On March 30, 2019, from 8:30-9:30 p.m., millions around the world will turn off the lights to speak up about why nature matters. Earth Hour 2019 hopes to show our connection to Earth and nature. For more information on how to participate, visit earthhour.org.

We are conducting a monthly survey at Hogg Bird Sanctuary. Beginning in March 2019, the surveys will be held on the first Monday of the month. Skip Almoney is our leader. The Hogg Bird Sanctuary is adjacent to Bayou Bend and shares its parking facility at 1 Westcott Street. Meet at the parking lot at the dead end on the south end of Westcott Street. We meet at 7:30 AM in the parking lot. If the gate is locked, we can park in the upper parking lot and then walk down to the lower parking lot to meet. Everyone is welcome. Beginners, experts, or even if you’re just curious.

Leader: Skip Almoney

Join us for weekly mindfulness classes here at the Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary!  We’ll begin each class in the cabin with a guided 15-minute lesson. Then we’ll each go to a quiet spot in the forest to practice simply being mindful not mind-full. We’ll meet back at the cabin with wild-collected tea and sharing. Participants are welcome to extend their mindful time in the forest as well.

Inspired by the “Forest Bathing” movements in South Korea and Japan, more and more nature centers like ours are offering programs that provide restorative time in nature, helping us to reground and find respite from our modern, hectic lives.

Mindfulness is a powerful but simple tool – focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations. This powerful therapeutic technique is even more powerful when practiced in nature, lowering blood pressure, stress hormone levels and heart rate.  “Nature is always here and now. Your breath, your senses, anything around you. When you are being aware of the life within you and around you, you are being mindful of this present moment, and it will always calm you down. You cannot do nature, you can just be there. Being is calming.” – Dr. Bjarte Stubhaug is a Norwegian psychiatrist and mindfulness-expert.

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Join us at a neighborhood community meeting on April 1 to talk about the I-45 freeway expansion project, known as the North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP).  The I-45 North expansion is a transformational highway expansion project along the I-45 corridor that will shape the landscape of North Houston and the downtown area for decades, including the 5th Ward.

The project will rebuild and expand I-45 N from Beltway 8 N to the Wheeler Transit Station in Midtown (including major changes to the downtown freeway system, Spur 527, and 288 N). Construction is scheduled to last 10+ years.

Air Alliance Houston is conducting a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of the proposed expansion on nearby communities. The assessment will reflect a range of issues, including air quality, mobility, economic development, parks and green space, noise, visual impacts, urban heat island, and flooding.

Bruce Elementary and Secondary DAEP have been identified by Air Alliance Houston as two of nine schools in the HISD and AISD districts that would most benefit from strategies to protect students and staff from the potential harmful health effects of traffic and air pollution.

This meeting will give you an opportunity to learn more about the proposed project and talk about opportunities to protect community health. Your feedback is critical to help Air Alliance Houston develop recommendations to the Texas Department of Transportation that could improve the freeway design and benefit schools and surrounding neighborhoods.

Children welcome, food provided.

The City of Houston’s office of Sustainability, has begun drafting a Climate Action Plan. The goal is to create ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and establish a pathway to meet the Paris Agreement goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, while also decreasing traffic congestion, improving air quality, and reducing costs through energy efficiency and renewable energy. The target completion date for the Plan is December 2019, with implementation by the City to start in 2020. HARC, the Houston Advanced Research Center, is providing technical assistance.

The City has scheduled a set of four Community Meetings to give members of the public information about the Plan, as well as receive input: Each meeting will be held from 6-8 p.m.

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Join us at a neighborhood community meeting on April 2nd to talk about the I-45 freeway expansion project, known as the North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP). The I-45 North expansion is a transformational highway expansion project along the I-45 corridor that will shape the landscape of North Houston and the downtown area for decades, including the 3rd Ward.

The project will rebuild and expand I-45 N from Beltway 8 N to the Wheeler Transit Station in Midtown (including major changes to the downtown freeway system, Spur 527, and 288 N). Construction is scheduled to last 10+ years.

Air Alliance Houston is conducting a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of the proposed expansion on nearby communities. The assessment will reflect a range of issues, including air quality, mobility, economic development, parks and green space, noise, visual impacts, urban heat island, and flooding.

HAIS and YWCPA have been identified by Air Alliance Houston as two of nine schools in the HISD and AISD districts that would most benefit from strategies to protect students and staff from the potential harmful health effects of traffic and air pollution.

This meeting will give you an opportunity to learn more about the proposed project and talk about opportunities to protect community health. Your feedback is critical to help Air Alliance Houston develop recommendations to the Texas Department of Transportation that could improve the freeway design and benefit schools and surrounding neighborhoods.

Children welcome, food provided.

Wonderful Warblers: April 2 and 6, 2019

People come from all over the world to the Houston Audubon High Island Sanctuaries to experience the migration and arrival of the “jewels” of the bird world. Learn about the remarkable migration journey of these small and beautiful birds. Learn the principles to identify the 37 different species of warblers that are possible to see in our area. This class is open to all levels of birders and photographers.

Class: Tuesday, April 2, 2019 (7:00-8:45 PM)
Field Trip: Saturday, April 6, 2019 (7:30 AM – 3:30 PM)

Please join us for Houston Audubon’s newest monthly bird survey at the Houston Botanic Garden (Glenbrook Golf Course). We  meet the first Thursday of each month at the main parking lot at 8205 N Bayou Dr, Houston, TX 77017.If the lot is closed, park at the park next door. There is a swimming pool near the parking lot.

This monthly survey will help assess the current bird population and the changes to the population as the grounds are converted into the botanic garden. Houston Audubon’s Sims Bayou Urban Nature Center sits across from the grounds along the historic meander of the bayou and already has a species list over 100. We anticipate the grounds of the future botanic garden to become a hotspot for birds with a species list well over 200.  Habitat across the Houston area is shrinking and Houston Audubon is excited to work with Houston Botanic Garden as they make decisions about this very important property.

The property has been part of the Central Christmas Bird Count since 2015. This is a large piece of property. We will work towards having teams of birders and volunteers helping to bird the entire property. A typical bird survey is 2 hours long but folks can come and go as they need to.

We welcome everyone. You do not need to be an experienced birder. If you need to borrow binoculars just let us know. Email Mary Anne Weber at maweber@houstonaudubon.org if you have questions and would like to join us.

Come on out to our annual fundraiser, Hammers and Ales, a Happy Hour style event at Karbach Brewery on April 4th, 2019, now with live music! Enjoy a bottomless selection of Karbach beer, as well as tasty heavy bites from Karbach’s kitchen, a rad silent auction, a cornhole tournament, other fun games and a raffle. This year, the event will move downstairs to the outside area to accommodate an expected crowd of 400 plus attendees. And, we’re excited to announce live music from Eagles tribute band Already Gone. All event proceeds will go to support the Houston Community ToolBank.

And as usual, we’ll be raffling and auctioning off valuable items, all to raise money for the ToolBank’s mission and ongoing Harvey recovery efforts: serving Houston-area nonprofits, churches, schools and community groups by providing tools for pennies on the dollar to drive volunteerism in our community. All proceeds will benefit the ToolBank directly.

We are offering a limited number of VIP tickets. VIP tickets include early admission, swag bags and rapid check in.

We look forward to seeing you at Hammers & Ales on April 4th, 2019!