Boise State University

06/17/2026 | News release | Distributed by Public on 06/17/2026 12:58

Saving wildlife by design: Celebrate another window mural to protect wild birds

Many in the Boise State community have worked for years to address the problem of bird deaths from window strikes. On Thursday, June 18, the Library! at Bown Crossing will unveil a new bird-safe window mural.

New window mural at Bown Crossing. Photo courtesy of Boise Public Library

Recent graduate Amber Jansson (BA, graphic design, 2026) designed the mural as part of a Boise State cross-disciplinary service-learning course taught by Assistant Professor Eryn Pierce. The class brought together students from the Department of Art, Design, and Visual Studies and the Intermountain Bird Observatory to do hands-on fieldwork to assess collision risks and develop research-based decal designs that help birds recognize glass as a barrier.

The Thursday event, from 9:30-10 a.m. at the library, 2153 E. Riverwalk Dr., will include a live falcon demonstration and education about how residents can make their own windows safer for wild birds.

Jansson and Heidi Carlisle, education director at the Intermountain Bird Observatory, are among the speakers.

This marks the second Boise State-led bird-safe mural partnership with the Boise Public Library, following an installation at the Cole and Ustick branch.

Awareness spreads

In spring 2026, Pierce oversaw the installation of bird-safe decals on campus at the Ron and Linda Yanke Family Research Park on Parkcenter Boulevard. The building is home to Boise State Public Radio, the Osher Institute and others.

Grants from the College of Innovation and Design and a campus sustainability grant paid for the installation and a new vinyl cutter for the art and design program. The machine will benefit student projects as well as the ongoing effort to make more windows bird-safe.

Installation in progress at the Yanke building. Photo courtesy of Eryn Pierce

"The windows at Yanke can be a case study for other projects on campus," Pierce said.

The Intermountain Bird Observatory continues to monitor bird strikes through a Vertically Integrated Project. Read more on the project website.

Read about how the effort to save wild birds began on campus.

Boise State University published this content on June 17, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on June 17, 2026 at 18:59 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]