To sing like a nightingale

With her groundbreaking publication Silent Spring from 1962, Rachel Carson is considered one of the most important pioneers of contemporary nature conservation. She was one of the first to specifically address the dramatic loss of biodiversity, illustrated by the disappearance of birds, to which "silent" in the book's title refers. At the same time, studies show that biodiversity is sometimes higher in cities today than in the countryside. We consider places of urban silence spaces where the sounds of the city take a back seat to those of "nature". This is particularly impressive at night, when nightingales sing from cemeteries and parks, while the traffic noises around them slowly diminish. At Tempelhofer Feld, away from the streets of Neukölln, the highest density of skylarks in Berlin can be found. Both nightingales and skylarks have become iconic species, especially due to their frequent references in art and culture. In nature conservation, they are considered "flagship species". Their extraordinary song, volume and persistence have always fascinated and inspired humankind. Even though many people know the names of these birds, only a few know what they actually sound or look like. At the end of June, when 48 Stunden Neukölln will take place, most birds will have retired for the season to raise their young. Raising awareness for the sheer number of nightingales and skylarks we are surrounded by at the heart of the city, a QR code will lead visitors to an audio recording where a nightingale or skylark territory can be found. The recordings will include artistic explorations that reference or are inspired by one of the two bird species, for example, poems, music, films or literature, onomatopoeic descriptions of the vocalizations (simplified: songs) as found in identification books, or short stories by people from Neukölln who have a connection to these birds.