Greetings Texas Master Naturalists,
It has been my great pleasure to be an instructor in the Texas Master Naturalist program for 21 years. During that time I have been regularly asked for the same types of information and resources that I then have to hunt down from a myriad of sources. I’m sure you have experienced the same thing – searching for resources about local and regional nature and conservation. So, I am proposing to co-create a free web resource for the Houston Galveston Region called Nature You: Houston Galveston. Yet, this work really needs great volunteers to make this a reality and I would love to have 2-4 seasoned Master Naturalists work with us. Linda Elkin, a TNC volunteer, is helping me coordinate the effort.
The Nature You: Houston-Galveston site will provide a convenient place to direct people for Nature information about the Houston-Galveston Region as well as a repository for me and other Naturalists to store and access Nature resources. No more searching my aging memory bank or my computer files for that map of Houston prairie coverage in the 1930’s. The intended users of Nature You: Houston Galveston are Texas Master Naturalists, scout leaders, teachers, landscape architects, governmental and non-governmental agencies, and individuals who need or want to learn more about our regional habitat and its history. Nature You: Houston-Galveston resources will be free to users for learning and teaching purposes.
We have developed a preliminary framework for the site but need volunteers to help us populate the sections.
- Introduction
- Plants
- Landscapes
- Wildlife
- Nature and Culture
- Flora and Fauna Checklists
- Helpful Apps
- Native Planting Guides
- Training Opportunities
- Videos
- Volunteer Organizations
Examples of content would be historic and contemporary photos and maps, videos, bibliographies for suggested reading, links to organizations and training opportunities, teaching aids like lesson plans, educational trunks, and field trip opportunities, etc.
Once we finalize the framework, I foresee dividing the sections up between the volunteers to populate the resources, then having the committee review each section for additions or modifications. TNC will develop the graphics and get the site online (unless one of the other volunteers is excited for that opportunity). TNC will also maintain the site but will credit TMN as a partner and this resource will be free to anyone without burdensome memberships or other barriers.
Volunteer Expectations
- Time commitment: 4 months
- Hours per week: Flexible. Initially 2 hours a week are anticipated. We are targeting kickoff for mid- to late September.
- Experience Level: Seasoned Texas Master Naturalists with some knowledge of available resources and a willingness to search out good data for inclusion. It’s easy to get sucked into the vortex of the internet. We need volunteers who have knowledge of the most useful site and resources.
- Duties: Collect nature, conservation, and environmental resources for Southeast Texas from nonprofits, governmental agencies, individuals, websites, etc. Project Coordinators will assist volunteers in finding sources for materials.
- Computer skills Required: Familiarity or willingness to learn Google Drive. If you know Word and Excel, this is easy to pick up.
- Project Coordinators: Jaime González and Linda Elkin, The Nature Conservancy of Texas
What’s in it for your chapters?
I know as Master Naturalists you have developed materials you would like to get to a wider audience and also have favorite resources you would like to highlight. This site will help you do that. It will also be a helpful resource for your chapters to use for your membership and new trainees.
I hope that this project would qualify for volunteer hours under TMN guidelines but look for your input on whether it does.
Sincerely,
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
| Jaime González Houston Healthy Cities Program Director jaime.gonzalez@tnc.org (713) 230-8167(Direct) (281) 660-6683 (Cell) The Nature Conservancy Texas Chapter – Houston Office 3801 Kirby Dr., Suite 740 Houston, TX 77098 nature.org/texas |
For Heartwood members volunteering for this opportunity, please use VMS code: TG: Other locations (Research to develop natural resources website with Natrure Conservancy)