Thursday, January 17, 2013

Texas Natural Resources/ Environmental Literacy Summit



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Join education, environmental and natural resource leaders in advancing the Texas Natural Resources/Environmental Literacy Plan.
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Join education, environmental, and natural resource leaders in advancing natural resource/environmental literacy as the new Texas Natural Resource / Environmental Literacy Plan is presented at the Summit on January 25, 2013 in San Antonio, Texas. This is an exciting time for Texas and we hope you will be part of this effort in advancing natural resource/environmental literacy. 



The purpose of the Natural Resource/ Environmental Literacy Summit is to present the plan to professionals from formal and informal education, natural resources, government, non-profit, and industry interested in natural resource/environmental education and outreach. Through this presentation, the participants of the summit will become familiar with the plan and identify next steps for implementation.
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The Natural Resource/Environmental Literacy Summit Committee is proud Mrs. Laura Bush, Former First Lady, will serve as the keynote speaker for the Summit.  Mrs. Bush recently founded Taking Care of Texas (www.takingcareoftexas.org), which aims to spur conservation efforts that benefit communities, build on the success of others, and inspire all Texans to join in.

The program will also feature special guest speakers Carter Smith, Executive Director of Texas Parks and Wildlife; Bora Simmons, Director for the National Project for Excellence in Environmental Education and Jose"Pepe" Marcos-Iga, North American Association for Environmental Education Board President.

Endorsement Opportunity - Organizations who agree overall with the content and strategy of the Texas Natural Resource/Environmental Literacy Plan, and its alignment with their mission, please contact: Tom Arsuffi, tom.arsuffi@ttu.edu. We will list your organization's endorsement in the frontal piece of the Plan and on the Plan's website.

TriPoint
3233 N. St. Mary's
San Antonio, TX 78212

Registration
Online pre-registration for the Summit is now open. Click here to register.

Pre-registration Rate: $35
On-site registration: $50

Hotel Accommodations
A room block has been reserved for summit participants under the name San Antonio River Authority. These rooms are on a first come first serve basis at the rate of $85 per night plus tax for January 24 and 25. The room block rate is guaranteed until December 24, 2012.  Discount will still apply after that time, if rooms remain. Please book your room as soon as possible.

El Tropicano Riverwalk Hotel
110 Lexington Avenue

San Antonio, TX 78205

Reservations: 877.214.9768 or
http://www.eltropicanohotel.com/locatio
    /index.cfm


Opening Reception

The opening reception, sponsored by the San Antonio Zoo and Sea World, will be held on Thursday, January 24, 2013 from 6:30-8:00 PM at the San Antonio Zoo. Get eye to eye with the Zoo's hippos while enjoying drinks and heavy appetizers inside the Zoo's exclusive indoor African gallery.

SAN ANTONIO ZOO – 3903 N St Mary's – www.sazoo.org – closest parking will be the small lot to right of the main entrance. The Zoo is located just blocks from the conference site and conference participants may arrange early access into the Zoo on 1/24, by calling 210/734-7184 ext 1501.

Agenda & Draft PlanWill be posted on the following website closer to the event date. To view the plan: http://taee.org

Breakout Sessions
The breakout sessions will consist of the six goals laid out in the NR/ELP and will provide a small group setting for Summit participants to provide immediate feedback to the plan. Panels of experts and NR/ELP writers will provide guidance and structure to these feedback sessions.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

City of Fredericksburg Water Forum


 
The State of Our Water
Today and Tomorrow
 
January 10, 2013
6-8 P.M.
 
Hill Country University Center
2818 E. US Hwy. 290
Fredericksburg, Texas

 

Speakers:
 
Doug Miller, State Representative
 
Andrew Sansom, Executive Director-Meadows Center for Water and the Environment, Texas State University
 
Raymond M. Slade Jr., Former Hydrologist US Geological Survey
 
Joe Beal, Former General Manager of Lower Colorado River Authority
 
Paul Tybor, Manager-Hill Country Underground Water Conservation District
Hill Country Underground Water Conservation District
 
Sponsors

City of Fredericksburg
Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce
Gillespie County
Hill Country University
Gillespie  County Economic Development Commission
Hill Country Underground Water Conservation District 
Speaker Panel
 
Doug Miller– First elected to the Texas Legislature in 2008, Doug has served as a member of both the House Appropriations Committee and the Natural Resources Commit-tee. The House Speaker appointed him to serve as chair on the Edwards Aquifer Legislative Oversight Committee in 2011. Born and raised in the Hill Country, Doug is a graduate of Texas State University.
 
Andrew Sansom - Andrew Sansom is one of Texas’ leading conservationists. He is a former Executive Director of The Texas Nature Conservancy and the Texas Parks and Wild-life Department and the author of five books and numerous Magazine Articles. He is currently the Executive Director of The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University-San Marcos.
 
Raymond Slade, Jr.– Is a certified, registered Professional Hydrologist with the American Institute of Hydrology and served as Hydrologist for 33 years with the U.S. Geological Survey in Texas. He has authored more than 100 reports concerning Texas water re-sources. He is currently an Adjunct Professor at Austin Community College and is on the Advisory Board and Technical Advisory Committee for the Hill County Alliance.
 
Joe Beal– Raised in Texas, Joe earned his degree in civil engineering from Texas Tech University followed by a master’s degree in business administration in municipal finance from the University of Texas at Austin. Joe worked for the Texas Water Quality Board, and then for the engineering and environ-mental consulting firm, Espey, Huston. In 1995 he came to LCRA to lead Water Services. Joe was LCRA’s General Manager from 2000-2007. Currently he is a consulting engineer and banker.
 
Paul Tybor– Has been the general manager of the Hill Country Underground Water District since 1989. A graduate of University of Houston in Geology and graduate studies in Hydro-Geology at UTSA. Prior to joining the Underground Water District, Paul was involved in the Oil and Gas sector. He is a member of the Lower Colorado Regional Water Planning Committee, Region K.