Margaret Atwood gives C$1m to endow avian biology chair in Graeme Gibson's name
The novelist funds a Western University research post honoring her late partner's love of birds, and speaks about conservation and hope.
What to know
- Atwood's C$1m donation to Western University creates the Graeme Gibson chair in avian biology, named for her late partner who died in 2019.
- The chair will fund research into how birds navigate, sense magnetic fields and adapt to environmental change.
- The gift accompanies a Guardian profile in which Atwood reflects on birdwatching, grief and conservation optimism.
“They’re very smart. They’re social, playful and just a very successful bird. They’re quite an intelligent problem solver.”
Margaret Atwood, Novelist and donor · The Guardian ↗ · Sep 24
Margaret Atwood Canadian novelist, donorGraeme Gibson Late novelist, Atwood's partnerChris Guglielmo Co-director, Western University avian research facilityWestern University Recipient institution, London, Ontario
How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts
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Researcher Chris Guglielmo outlines the chair's scientific goals
Chris Guglielmo, co-director of Western University's avian research facility which received the gift, describes open questions about how birds sense magnetic fields and navigate, which the new chair aims to address.
“We have a lot of descriptive understanding of what happens when we manipulate the magnetic fields, for example, the bird changes its orientation. We know they have these senses. But how they actually work is still a big mystery…”
— Chris Guglielmo -
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I remember seeing Margaret Attwood at the IOC in Vancouver in 2018 - the closest thing to Canadian royalty?! Excellent to see a chair in Ornithology being endowed - see quoted tweet for direct details & more background in this @theguardian.com article
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The age old battle of good vs capitalism. Thank you # MargaretAtwood https://www. theguardian.com/books/ng-inter active/2026/sep/25/margaret-atwood-birds-conservation-optimistic-future # CdnPoli # Birds # BiodiversityCollapse
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Award-winning novelist celebrates late partner’s love of birds with gift to establish the Graeme Gibson chair in avian biology
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Guardian profiles Atwood at her Pelee Island bird observatory
Reporting from the bird observatory Atwood set up with Gibson on Pelee Island, the Guardian covers her reflections on ravens, Gibson's final years with vascular dementia, and her belief in scientific optimism about the natural world.
“Our back yard feeder and our birdbath were attracting only sparrows and robins and grackles and the occasional pigeon, but he didn't care: every bird was worthy of attention.”
— Margaret Atwood -
background
Western University announces Atwood's C$1m gift — The university announced that Atwood had donated C$1m (£540,000) to create the Graeme Gibson chair in avian biology, honoring her late partner's love of birds and aiming to advance understanding of bird navigation, migration and adaptation.
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first by Mastodon, 1d ago · also Guardian Culture, Guardian Environment
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