The Central Minnesota Audubon Society was incorporated in February of 1981 by local enthusiasts with a vision of creating a bird-friendly world. Throughout its history, Central Minnesota Audubon has been advocating for:
- environmental preservation through support of grassroots and governmental action
- environmental education for young and old
- an appreciation of birds
Over the last four decades, CMAS has been at the forefront in support of local natural parks in central Minnesota. CMAS support included attending meetings during implementation, and volunteering for plant and bird surveys. Of special note was a long term program of buckthorn removal at Rockville County Park each Fall. In 1997 CMAS was a founding member of the grassroots group, Natural Parks and Trails Coalition, which advocates for the acquisition and appropriate development of natural lands for parks and trails and educates about the natural environment.
In 2002 CMAS received an Annual Conservation Award from the Wildlife Society for its work in support of establishing Saint Cloud’s Environmentally Sensitive Areas Ordinance.
Until their recent retirement, CMAS supported “Wild Again” wildlife rehab at the John & Linda Peck Farm near Rockville. Requests for donations and dead mice to feed the raptors were constant at the CMAS monthly meetings.
CMAS has produced Newsletters for its members since its formation. Initially called simply “The Central MN Audubon Society Newsletter,” in 1985 it was called the “Great Blue Gazette” and after a naming contest, it began to publish as the “Green Backed Gazette” from 1991 to the present.
In 2003 CMAS launched a previous web site. This web page served the chapter until it lapsed in 2019, to be resurrected as this current web site.
More information on activities is available on our Projects page.
CMAS is registered as a non-profit organization by the state of Minnesota and a 501(c)3 with the IRS. We are a local chapter of the National Audubon Society governed by a volunteer board of directors. Bylaws were initially adopted in 1985 and have been revised in 2024