Join us for the Parks and Natural Areas (PNA) Roundtable on Monday, July 8, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at H-GAC Conference Room A, Second Floor.

The PNA Roundtable serves as a forum for discussion of issues related to parks and natural areas, promotes the PNA Award Program, and maintains a regional inventory of parks. The PNA roundtable facilitates information exchange and planning efforts between various stakeholders and collaborators to protect and preserve parks and natural areas across the region. To register visit events.r20.constantcontact.com/register.

The films presented by the Houston Green Film Series are free to public and funded by volunteer efforts, in-kind contributions and donations from the public.

In general, the series is screened on the third Wednesday of each month.

For current films, visit the Houston Green Films website or Facebook page.

The films presented by the Houston Green Film Series are free to public and funded by volunteer efforts, in-kind contributions and donations from the public. Free tickets on Eventbrite.

“There has to be a fuel revolution.”

-Donnie Tipton of Going Green Grease Recycling

Set in Houston, Texas in the shadow of the nation’s oil industry, Hot Grease tells the surprising story of how the biodiesel industry is turning an ostensibly worthless raw material, spent kitchen grease, into a renewable energy source capable of fueling cars, buses and fleets of trucks throughout the country.

The millions of gallons of cooking oil that our country’s restaurants use to fry up chicken, fries, and donuts used to end up as waste in landfills and pollutants in our waterways. But today, thanks to innovators, entrepreneurs, and politicians, it’s being turned into a functional fuel: biodiesel. Biodiesel reduces carbon emissions up to 85% compared to petroleum fuel, the equivalent of removing over 19 million cars from our highways. This film dives into the untapped market of biodiesel as it rapidly becomes a commodity and individuals dedicate their livelihood to making it an accessible fuel choice in Houston.

This month’s panelists & exhibitors:

Chris Powers, Houston Biodiesel

Jody Gibson, Energy Institute High School

Michael McClere, Dependable Cooking Oil

Alona Hernandez, Houston Public Works

Ted Driscoll, Galveston Bay Foundation

Free to the public, though donations are kindly appreciated. Rice Cinema is located at 2030 University Blvd, near Stockton and University.

• 6:30 PM Reception & Refreshments
• 7:00 PM Film Screening
• 8:00 PM Panel Discussion
• 9:00 PM The conversation continues at Valhalla, Rice University’s Graduate Student Pub

For questions about transportation/parking options for getting to and from the event go to https://park-trans.rice.edu/

The films presented by the Houston Green Film Series are free to public and funded by volunteer efforts, in-kind contributions and donations from the public.

In general, the series is screened on the third Wednesday of each month.

For current films, visit the Houston Green Films website or Facebook page.

This year’s gala is the most important fundraising event of Houston Audubon’s landmark 50th Anniversary. Gala proceeds will benefit the organization in its work to ensure special natural places, critical habitat, and resilient bird populations will be a legacy for future generations to enjoy.

For the past 50 years, Houston Audubon has been the voice for birds, and they’ve served the Houston-Gulf Coast region through land conservation, habitat restoration, education and advocacy. At this year’s gala, they will celebrate Houston Audubon’s journey, its achievements, and the dedicated donors, volunteers, staff, and partners whose collective efforts have led us to being the regional avian conservation leader they are today.

Date: Thursday, November 7
Time: 6:30pm Cocktails / 8pm Seated Dinner
Location: The Water Works in Buffalo Bayou Park

Attire: Cocktail

Co-Chairs: Carolyn and Chris Dorros and Mary and David Wolff

Please consider supporting the 2019 Buffalo Bayou Partnership Gala, Moonscape. It will be a magical evening, dining under a luminous tent on the beautiful lawn at The Water Works in Buffalo Bayou Park. To commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing, this year’s gala will highlight the signature Lunar Cycle Lighting along Buffalo Bayou.

This illuminating celebration will support the ongoing care of Houston’s most significant natural resource and Buffalo Bayou Partnership’s vital programs and projects that enhance the quality of life for all in our city. Tables for ten guests are: $25,000; $15,000; $10,000 and $6,000. Individual tickets are:  $1,500; $1,000 and $600.

Cocktail-only tickets are available for $100 and can be purchased here.

Click here for a response form.  For more information, contact Leigh McBurnett, BBP Director of Development, at lmcburnett@buffalobayou.org or 713.752.0314 ext. 105.

The Nature Conservancy in Texas invites you to attend the 2019 Houston Conservation Gala! Join us on Thursday, November 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the Houston Zoo for a gala of global proportions. Spend an “evening on the ark” as National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore presents National Geographic’s Photo Ark—a groundbreaking effort to document species before they disappear.

Sartore is a photographer, speaker, author, teacher, National Geographic fellow and regular contributor to National Geographic magazine. Most importantly, he is an avid conservationist who began the ambitious Photo Ark project 11 years ago in his hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska. Since then, he’s visited 40 countries in his quest to create a lasting photo archive of global biodiversity. To date, Sartore has captured portraits of more than 9,000 animal species in human care, inching him nearer to his original goal of documenting 12,000 unique species.

During the evening, Sartore will take us behind the scenes, describing how his vision for the Photo Ark not only began, but where it’s taking him next. He’ll share with us the stories of his travels and what goes into the creation of a photo archive of true biodiversity. And above all, he’ll impart on us the saliency of this work, helping us understand how intimate animal photography like this can play a critical role in inspiring people to take action around conservation.

Sartore’s commitment to saving species makes him a perfect keynote speaker for our Houston Gala. The Nature Conservancy is working throughout Texas to protect at-risk species—we’re restoring grasslands to preserve and improve monarch butterfly habitat, acquiring land to conserve one of the last remaining wintering grounds for endangered whooping cranes and protecting vital corridors for ocelots in South Texas. Like Sartore, the Conservancy is dedicated to connecting people and nature throughout the Lone Star State.

To purchase tickets or sponsor the event, contact Megan Brann at megan.brann@tnc.org or 832-260-4915. To ensure sponsor recognition in the invitation, please respond with your sponsorship commitment by September 4, 2019.

Join us for the Parks and Natural Areas (PNA) Roundtable on Monday, July 8, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at H-GAC Conference Room A, Second Floor.

The PNA Roundtable serves as a forum for discussion of issues related to parks and natural areas, promotes the PNA Award Program, and maintains a regional inventory of parks. The PNA roundtable facilitates information exchange and planning efforts between various stakeholders and collaborators to protect and preserve parks and natural areas across the region. To register visit events.r20.constantcontact.com/register.

The films presented by the Houston Green Film Series are free to public and funded by volunteer efforts, in-kind contributions and donations from the public.

In general, the series is screened on the third Wednesday of each month.

For current films, visit the Houston Green Films website or Facebook page.