One of our biggest Thanksgiving associations, of course, is the turkey. According to our friends at Wikipedia, the wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) was first domesticated in pre-Columbian Mexico. After European colonization, the birds made their way to countries all around the globe, including Texas. According to Texas Parks & Wildlife, wild turkeys nearly disappeared in Texas a century ago because of unregulated hunting and loss of habitat. But measures taken since then have helped the turkey make a comeback in the Lone Star State.

If after this holiday you have a continuing interest in birds, we invite you to check out our member organizations Houston Audubon, Gulf Coast Bird Observatory, Armand Bayou Nature Center, Houston Arboretum & Nature Center, TWRC Wildlife Resource Center, and Baytown Environmental Education, among others.

In addition to turkeys, this holiday makes us thankful for you, our readers, who care enough about the environment to read a weekly newsletter with an extraordinary amount of information about environmental opportunities in the region. Some of our subscribers have been receiving our newsletter for decades. Please let us know if you are one of them!

 We are also grateful to our supporters who have given time, talent, and treasure to help CEC connect our environmental community. With your support, we have been able to publish this newsletter, curate our website and social media, and produce events such as the Greater Houston Environmental Summit, Earth Day Houston with Discovery Green Conservancy, meetings of the Environmental Educators Exchange, and the Wild About Houston Green Film Festival. Thank you!

Because it is also the season of giving, we are providing, below, information about opportunities to give to CEC, including Amazon Smile, Humble Bundle, and great opportunities as part of next week’s Giving Tuesday (look for more info in an email next Monday).

Scroll down to read notes from our member organizations and the community, or view the emailed version of the newsletter, which includes a green job listing.

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CEC NOTES

6:30 p.m. conversation, networking, and a light meal, followed by the screening at 7 p.m.. Free to the public, though donations are kindly appreciated. For more information, see the Facebook event.

Sign up for information about this event and other green film news at constantcontact.com.

And be sure to mark your calendar for January 30 & 31, 2019, when we’ll be hosting the Wild & Scenic Film Festival On Tour.

We have endeavored to confirm the events listed below. Please consider confirming directly with the hosts.

1. Study finds connection between Houston’s buildings and Harvey’s rainfall
   Last week, two studies published in the scientific journal Nature found that climate change is exacerbating the rainfall amounts of hurricanes. One of the studies, as reported by NPR, found that “cities themselves may be making the rainfall from those storms even worse.” In particular, the study found that the Houston region experienced more rainfall as a result of the city’s built environment than it would have if the same area was replaced by cropland. Read the full study here, and read NPR’s coverage of that study and related ones at npr.org.
2. “Science or Science Fiction: How to Tell the Difference”
   On Nov. 25, 2018, from 6-7 p.m., Christ the King Evangelical Lutheran Church will hold the latest in its environmental education web meeting series. Elmer Ledesma, chemistry professor at the University of St. Thomas, will speak on distinguishing real science from “fake news”. Examples from past and current propaganda campaigns will be given, from the tobacco industry to climate change. For more information and to register, visit eventbrite.com.
3. Giving Tuesday and Big Give Houston
   Nov. 27, 2018 marks the post-Thanksgiving “Giving Tuesday” and “Big Give Houston,” in which people are invited to make donations to the charities and nonprofits that most appeal to them. Big Give Tuesday is a 24-hour crowdfunding event designed to empower every person to give back to their local communities by supporting the organizations they trust to tackle the region’s most critical issues. Among the participating environmental groups: Artist Boat, Bayou City Waterkeeper, Friends of Texas Wildlife, Galveston Bay Foundation, Gulf Restoration Network, Houston Wilderness, Katy Prairie Conservancy, Texas Animal Society, Wildlife Center of Texas. For more information and to donate, visit biggivehouston.org.
4. “Climate Resilience, Civil Society and Disruptive Change”
   On Nov. 28, 2018, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., the Green Building Resource Center, 1002 Washington Ave., will host a daylong workshop titled “Climate Resilience, Civil Society and Disruptive Change.” It will include presentations from University of Texas – Arlington’s Zero Waste Network in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Earth Day ATX, Public Citizen, and A Nurtured World. For more information and to register, visit eventbrite.com.
5. Clean Waters Initiative Workshop
   On Nov. 28, 2018, from 2-4 p.m., the Houston-Galveston Area Council will hold a annual Clean Water Initiative Workshop at his headquarters, 3555 Timmons Lane. The workshop is open to he public. For more information, visit h-gac.com.
6. “An Opinionated Survey of Mass Transit” with Christolf Spieler
   On Nov. 28, 2018, beginning at noon, at the offices of the Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons Lane, Houston Tomorrow will host urban planner and former METRO board member Christof Spieler discussing his new book, Trains, Buses, People: An Opinionated Atlas of Transit. The book compares rail and Bus Rapid Transit systems in 47 US metropolitan areas, Spieler will talk about what lessons Houston can learn from the systems that have succeeded — and those that have not. Click here for more information.
7. 2018 Prairie Stampede: Holiday Dinner and Awards Celebration
   On Nov. 18, 2018, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., the prairie community of the Greater Houston-Galveston Region and the Cajun Prairie will celebrate together at the 2018 Prairie Stampede hosted by the Houston Zoo, 6200 Hermann Park. Awards will be presented to Mary Anne Piacentini (Katy Prairie Conservancy), Emily Manderson (Houston Arboretum & Nature Center), Vernon Fuselier (Cajun Prairie Habitat Preservation Society), and Julie d’Ablaing (prairie volunteer for Houston Audubon and other institutions) for their conservation efforts. For more information and to register, visit constantcontact.com.
8. “Climate Justice” presentation at Rothko Chapel
   On Nov. 29, 2018, beginning at 7 p.m., Rothko Chapel will present “Climate Justice: The Time is Now, The Place Is Here,” featuring Elizabeth Yeampierre, executive director of UPROSE, in conversation with Bryan Parras, co-founder of Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (T.E.J.A.S.) and dirty fuels Gulf organizer with Sierra Club. For more information and to register, visit rothkochapel.org.
9. “Spring Creek and the San Jacinto River: How’s the Water?”
   On Nov. 29, 2018, beginning at 7 p.m., The Woodlands G.R.E.E.N. is sponsoring a Going Green Sustainability Lecture titled “Spring Creek and the San Jacinto River-How’s the Water?” at the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), 8801 Gosling Road. Steven Johnston, a senior planner in the Community and Environmental Department at the Houston-Galveston Area Council, will discuss the current quality of water in Spring Creek and the West Fork of the San Jacinto River watersheds. For more information, visit thewoodlandstownship-tx.gov.
10. Bird Identification Seminar
    On Nov. 29, 2018, from 7-9 p.m. the City of Seabrook will present Houston Audubon’s Stennie Mead in a Bird Identification Seminar at 1100 Red Bluff Road. For more information, visit the Facebook event.
11. HREG Solar Workshop
    On Nov. 30, 2018, at TX/RX Labs, 205 Roberts St., the Houston Renewable Energy Group will host a Solar Workshop addressing all issues related to installation and operation. The event is ideal for those with a technical background or DIYer in need of guidance or troubleshooting with their solar installation project. Hands-on experience will be provided with the installation of a ground-mount system. For more information, visit the Facebook event.
12. TV: Texas Parks & Wildlife
    Broadcast on KUHT Channel 8 at 3 p.m. each Saturday and on municipal access cable channels in Baytown, Deer Park, Houston, Texas City, Galveston, Nassau Bay, Pasadena, Seabrook, Sugar Land, and on HCC TV. More info on the TPWD website (* indicates a segment about the Houston area). For a preview, visit TPWD’s YouTube Page.
    • Biologists fit turkeys with backpacks to gain valuable data
    • Tips for calling turkeys
    • Restocking wild turkeys in East Texas
13. Additional Upcoming Events
    • 12/2/18: Cigna Sunday Streets: Main Street Holiday Edition
    • 12/3/18: Data Jam: Texas Environmental Data
    • 12/4/18: UH Sustainability Meetup: Urban Beekeeping
    • 12/5/18:  UHCL presents “Earthrise”
    • 12/5-8/18: EPA 2019 Brownfields Competition workshop (Addison, Texas)
    • 12/6-7/18: Texas Children in Nature Summit and Champions Luncheon (Corpus  Christi)
    • 12/8/18: AIA Houston’s Gingerbread Build-Off
    • 12/8/18: Mercer Holiday in the Garden
    • 12/8-9/18: Holiday with the Cranes
    • 12/8-13/18 Restore America’s Estuaries Conference (Long Beach, CA)
    • 12/10/18: Houston Green Roof & Wall Symposium
    • 12/10/18: Texas RESTORE Council Public Meeting (Galveston)
    • 12/11/10: Green Roof Professional (GRP) Training
    • 12/11/18: Coastal Barrier Project public meeting (Winnie)
    • 12/12/18: Coastal Barrier Project public meeting (Galveston)
    • 12/14/18 (Deadline): Take Care of Texas Video Contest
    • 12/15/18: (Deadline) Call for Abstracts for CNREP 2019 
    • 12/18/18: Coastal Barrier Project public meeting (Seabrook)
    • 1/15/18: (Deadline) Gulf of Mexico Climate and Resilience Community of Practice grant LOI