Conservation » Environmental Resource Guide
The Environmental Resource Guide is a searchable, web-based resource that includes information about all organizations in the Greater Houston Area conducting environmental work. This guide is a one-stop-shop for any resources or connections you may need, and is updated often to ensure you have access to the newest information.
Scroll through the guide, view a list of all organizations, or view all categories of organizations below. At the very bottom of the page is an archive containing older versions of the printed guide available for download.
If you have any questions, would like to make edits to a current listing, or would like to add or remove an organizations, please reach out to us.
The Exploration Green Conservancy, Inc. (EGC) has been formed and incorporated to develop, preserve and protect the land known as Exploration Green (EG). This area was purchased by the Clear Lake City Water Authority (CLCWA) for use as a storm water detention area: the CLCWA created a Master Plan for the area and initially sponsored the formation of the EGC.…
Purpose:Â Houston Tomorrow is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for all the people of the Houston region through research, education, and discussion. Its vision is that on its 200th birthday, the Houston region will be home to the healthiest, happiest, most prosperous people in the United States.…
Purpose: WCT was formed to care for injured, ill and orphaned wildlife through rehabilitation, public education and release in the Greater Houston / Upper Gulf Coast region. Each year the WCT cares for over 10,000 thousand injured or orphaned wild animals including over 300 different species. The WCT is Houston’s first trauma hospital that accepts all native injured, ill and orphaned wildlife.…
Galveston Island Nature Tourism Council’s (GINTC) mission is to connect people with Galveston’s natural environment.
Purpose:Galveston Island Nature Tourism Council is a non-profit, community-based volunteer organization that supports and develops nature-based educational and recreational activities, and promotes the value of area natural habitats and resources.
Interest in nature tourism is on the rise.…
Purpose: Engage. Educate. Empower. Providing opportunities for young people to learn about our environment and 21st Century Stewardship through engaging them, and providing knowledge and skills that empower them. Â
Programs: Conservation projects, scout merit badges, science teacher training, afternoon story time, hands-on student ecosystem lessons in the one-acre Don Greene Nature Park.…
Purpose: The chapter will accelerate the implementation of the best sustainable building practices for our region through collaboration, education and advocacy. Founded in 2003, the USGBC-Texas Gulf Coast Chapter is uniquely positioned to leverage green building industry knowledge with community needs related to the built environment. The chapter connects the built environment to community life indicators and offers the LEED Rating System as a measurement tool to vet whether or not a building is operating at high performance.…
Purpose:Â To preserve the coastal prairie for people and wildlife. KPC now protects over 24,000 acres of coastal prairie in Texas. On the Katy Prairie in Harris, Ft. Bend, and Waller counties, KPC owns nearly 13,500 acres and protects nearly 5,000 acres through conservation agreements with private landowners. KPC is also working to protect coastal prairie in other Texas counties.…
Purpose:Â To build the next generation of conservation leaders and inspire stewardship of our environment and communities by engaging young people in hands-on service to the land.
Programs: A year-round volunteer program and a paid summer job opportunity for high school students, each featuring hands-on outdoor service learning, camping and outdoor recreation.…
Purpose:Â The mission of Living Paradigm is to empower people by creating home ownership of shelters erected from reclaimed materials. These dwellings will be environmentally responsible and healthy places for those that inhabit them and will contribute to the culture, vitality, and individuality of the community.
Living Paradigm addresses the social, economic and environmental basis of sustainable living by building low-cost homes (under $50k), with volunteer or apprenticeship labor, using materials that would otherwise go to the landfill.…
Purpose: American YouthWorks provides young people with opportunities to build careers, strengthen communities, and improve the environment through education, on-the-job training, and service to others.
Programs:
- YouthBuild Austin is a youth services program that combines academics with career training, leadership development, and community service. For more information visit http://americanyouthworks.org/programs/youthbuild/
- Texas Conservation Corps (TxCC) is a 21st Century Conservation Service Corps accredited program that empowers young people through AmeriCorps service, conservation, education, and jobs training.
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Purpose:Â Serving Texas wildlife and its habitat, while protecting property rights, hunting heritage, and the conservation efforts of those who value and steward wildlife resources.
History: The Texas Wildlife Association was formed in 1985 by a group of ranchers, wildlife managers and hunters dedicated to the conservation, management, and enhancement of wildlife and wildlife habitat on private lands.…
Purpose:Â To provide education and outreach to local governments and citizens on the impacts of land use on watershed health and water quality.
Major Events: Workshops, Seminars, Conferences, Courses, and Classes.
Volunteer Opportunities: Restoration Projects, Conservation Projects, Landscape Installation Projects, and Wetland Workdays.
Publications:Â Â
- Can Houston Feed Itself?
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Purpose: The Houston Parks Board creates, improves, protects and advocates for parks for everyone. HPB is driven by the vision of thriving parks and communities for everyone forever.
Programs: Parkland and greenspace acquisition; park capital improvement projects; collaboration with other green groups; Neighborhood Partnership Program; 50/50 Park Partners Challenge; Volunteer Program.…
Purpose:Â The Big Thicket Association’s mission is to preserve, protect, and promote the Big Thicket region, its natural resources and cultural history, for enjoyment and well-being of present and future generations through advocacy, education, and research.
Major Programs: Neches River Adventures - a three tiered program that conducts (Tier 1) outdoor classes, (Tier 2) public and (Tier 3) private eco-history tours aboard the Ivory Bill and on the Neches River.…
Purpose:Â To promote greater public awareness, appreciation, and enjoyment of White Oak Bayou, its tributaries and environs by advocating the preservation, restoration, and maintenance of the natural wildlife habitats thereof, while promoting compatible educational and recreational opportunities within the area. White Oak Bayou Association was founded in May 1986.
Meetings: Monthly: 2nd Tuesday, 7:00 p.m.…
Purpose: The Shell Center for Sustainability’s mission is to foster an interdisciplinary program of research, outreach, and education to address actions that can be taken to ensure the sustainable development of communities’ living standards, interpreted broadly, to encompass all factors affecting the overall quality of life. In our Vision, the Shell Center for Sustainability is the regional expert in Gulf Coast sustainable development by fostering academic research, outreach and education initiatives in interdisciplinary partnerships and through collaborations that extend outreach from the Florida Keys to the Yucatan Peninsula with strong focus in the Houston and Galveston Region.…
Purpose: To preserve and protect the Texas coast and its recreational resources. To defend the Texas Open Beaches Act. Our issues are water quality, beach access, erosion, and coastal development. Our goal is to stand on the beach 30 years from now and be able to say, “We made the right decisions.†We were founded in 1999.…
Purpose: A volunteer membership service organization dedicated to creating land trusts of scenic habitat conservation preserves currently at 6,000 acres. Includes permanent protection and restoration of the 1,058-acre John M. O’Quinn I-45 Scenic Estuarial Corridor, the natural marsh gateway to Galveston; the contiguous 1,840 acres of native coastal prairie and wetland habitat on the Virginia Point Peninsula Preserve, and 3,000+ acres as stewards of conservation easement prairies/wetlands on north West Galveston Bay.…
Purpose:Â To advance the conservation of birds and positively impact their supporting environments. Founded in 1969.
Meetings: with speakers are held the second Thursday of alternate school months: Sept, Nov, Jan, March, & May at United Way Center at 50 Waugh Drive. See website for details. Houston Audubon Nature Photography Association (HANPA) meetings: Third Wednesdays of each month, Sept-May, 7 p.m., HAS headquarters.…
Purpose:Â To ignite life-long curiosity, understanding, and respect for nature through education.
Programs: Year –round classes and camps for 3 – 10 year olds; on and off-site programs for schools: field trips, science exhibit loans, teacher professional development; in-class live animal presentations; in-class, hands-on Science on the Go! Lesson for 3rd-5th graders; scout advancement programs and birthday party live animal programs.…