in 2005, the Family&community Development Program Committee launched the BETTER TOGETHER BIRD to post and share all the FREE and FUN activities that people do in tompkins County. This year, the BETTER TOGETHER BIRD represents ways to promote diversity and inclusion. Below are copies of our 2005 and 2006 flyersthat may be posted anywhere in Tompkins County!. The Bird can be seen at such sites as the Dragon Boat Festival, the Ithaca Festival, GIAC, Juneteenth, and Triphammer Mall. So keep your eyes open, because the BETTER TOGETHER BIRD might be lying to a place near you!

To have the bird come to one of your events or place of business, e-mail or call:

Nancy Potter: np20@cornell.edu, (607) 272-2292

• Be nice, Say Hi!

• Watch a movie about another culture.

• Join ‘VOICES’ a multicultural choir.

• Learn to speak a different language.

• Put a letter in everyone’s mailbox - talk with your neighbors.

• Learn about or listen to music from another culture.

• Ask a foreigner about their homeland or family traditions

• Cultivate friendships, don’t be exclusive.

• Invite a friend to an ethnic event you are knowledgeable about- share your knowledge or background.

• Attend services at a variety of churches, synagogues, and temple to learn about different faiths.

• Volunteer or check out a book from the Multicultural Resource Center library.

• Shop at ethnic grocery stores and specialty markets. Get to know the owners.

• Visit a local senior center and collect oral histories.  

• Speak up when you hear slurs. Let people know that biased speech is always unacceptable.

• Give a multicultural doll, toy, or game as a gift.

• Live in an integrated and economically diverse neighborhood.

• Ask school counselors what resources they have for supporting gay and lesbian youth.  Offer additional material if necessary.

• Present “disabilities awareness” event with the help of local rehabilitation organizations.

• Invite people of diverse faiths and ethnicities for  potluck dinners.  Be welcoming to all people.

• Volunteer at your local food bank or soup kitchen.

• Hold a community wide yard sale and use the proceeds to improve a park or community center.

• Help your children develop new relationships. 

• Learn sign language.

• Teach someone how to read.