The Houston Zoo has extremely generously donated the use of the Brown Education Center for the annual HNPAT & CPP (Coastal Prairie Partnership) Prairie Stampede – the Awards Potluck. More information, including a signup sheet for the potluck, will be coming about this event. Some of the awards to be presented are:

Dick Benoit Upper Texas Coast Prairie Award – This award recognizes someone from the Upper Texas Coast area, oftentimes Greater Houston, who is contributing to coastal prairie conservation, education, etc. This award is for recent work not a career of achievement. This award is voted on by the general public. Send nominations to prairiepartner@gmail.com.

Prairie Excellence Award – This award recognizes career achievement in coastal prairie conservation. This award is selected by the CPP Board. The CPP board will gladly take suggestions for this award. Send suggestions to prairiepartner@gmail.com.

Please plan to arrive at 6 p.m. to avoid full parking.

The City of Angleton will host the next Bringing Back Main Street Revitalization roundtable meeting at the Brazoria County Historical Museum. During this roundtable, participants will hear information on meeting building codes and regulations when renovating older buildings in downtowns. The presentation will be followed by a tour of two renovated buildings in downtown Angleton. H-GAC hosts quarterly roundtables to help local governments, chambers of commerce, and economic development interests promote the economic revitalization of downtown areas. Online RSVP is requested.

The Bringing Back Main Street initiative offers local communities a place to share best practices and engage in a regional dialogue about revitalizing and supporting vibrant downtown spaces. Each quarter, community leaders gather for a roundtable on topics ranging from small business support to sidewalk infrastructure. These ongoing roundtables add to the knowledge shared during a 2015 workshop series.

Save the date for H-GAC’s next Bringing Back Main Street Roundtable. The location and topic are to be determined.

Each year, the prestigious Terry Hershey Bayou Stewardship Award recognizes members in the community who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to aiding in the conservation, preservation, restoration and/or advocacy of Houston’s waterways. Nominees can be from the nonprofit, public or private sectors. Please submit nominations by 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 23, 2019. Submit the nomination information in the body of an email, or as an attachment, or by fax. Email to info@bayoupreservation.org, or fax to 713-529-6481.

Eligible applicants include:

• Local Governments
• Businesses & Industry
• Non-Profit Organizations
• Universities and Educational Institutions
• Utility Districts

The Water Innovation Strategies of Excellence (WISE) Awards recognize innovative strategies and projects in the Houston-Galveston region that serve as models for improving water quality. Joint applications for larger, collaborative projects are encouraged. Winning projects must exhibit efficiency, effectiveness, and innovation and serve as models to improve surface water quality. Applications must be completed online by Feb. 6, 2019, at noon. For more information, visit h-gac.com.

Join Citizens’ Environmental Coalition as they visit the Hannah and Arthur Ginsbarg Nature Discovery Center in Bellaire. There will be a guided tour outside and a chance to view major renovations that were completed recently. They will visit the pocket priarie, deciduous woodlands, prairie wetland, and cypress pond in Russ Pitman Park; nature play area; and Critter Classroom. On the tour, you will learn about environmental education initiatives at a mainstay of environmental education inside the loop. The last part of the meeting is our traditional EEE Round-table Forum where members and attendees introduce themselves, their programs, make announcements and discuss challenges and successes in environmental education.

Save the date for H-GAC’s first Parks and Natural Areas Summit and Awards Ceremony from 9 a.m. to noon Friday, February 8, 2019, at H-GAC Conference Room B, Second Floor. The Summit will include presentations about various H-GAC programs that can provide goods, services, technical assistance, and funding for parks and natural areas projects.

The event will also include the annual Parks and Natural Areas awards recognition ceremony. These projects serve as models for planning and project implementation for parks and natural areas in the region. Projects will be honored in three categories: Planning Process, On-the-Ground Projects Over $500,000, and On-the-Ground Projects Under $500,000.

A light breakfast will be served. Registration will open in late December or early January. Registration and breakfast begin at 8:30 a.m., followed by the H-GAC program showcase at 9 a.m. The awards program will be followed by networking with H-GAC staff and other parks professionals.

The Summit will include presentations about various H-GAC programs that can provide goods, services, technical assistance, and funding for parks and natural areas projects. These projects serve as models for planning and project implementation for parks and natural areas in the region. Projects will be honored in three categories. The event will also include the annual Parks and Natural Areas Awards recognition ceremony. The awards program will be followed by networking with H-GAC staff and other parks professionals.