Environmental Groups – Parks & Preserves
Kuhlken Photography
Austin Parks Foundation
1023 Springdale Rd., Ste. 10D
Austin, TX 78721
(512) 477-1566
FAX: (512) 477-1586
E-mail: apf@austinparks.org
Net: austinparks.org
Facebook: facebook.com/austinparksfoundation
Instagram: instagram.com/austinparksfdn/?hl=en
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/austin-parks-foundation/
Purpose: Austin Parks Foundation partners with our community to enhance people’s lives by making our public parks, trails and green spaces better through volunteerism, innovative programming, advocacy and financial support.
Projects/Activities: Since 1992, Austin Parks Foundation has been committed to ensuring the future of Austin’s public parks, trails and green spaces. We provide resources, programming and funding to ensure access to parks for every Austinite. We create volunteer opportunities (both large and small), activation programming and fund large capital improvement projects. APF has been at the center of promoting park development, maintenance, accessibility and improvements all over Austin for more than 30 years.
“It’s My Park Day” – 1st Saturday of March and November; city-wide.
“Party for the Parks” – Wednesday between the two weekends of Austin City Limits Music Festival.
Volunteer Opportunities: See Web site.
Newsletters/Publications: Monthly e-newsletter; regular blog posts.
Dues: Donate on Web site.
Friends of the Parks of Austin
2311 Ridgeview St.
Austin, Texas 78704
Larry Akers (512) 443-1036
E-Mail: larryakers@austin.rr.com
Net: austinfriendsoftheparks.wordpress.com
Purpose: Friends of the Parks of Austin is a volunteer, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization incorporated in 1985 for the purpose of supporting and helping create a first class park system in Austin, Texas. It encourages and organizes programs for voluntary service in parks and monitors and advocates for parks and recreation in ongoing municipal decisions.
Recognizing the importance of parks and open spaces to the aesthetic, social, and economic well-being of the community, Friends of the Parks of Austin has taken an active role in strengthening and improving existing park facilities. It is currently serving as financial trustee for citizen groups improving Great Hills Park, Reed Park, Mayfield Park, elements of Butler Park, and the annual Tarrytown 4th of July Parade, which benefits West Austin parks. We serve as a stakeholder in the Town Lake Park Community Events Center Venue Project, which includes Michael Butler Park and Vic Matthias Shores.
Projects/Activities: Mayfield Park, Great Hills Park, Michael Butler Park, Vic Matthias Shores, Reed Park, general advocacy.
Meetings: 2nd Tuesday of every quarter.
Volunteer Opportunities: Independent volunteer neighborhood park project groups may apply to the board for 501(c)(3) financial trusteeship.
Hill Country Conservancy
PO Box 163125
Austin, TX 78716
Carolyn Stephens (512) 328-2481
E-Mail: info@hillcountryconservancy.org
Net: hillcountryconservancy.org
Facebook: facebook.com/hillcountryconservancy
Purpose: Hill Country Conservancy preserves vital natural resources through conservation, community collaboration, and engagement to sustain our region now and forever.
Projects/Activities: Hill Country Conservancy (HCC) partners with area landowners to protect open space in the Texas Hill Country through land conservation. Although the easements are on private lands, they provide immense public benefit, as they protect our water supply, maintain native wildlife habitats, and mitigate flooding. By preserving these vital ecosystems, we protect clean water, clean air, and outdoor spaces that contribute to public health, local culture, and a thriving economy. In the last 25 years, HCC has conserved over 14,500 acres of land.
In addition, HCC provides access to nature via the Violet Crown Trail and on our two nature preserves: Nalle Bunny Run Wildlife Preserve; and Pecan Sprigs Karst Preserve. The Violet Crown Trail currently, stretches 13 miles from Zilker Park to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, winding in and out of wooded regions and urban centers in Austin and Sunset Valley. The goal for the Violet Crown Trail is to create the first regional trail system in Central Texas. Once complete the VCT will stretch 30 miles long and will provide a unique recreational experience as it passes through the urban wildlands of the Barton Creek Wilderness Park, the City of Sunset Valley, City of Austin Water Quality Protection Lands, and eventually into Hays County.
Volunteer Opportunities: National Public Lands Day, National Trails Day, and “It’s My Park Day,” plus regular cleanups on the Violet Crown Trail. Visit Web site to sign up and to find out about upcoming opportunities: hillcountryconservancy.org/events/category/volunteer/
Newsletters/Publications: hillcountryconservancy.org/about/in-the-news/press-releases/
Preserves
Ecology Action of Texas
Eric Paulus (512) 322-0000
E-mail: eric@ecology-action.org
Net: ecology-action.org
Purpose: Founded in 1969, Ecology Action (EA) is one of the oldest environmental groups in Austin. EA’s mission is to protect, reclaim, and connect communities to neglected or damaged remnants of the urban wilderness.
Projects/Activities: EA accelerates ecosystem recovery through bioremediation, biodiversity enhancement, water quality improvements, and regenerative land stewardship. We own a 10-acre nature preserve in East Austin that we’ve transformed from a city landfill and illegal dump into a thriving, biodiverse sanctuary for urban wildlife.
Newsletters/Publications: Ecology Action Membership E-Bulletin, annual.
Lady Bird Johnson
Wildflower Center
4801 La Crosse Avenue
Austin, TX 78739
Contact (512) 232-0100
E-mail: info@wildflower.org
Net: wildflower.org
Purpose: The mission of the Wildflower Center at UT Austin is to inspire the conservation of native plants and landscapes.
Projects/Activities: The Center’s gardens display the native plants of the Central Texas Hill Country, as well as South and West Texas, while the Plant Conservation Program protects the ecological heritage of Texas by conserving its rare and endangered flora. Our online Native Plant Information Network is a database of more than 8,000 native species visited by millions annually about native plants and vendors across North America.
The Center regularly hosts walks and talks and holds annual family nights, native plant sales (spring and fall), and other inspiring and educational activities.
Volunteer Opportunities: Numerous! Call or e-mail for more information.
Newsletters/Publications: Wildflower, members’ magazine; brochures; online educational materials for all ages; online database (Native Plant Information Network).
Dues: Starting at $50/Individual; $40/Senior.
Visiting Arrangements: Open daily 9 AM – 5 PM. Free for members, children under 4, and UT faculty, staff, and students with ID. $12/Adults; $6/Youth ages 5 –17.
Westcave Outdoor
Discovery Center
24814 Hamilton Pool Road
Round Mountain, TX 78663
Meagan Whitehouse (830) 825-3442
E-Mail: info@westcave.org
Net: westcave.org
Purpose: Westcave Preserve is an ecological community of exceptional beauty located on 75 acres in the Hill Country. A semi-tropical grotto cuts deep within its sheltered canyon by perennially falling water. Orchids and cypress trees share the cool, moist, terrarium-like setting while cactus and juniper grow in the hot, dry habitat above the canyon rim. Our mission is to inspire people to develop a lifelong practice of enjoying and protecting nature.
Audiences: Schools Pre-K – 12; Families.
School Programs: 1) The Westcave Story – Geology, local flora and fauna, history of the land, and current conservation efforts; 2) Water: Lifeblood of the Earth – Hydrogeology of the property, watersheds, point and non-point source pollution; 3) Hidden Gems – Biodiversity, conducting biological surveys of plant communities; 4) Custom Programs – Developed to fit the needs/goals of most groups.
All tours are weather permitting, and include guided hikes into the Canyon, Cave and Grotto areas. Maximum of 25 people (students and adults) per group. Up to 5 groups permitted. Cost varies from $5-$30 per student depending on program/timing (minimum charge may apply for small groups). Programs usually last 3-4 hours.
Adult Tours: Reservation only. Check Web site for timing and online reservations. Weekday tours for organized groups up to 25 people.
Volunteer Opportunities: Projects, docent activities, internships for credit, and more.
Newsletters/Publications: e-newsletter – westcave.org/resources/newsletters.
Dues: $5-$30, depending on age and program. See Web site to join.
805 N. Capital of Texas Hwy.
Austin, TX 78746
(512) 327-7622
E-Mail: wbasin@stedwards.edu
Net: wildbasin.org
Purpose: Initially protected in the late 1970s in response to increasing development and habitat decline in west Austin, Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve continues as a legacy for urban wilderness and environmental education in Texas. Through collaborations with St. Edward’s University and Travis County, Wild Basin serves as a local gateway to the larger Balcones Canyonlands Preserve (BCP) system since its inception in 1996, promoting the protection of eight endangered species, as well as 27 species of concern.
Existing as one of few public preserves prior to the founding of the BCP, Wild Basin’s three-miles of trails remain open to the public, sun-up to sun-down, every day of the year. The Wild Basin Creative Research Center, with its information and welcome hub, is open weekdays from 8 AM to 3 PM.
We ask that you respect the natural beauty of this hill-country landscape by staying ‘on-trail’ and leaving ‘no-trace’ during your visit. Bikes, pets, smoking, and picnics are all prohibited within the preserve.
Volunteer Opportunities: Trail Guides; Visitor Gallery Weekend Support; Land Management/Trail Maintenance; Invasive Species Removal; Hospitality Ranger.
Dues: Suggested donation $5/person. Additional tax-deductible gifts may be submitted online.
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