Coalition Notes 02-03-2011
- Houston Environmental Education Summit registration deadline extended. The Houston Environmental Education Summit is a once a year chance for teachers, home school educators, informal educators, parents and administrators and other individuals to connect with others interested in providing high-quality environmental education here in the southeast Texas. There will be a great mix of talks, demonstrations, and discussions centered around Green Families, Green Schools, and Green Sites. Register through February 3: http://houstoneesummit.wordpress.com/.
- Vultures! Please join the Outdoor Nature Club OG for a presentation on vultures on Monday, February 7. Learning corner at 6:30 pm, general meeting at 7:00 pm. Bayland Community Center, 6400 Bissonnet, Houston. Dr. Ken Kramm will share his observations on Turkey and Black Vultures, and will compare these birds to other New World and Old World vultures. Highlights from current world-wide vulture research will be presented. You will also hear songs and humorous radio commercials about these wonderful birds. Vultures are scavenging birds that feed mostly on the carcasses of dead animals. They have been revered by many cultures throughout history. The ancient Hebrews admired vultures’ ability to “float” on the air for long spans of time without flapping a wing. In Egyptian culture, vultures also played an important role; one of the most famous goddesses in the early Nile, believed to have brought forth all that exists, is depicted with the head of a vulture. Some cultures find vultures revolting and falsely associate the birds with disease and death. The reality is that vultures play an important role as nature’s janitors — cleaning disease, such as anthrax, out of the environment. Strong stomach acids kill virtually all bacteria and viruses that pass through their digestive system. More information about the Outdoor Nature Club can be found at www.outdoornatureclub.org.
- H-GAC Environmental Awareness Roundtable: Scouting Resources. The quarterly Environmental Awareness Roundtable is designed to facilitate idea-sharing between city staff, county staff, and community organizations to create effective environmental awareness campaigns.find out how your organization can partner with the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Melissa Hardy, Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council Program Manager, and Glenn Buckley with Boy Scouts of America (Sam Houston Area Council) will give an update on modern scouting and provide tips and tricks to working with and enlisting the help of these service-oriented and conservation-minded organizations. February 8, 2011, 9 am networking, program 9:30 to noon. For more information or to RSVP please email Kristi Corse at kristi.corse@h-gac.com.
- Transition Houston February Meeting and Guest Speaker Tiffany Tyler. Transition Houston is excited to have Tiffany Tyler as guest speaker at our February 8 meeting from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Urban Harvest offices at 2311 Canal Street. Â Tiffany is the Chair of the Board of Directors of of Central City Co-Op, and she will be talking about what Central City Co-Op is, does, how we can participate, and areas of mutual collaboration. Discussion will also include the upcoming Training for Transition in Houston (February 19-20), as well as a number of other upcoming events. As always, the meeting will with refreshments, conversation, and community. More at http://transitiontexas.ning.com.
- Greens Bayou Corridor Coalition Strategic Plan Community Input Workshops. The Greens Bayou Corridor Coalition and the National Park Service invite you to join us at one or more community planning workshops in February to help develop a strategic corridor plan for Greens Bayou. The goals of the project are to:
- Conserve the corridor’s most important natural and cultural resources
- Create a diverse system of recreation opportunities
- Manage the corridor’s natural and improved landscaping
- Foster a system of interconnected parks and trails that link neighborhoods and destinations
- Assure that projects are sustainably designed and are maintained for years to come
- A Green Race for a Blue Planet! On March 26, the Galveston.com 5K and Eco Duathalon will be held at Stewart Beach to benefit Artist Boat. There are three ways you can participate: compete, volunteer or sponsor. As a competitor, you can enter either the Run/Walk 5k, or the Run, Bike, Run duathalon. Not an athlete? Not to worry, volunteers are needed at every leg of the race. Businesses can even help to as sponsors: Presenting ($180) and Event ($80). If you are interested in any of these options, please visit www.galvestonbeach.ecotri.com or contact Patty Edwards at pedwards@artistboat.org.
- Open House for the Big Thicket National Preserve Field Research Station. BTA is hosting an Open House at Field Research Station, 16890 FM 770, in Saratoga, Thursday Feb. 17th from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Visit with staff and meet our new Executive Director, Dr. Teresa Tomkins-Walsh! Learn about the history of the organization and peruse or purchase books on the people and special places in the Big Thicket. Tour the laboratory, library, dorm rooms and classroom. Investigate the variety of species we have identified in our ongoing Thicket of Diversity Inventory and see how you can become involved as a Citizen Scientist volunteer. Enjoy refreshments with us. Feel free to invite a friend and encourage them to learn about and join the BTA. For information: Mary Catherine Johnston, BTA President, mathicket@aol.com.
- Galveston Bay Foundation’s 2011 Children’s Art Calendar Winners Celebrated. Students who live around the Bay were asked, “What people, plants, or animals can you find in and around Galveston Bay?†or “Who uses Galveston Bay?†Through their knowledge and creativity, they drew pictures to illustrate their answer to one of those questions. The Galveston Bay Children’s Art Calendar is made possible by sponsors, NRG Texas and NRG’s retail electricity business, Reliant Energy.  We all depend on the Bay in one way or another, and the environmental art calendar raises the public’s awareness and its understanding of this vital ecosystem.†The GBF, NRG and Reliant Energy would like to congratulate the following 2011 Galveston Bay Children’s Art Calendar winners: Luis Algarate, Allison Antonini, Sergio Cantu, Victoria Chang, Leona Chen, Savannah Cushman, Ronaldo Lerma Garcia, Daniel Godinez, Geoffrey Hirsch, Elizabeth Koegel, Mia Munn, Sebastian Rodriguez, Hiya Sunjana Sawhney, Kristen Schank, Mary Sullivan, Alex Turman and Carissa Villarreal. More at www.galvbay.org.
For the purpose of this study, the Greens Bayou Corridor is defined as the area on either side of the bayou running 45 miles from US 290 to the Houston Ship Channel. The study focuses on conservation, recreation and connectivity. This series of community planning workshops will be held in various locations throughout the corridor on February 15, 16, 24, and 25. Space is limited, so register by February 12 to Treena Dockery by phone (281) 874-2146 or by email: tdockery@greenspoint.org. More info at www.greensbayou.org.