
acknowledges that the birdhouse is an original work and acknowledges and
agrees that the activities described in (i), (ii) and (iii) above do not
infringe any copyright or moral rights held by the participant.

Consent:
By submitting works to be entered into the competition, each participant consents to the collection and use of his/her personal information and the disclosure of his/her name as part of the administration of the competition process and the exhibition and auction of the birdhouses by the TBG. Participants may change or withdraw their consent at any time, subject to legal or contractual restrictions and reasonable notice, by contacting in writing the TBG at the contact information set out below.

For questions regarding the competition, email: birds@torontobotanicalgarden.ca

Q. What does the Individual sponsored by Canadian Living category mean?

A. It has been used to identify a category of potential birdhouse builders, that do not fit the other two categories. This could be anyone 18 or over: amateur birders, a student (not in one of the ‘professional’ disciplines), a hobbyist, etc.

Q. Does ‘individual’ mean that we have to design and build it by ourselves?

A. No. You can work with friends or colleagues. When you register you will be asked to provide the names of all your team members and contact information of one of your team members.

Q. If I am in one of the other categories, can I work with someone else or a group.

A. Of course, we expect that people will want to work together i a collaboration. We do ask, however, that as in the above, that you provide only one main contact person.

The Bluebird population has greatly decreased due to habitat loss. An important step we can take to help bring back the bluebird is to provide birdhouses. Is it the bluebird you will build for?

The Eastern Screech Owl is a nocturnal bird, with activity beginning after the sun goes down. Will anyone build this bird a hideout for the daylight hours?

Purple Martins spend the non-breeding season in Brazil then migrate to North America to nest. In our neighbourhoods the Purple Martin is totally dependent on human-supplied housing. Perhaps you will choose to make a summer home for them?

The house wren loves to nest in odd places like mailboxes, flowerpots, and even the pockets of clothes on a clotheslines. Maybe you could build a more permanent home for our friend the house wren.

Many adult tree swallows return year after year to the same site, sometimes to the same birdhouse. Build for the tree swallow and you may have a friend for life.

The chickadee is a saucy little bird, very friendly and active. Is it the chickadee you will connect with and build for?

One of our most friendly and personable flycatchers known for its characteristic “phee-bee” call and tail bobbing. Why not help the phoebe build its lovely green mossy nest on your house?