Ms. Gabriele Drozdowski, the program's creator and director, bases her program on 20 years experience as family entertainer, educator, writer, and hands-on caretaker of over 2,000 wild injured birds, from tiny Storm petrels to Red-tailed hawks. Ms. Drozdowski shares true stories of encounters between wild species and humans - some sad, some humorous, many inspirational - along with scientific information. Assisted by the live ambassadors, audience members enjoy windows into the lives of our wild neighbors. EITS connects wild species to human hearts and motivates audience members to reassess actions that may affect wildlife and their habitats.

EITS also networks with other organizations: 21 programs have been given for the Museum of Natural History, 14 at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, four at the Community Environmental Council, as well as others for the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network, Santa Barbara Library System, and various senior centers. For the first two years we relied almost entirely on volunteer efforts; 94% of the time contributions to the program came from seven dedicated volunteers who logged a total of over 50 hours per week. In December, 2001, EITS received a grant from the Santa Barbara Foundation to create a pilot project at McKinley school, Meet Your Wild Neighbor.