Full Breakdown
Margaret Atwood’s $1 Million Gift Establishes the Graeme Gibson Chair in Avian Biology at Western University
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
Western University announced that author Margaret Atwood has donated $1 million to create the Graeme Gibson Chair in Avian Biology. The endowment will fund a new faculty position in the Department of Biology and support research at the university’s Advanced Facility for Avian Research (AFAR). The chair is intended to deepen scientific understanding of bird movement, behavior and adaptation in a changing environment.
Background & Context
Graeme Gibson, a novelist and former president of PEN Canada, died in 2019. A lifelong bird enthusiast, Gibson co-founded the Pelee Island Bird Observatory (PIBO) with Atwood in 2003 and authored *The Bedside Book of Birds* (2005). Atwood, a Western arts alum (BA ’58), also contributed to the $3.5 million Atwood-Gibson Bird Centre on Pelee Island earlier this month.
Key Figures & Groups
- Margaret Atwood – author and donor, partner of Graeme Gibson.
- Graeme Gibson – late novelist, bird-conservation advocate, Western alumnus.
- Alan Shepard – President of Western University.
- Chris Guglielmo – biology professor and director of Western’s Centre for Animals on the Move.
- Western University’s Centre for Animals on the Move – interdisciplinary hub that operates AFAR and collaborates with the Motus telemetry network.
- Advanced Facility for Avian Research (AFAR) – houses the world’s only hypobaric climatic wind tunnel for studying bird flight.
- Motus network – global array of more than 2,400 automated radio-telemetry towers spanning 34 countries.
Data & Statistics
- Donation amount: $1 million.
- AFAR’s wind tunnel is the only hypobaric climatic wind tunnel designed for bird flight worldwide.
- Motus network comprises over 2,400 towers across 34 countries.
- PIBO and the Long Point Bird Observatory together serve as stop-over sites for roughly 10 million migrating birds each year.
- A 2019 *Science* study estimated that North American bird populations have declined by nearly three billion since 1970.
Official Statements & Responses
Atwood emphasized Gibson’s devotion to birds and said the donation reflects his lifelong commitment to conservation.
Verbatim Quotes
- “In addition to their extraordinary leadership in Canadian writing and the arts, Margaret Atwood and Graeme Gibson have been lifelong champions for birds and nature conservation efforts across Canada and around the world,” — Alan Shepard, President, Western University
- “Graeme would be very pleased. He was devoted to birds, evidenced by his best-selling The Bedside Book of Birds,” — Margaret Atwood
- “The Graeme Gibson Chair in Avian Biology will bring new ideas, vitality and student researchers to ensure Western remains a leader in bird research, from basic biology to ecology to advanced tracking and conservation.” — Chris Guglielmo
Why It Matters / Impact
Birds serve as early indicators of ecosystem health; changes in migration timing and routes reveal broader environmental shifts. The new chair will expand use of AFAR’s wind tunnel and the Motus network to track how habitat loss and climate change affect migratory species, informing conservation strategies and policy decisions.
What’s Next
The university will begin a national search for the inaugural Graeme Gibson Chair holder later this year. The chairholder will lead projects that integrate AFAR’s facilities, Motus telemetry data and field work at PIBO, with collaborations slated to expand data collection on migration patterns and support long-term monitoring of climate-vulnerable species.
