People Who Give a Damn: Chris and Harrison of BatBnB on Bats, Backyard Conservation, and Building Better Homes (for Wildlife)
You know that moment when the mosquitoes are winning, your citronella candle is failing, and you’re this close to reaching for the DEET? What if, instead of spraying your yard with chemicals, you could invite nature’s own pest control to the party?
That’s the big idea behind BatBnB, the brainchild of outdoor-loving co-founders Chris Rannefors and Harrison Broadhurst. These two saw a problem (mosquitoes, myths, and disappearing bat habitat) and decided to solve it with design thinking, conservation science, and a deep belief that people do give a damn — if you give them something beautiful and functional to rally around. Here’s how they went from swatting bugs to saving bats.
Why Bats? Why Now?
Chris: We’ve always been big fans of spending time outside, but it was frustrating to see how often the go-to solution for bugs was just… spraying chemicals everywhere. That’s not good for families, pets, or the environment.
Harrison: Exactly. Bats are one of nature’s best pest control systems, but they’re so misunderstood — and they don’t have nearly enough safe places to live. We realized if we could create something that was both beautiful and functional, we could help people see bats differently and actually invite them in.
Bat Myths, Busted
Harrison: Let’s start with the classic: “They’ll get stuck in your hair!” Not a thing. Bats are expert flyers and have no interest in your messy bun.
Chris: And the whole vampire thing? Also not true for the bats we see here in North America. Most of them eat insects — and tons of them. They’re out there doing the work quietly, night after night.
From Design Sketches to Roost-Ready Homes
Chris: We knew from the jump that if we were going to do this, it had to be done right. Bats are particular about their roosting conditions.
Harrison: So we reached out to Merlin Tuttle, who is basically the godfather of bat conservation. He was excited to help, and his expertise was invaluable. Combining that with our design background allowed us to build bat houses that not only work — they actually look good hanging on your home.
Field Tip: Want Fewer Mosquitoes? Put Up a Bat House
Chris: Seeing customers share photos of bats moving in? That never gets old. Every one of those is a win — for conservation, for the family that’s hosting them, and for the local ecosystem.
Harrison: It’s proof that you don’t need a massive plot of land or a PhD in ecology to help wildlife. Sometimes it just takes a little wooden house, the right spot, and a willingness to care.
Where BatBnBs Are Roosting (And It’s Not Just Cabins in the Woods)
Harrison: We’ve seen BatBnBs go up in vineyards, organic farms, urban rooftops — even on school grounds as part of science curriculum. One of our favorites was a project with Shelby Bottoms Nature Center in Nashville, where we added 10 bat houses to a local green space.
Chris: Every time someone makes space for wildlife in a place that wasn’t originally designed for it, that feels like progress.
The Business of Giving a Damn
Chris: I came into this with a background in operations, so I had a good sense of the business side — logistics, inventory, spreadsheets, all that. But what makes it meaningful is knowing that all that backend work is helping create real habitat. We’re not just selling bat houses. We’re part of a movement to give bats a second chance.
Harrison: Same on the design side. I’ve worked on everything from tiny homes to giant commercial spaces, but designing for bats was unique. We had to get the science right and make something people would proudly display. That overlap — where form meets function, and conservation meets good design — is where the magic is.
What We Hope You Feel When You Put One Up
Chris: A little excitement. Like, “Hey, I’m part of something cool.”
Harrison: And a sense of empowerment. You don’t have to wait for someone else to “fix” the environment. You can start with a bat house.
Giving a Damn, Defined
Harrison: Giving a damn means choosing to protect the creatures most people overlook — even when it takes extra effort.
Chris: It means recognizing that small actions, like putting up a bat house, can add up to big change.
Did you know a single bat can eat up to 1,000 mosquitoes in an hour? That’s not a typo — it’s a reason to skip the bug zapper and go full BatBnB instead. Find out more about bats in our Bat Chat Guide. Want to make your yard more bat-friendly and stylish? Check out BatBnB. Use code FIELDTRIP for 15% off your purchase!
People Who Give a Damn is a recurring Field Trip series highlighting folks who make a difference for the outdoors and the earth. Know someone we should meet? Drop us a line.
