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Careers in Conservation No announcements at this time. This page was last updated on 06/16/2026. ********** Texas Conservation Alliance is committed to inclusion, diversity, and equity as core tenets of the organization, where everyone is respected and valued regardless of race, creed, ancestry, marital status, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, or national origin.

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Lights Out Education Program About The Lights Out, Texas! Education package is designed to engage students through three tailored, TEKS-aligned modules for grades 3–5 and grades 6–8. The goal of this program is to empower students to explore bird migration, light pollution, and urban ecology through inquiry-based lessons and real-world data. This program builds scientific literacy and fosters student-led action by utilizing a holistic strategy to shift awareness, behavior, and advocacy toward bird-friendly cities. Access the curriculum here: https://act.audubon.org/a/lights-out-texas-curriculum The grade 3–5 lessons, developed by Travis Audubon and Defenders of Wildlife, are designed to spark early environmental stewardship through age-appropriate content. During the lessons, students are engaged in discussions and wonder-driven, hands-on activities to connect conservation topics with traditional classroom learning. The grade 6–8 lessons, developed by Texas Conservation Alliance and curriculum consultant Meridith Cooper, integrate real data from the Lights Out, Texas! Monitoring Project to further the connection between the classroom and real-world data collection. Throughout the lessons, students utilize their critical thinking skills and complete student-led action projects to emphasize the importance of advocacy in the conservation field. For The Birds , developed in partnership with Maritimus Magazine, is a supplemental activity in the form of a digital game. Students navigate this interactive story to build a city that is beneficial for both people and wildlife as they learn about the impacts of light pollution and urban development on migrating birds. Play For The Birds here: ForTheBirds.neocities.org Though still in its early phases, TCA’s education program has already shown promising results in expanding awareness. By combining classroom-based learning with community engagement, we are laying the groundwork for long-term conservation impact. Through these two approaches, we aim to track meaningful outcomes in three areas: student awareness and action, educator engagement, and community impact. The goal is for students to develop a deeper understanding of bird migration, light pollution, and urban ecology. Students are powerful messengers, and create an impact by carrying the Lights Out message into their homes and communities. Even simple activities such as creating a poster or writing a letter can spark greater advocacy efforts. Teachers who integrate Lights Out into their classrooms are helping shape the next generation of environmental stewards. The curriculum fosters cross-curricular connections, from science and writing to real-world problem-solving while focusing on local conservation topics. The Lights Out message expands beyond urban centers, impacting rural and suburban communities. Through nature centers, Texas Master Naturalist chapters, and grassroots efforts, every Texan can understand and appreciate the benefit of Lights Out . Questions or comments: Contact Hannah@tcatexas.org

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TCA's online liability waiver must be submitted by all volunteers in order to participate in an event. You can electronically submit your form on this webpage. Volunteer Liability Waiver ASSUMPTION OF RISK, RELEASE AND WAIVER OF LIABILITY AND INDEMNITY AGREEMENT All volunteers participating in a Texas Conservation Alliance (TCA) Event are required to read the liability policies and submit a digitally signed consent form using the online form below. If you are under 18 years of age, then a parent or guardian must also sign below agreeing to the policies in TCA's liability waiver. Assumption of Risk: The undersigned hereby acknowledge and agree that they understand the nature of the Event; that Participant is qualified, in good health, and in proper physical condition to participate therein; that there are certain inherent risks and dangers associated with the Event; and that, except as expressly set forth herein, they, knowingly and voluntarily, accept, and assume responsibility for, each of these risks and dangers, and all other risks and dangers that could arise out of, or occur during, Participant’s participation in the Event. Indemnification and Hold Harmless: The undersigned also hereby agree to INDEMNIFY, DEFEND AND HOLD the Releasees HARMLESS from any and all claims, actions, suits, procedures, costs, expenses, damages and liabilities including, but not limited to, attorney’s fees, arising from, or in any way related to, Participant’s participation in the Event, except for those arising out of the willful misconduct, gross negligence or intentional torts of the above parties, as applicable. Severability: The undersigned expressly agree that the foregoing assumption of risk, release and waiver of liability and indemnity agreement is intended to be as broad and inclusive as is permitted by the law of the State of Texas and that if any portion thereof is held invalid, it is agreed that the balance shall, notwithstanding, continue in full legal force and effect. Permission to Use Likeness/Name: The undersigned further agree to allow, without compensation, Participant’s likeness and/or name to appear, and to otherwise be used, in material, regardless of media form, promoting Texas Conservation Alliance, and/or its programs, events, and activities. Release and Waiver: The undersigned hereby RELEASE, WAIVE, DISCHARGE AND COVENANT NOT TO SUE Texas Conservation Alliance and its partners, and each of them, their officers and employees, (collectively, the “Releasees”), from and for any liability resulting from any personal injury, accident or illness (including death), and/or property loss, however caused, arising from, or in any way related to, Participant’s participation in the Event, except for those caused by the willful misconduct, gross negligence or intentional torts of the above parties, as applicable. By submitting the form below, you agree with the policies in TCA's volunteer liability release waiver. Volunteer First & Last Name Email Phone Event Name I am younger than 18 years of age. My parent or guardian will digitally sign below. Parent or Guardian First & Last Name Parent or Guardian Phone Today's Date * required I agree to the policies in TCA's liability waiver * Thank you! Submit

Texas Conservation Alliance (TCA) has had a remarkable record of protecting our states forests, prairies, and rivers. TCA incorporates community engagement and advocacy, conservation education, and outdoor recreation elements to help inform and protect Texas wildlife habitats. Projects Texas Conservation Alliance (TCA) has had a remarkable record of protecting our states forests, prairies, and rivers. TCA incorporates community engagement and advocacy, conservation education, and outdoor recreation elements to help inform and protect Texas wildlife habitats. Texas Conservation Action Team Native Plant Propagation Program Advocacy for Threats to Ecoregions & Texas Communities Marketing Production & Community Outreach Municipal Water Recycling Cost efficient and wildlife friendly alternatives to unnecessary reservoirs. Recovering America's Wildlife Act RAWA information and video. Wildlife Protection of Texas wildlife. National Forest Management Thousands of forest acres saved through promoting select logging and special management Native Prairie Restoration Restoring Tall Native Prarie Grass. Oyster Recovery Oyster recovery text . Partnership for Conservation Over 55 state alliance member groups, numerous community partners, and the Texas affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation River & Watershed Protection 5 Texas rivers and forest bottomlands protected from reservoir impoundment Big Bend Border Wall Read TCA's statement. Mountain Lions Mountain Lions. Texas Habitat Champion Policy work has inlfuenced smart water planning, public lands management, and funding for state parks Refuge for Wildlife 250,000 acres of forest and prairie saved for wildlife habitat and watershed protection

Advocacy & Policy TCA is involved in crucial issues across the state advocating for wildlife and protection of wild habitat. Scroll down for more information. Reservoirs Marvin Nichols (PDF ) (Blog Posts ) The proposed Nichols Reservoir would permanently flood more than 66,000 acres of high-quality wetlands, bottomland hardwood forests, upland forest, and agricultural lands in Red River, Titus, and Franklin Counties, with at least 80% of the water piped over 100 miles to the DFW area. Compensation for lost wetlands and wildlife habitat would require setting aside mitigation land that has been estimated at twice the acreage of the reservoir footprint. The reservoir and its mitigation together are expected to take more than 200,000 acres out of production in a region whose economy is fueled primarily by land-based industries - timber and agriculture. Capital costs to construct the Marvin Nichols Reservoir and deliver water to DFW are currently estimated at $7.4 billion and could be much higher. If Marvin Nichols is built, the impact on the region – socially, economically, culturally, and environmentally – will be enormous. Thousands of Texas families will be forced to sell land that in some cases has been in the family for generations, land that provides their livelihoods. Many families will lose their homes, some will see family cemeteries inundated. The number of jobs lost, especially in the timber industry, will be devastating to local communities and school districts. More than 30 miles of the main stem of the Sulphur River and hundreds of miles of feeder streams will be inundated. The impact on wildlife is incalculable. Marvin Nichols Reservoir first appeared in the Texas Water Plan in 1968 and has been actively pursued since 2001. Fierce opposition from the residents of Northeast Texas, guided by TCA and aided by other organizations, has delayed initiation for 25 years. TCA’s program, Preserve Northeast Texas, continues to build opposition to Marvin Nichols Reservoir. Learn more at https://preservenortheasttexas.org/ Lake Ringgold (PDF) (Blog Posts ) A classic example of the deep flaws in how water development decisions in Texas are made is Lake Ringgold, a 16,000-acre reservoir proposed on the Little Wichita River by the City of Wichita Falls. Wichita Falls has sufficient water to meet its future demands and those of its customer cities. However, vested interests who would benefit financially from building the reservoir have been pushing for the new reservoir for decades. The same consulting firm that is expected to be granted a contract in the neighborhood of $100 million to design and oversee construction of Lake Ringgold also serves as the consultant to the official regional water planning group, putting the firm in the position of recommending a project from which it will receive substantial benefit. The two state agencies tasked with projections of future population and water use, the Texas Demographic Center (state demographer) and the Texas Water Development Board, both project a steady decline in population for Wichita Falls and its entire service area over the next fifty years. Wichita Falls, however, relied on the regional water plan, which uses data prepared by the consultant, to project a significant increase. If Lake Ringgold is built, it will permanently drown more than 2,000 acres of native tallgrass prairie, one of the rarest ecosystems in the country. Most of the remaining riparian forest in Clay County will be lost under water. Families with land and homes in the lake site will be forced to sell. The people of Wichita Falls and surrounding communities will see water rate hikes to pay the $550 million construction costs. Texas Conservation Alliance is actively opposing the state and federal permits for Lake Ringgold and pushing for water decisions based on scientifically-accurate projections of need and accurate assessment of impacts. Lavaca River Dam (PDF ) The Lavaca–Navidad River Authority (LNRA) has applied for a state water rights permit to construct a reservoir on the Lavaca River and divert up to 96,000 acre-feet of water annually into an off-channel reservoir. The proposed reservoir would be located on property owned by Formosa Plastics, raising serious concerns that the project would primarily serve industrial expansion—either for Formosa’s existing operations or to supply water to a proposed new Exxon facility or other industrial users. Formosa Plastics has a documented history of environmental non-compliance. In October 2019, the company agreed to a $50 million settlement, the largest Clean Water Act settlement ever secured through a lawsuit brought by private citizens. The Lavaca River is one of the few remaining free-flowing rivers in Texas. It flows roughly 115 miles from northeastern Gonzales County to Lavaca Bay, part of the larger Matagorda Bay system. Constructing this reservoir would significantly reduce freshwater inflows to the bay—an outcome with serious ecological and economic consequences. Freshwater inflows are essential to sustaining reproductive habitat for fish, oyster reefs, shrimp, and other invertebrates. These inflows also underpin commercial and recreational fishing and provide critical food resources for shorebirds and migrating waterfowl, including the endangered Whooping Crane. Diverting nearly one-sixth of the Lavaca River’s freshwater contribution would further stress an estuarine system already under pressure. Although the permit application lists municipal, manufacturing, and mining uses, there is no clear evidence of municipal or mining demand associated with this project. Instead, the proposal appears to involve infrastructure being built primarily to benefit a for-profit industrial user. The Matagorda Bay system has already suffered significant freshwater losses from projects such as Lake Texana and other upstream diversions. At a time when Texas bays are experiencing widespread ecological decline, protecting remaining freshwater inflows is critical. Further reductions threaten to compound existing damage and undermine decades of investment in coastal fisheries, wildlife, and local economies. Sulphur River Summer 2022 National Forest Management (Blog Posts ) TCA has been a leader protecting national forests since the 1970’s, when our founder Ned Fritz filed a lawsuit to protect the national forests in Texas from wholesale clearcutting. TCA’s litigations and decades-long policy work have significantly changed management of national forests across the Southeast and led to reduced clearcutting and a greater focus on ecosystem management in national forests nationally. TCA’s leadership in passing the Texas Wilderness Act of 1984 led to creation of five wilderness areas in East Texas, totaling 34,000 acres. Over the past twenty years, Larry Shelton, TCA’s National Forest Policy Coordinator, has collaborated with U.S. Forest Service (USFS) personnel to protect fragile habitats within large areas scheduled for logging and other maintenance activities. Thanks to Larry’s deep knowledge of the national forests in Texas and the rules regarding logging them, thousands of acres of mature hardwood forests, riparian areas, and other vital habitats have been conserved, protecting their biological diversity and preventing erosion and fragmentation. While the past year has seen a shift in USFS priorities toward more intensive logging and less collaboration with public interests, so far the primary focus in Texas continues to be thinning of pine plantations, which avoids major impacts to diversity. Mountain Lion Rule Change Pulled from Agenda Mountain Lion, courtesy of San Antonio Express News Thanks to all TCA folks who commented in favor of the proposed rule change to require reporting of mountain lion mortalities. Roughly 70% of the comments received by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission were in favor of adoption. A couple of days before the Commission meeting, however, the proposal was pulled from the agenda. Chairman Paul Foster affirmed the need for data that the rule change would have provided while sa TPW Adopts Mountain Lion Regulations Mountain Lion courtesy of Expressnews.com For the first time in Texas history, Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPW) has adopted regulations concerning mountain lions. The regulations Prohibit “canned” hunting , which involves capturing an animal and releasing it so it can be hunted, often without the hunter knowing it had been captive, and Prohibit leaving a live Mountain Lion in a trap for more than 36 hours , to prevent trapped lions from suffering and dying from starvation or Mountain Lions Oyster Recovery The Texas Conservation Alliance (TCA) recognizes oyster reefs as foundational to the ecological and economic health of the Texas coast. Oyster reefs provide essential habitat for a wide range of marine life, enhance water quality through natural filtration, buffer shorelines from erosion, and sustain the long-standing heritage of Texas’ commercial and recreational fisheries. TCA supports management decisions grounded in sound science, adaptive management, and long-term sustainability — including responsible harvest limits, habitat restoration, freshwater inflow protections, mariculture, voluntary license buyback programs that reduce pressure on public reefs, and thoughtful evolution of the Certificate of Location (COL) program as a mechanism to restore and actively manage degraded reefs. Successful oyster conservation depends on strong collaboration and durable partnerships with the Texas Legislature, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, General Land Office, conservation organizations, research institutions, commercial harvesters, recreational anglers, coastal communities, and philanthropic partners to ensure Texas’ oyster reefs remain productive and resilient for generations to come. Recovering America's Wildlife Act See also Texas Alliance for America's Fish and Wildlife About the Bill > Statement on Big Bend Border Wall (PDF) Texas Conservation Alliance (TCA) believes border security is an essential responsibility of the federal government. Texans value safety, the rule of law, and effective management of our international borders. For those who live and work in the Trans-Pecos, security is not abstract, and landowners and local communities deserve solutions that address border-related security needs. At the same time, how border security is achieved matters. The Big Bend region is one of our most beloved and iconic landscapes. Big Bend National Park, Big Bend Ranch State Park, and surrounding private ranchlands form an interconnected system of desert, river, and mountain habitat that supports wideranging wildlife, including migratory species that depend on cross-border movement and genetic exchange. The Rio Grande is not only a geopolitical boundary — it is a living river system that sustains recreation, local communities, and wildlife on both sides of the border. While illegal border crossing activity does occur in this region, enforcement patterns have historically been far more concentrated in other sectors of the Texas–Mexico border. The remoteness and rugged terrain of Big Bend naturally limit cross-border movement, raising practical questions about the necessity and feasibility of largescale wall construction. Construction would also require significant condemnation of private property under eminent domain, trampling on long-standing property rights. Wall infrastructure would affect public access to the Rio Grande and to portions of Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park — access that supports recreation, local outfitters, and a tourism economy central to many West Texas communities. TCA believes that a continuous physical border wall in the Big Bend region does not represent the most effective approach to security. Permanent barriers fragment habitat, restrict river access, interfere with working lands, and disrupt wildlife migration corridors. Once constructed, these landscape impacts cannot be undone. Alternative strategies — including advanced surveillance technology, targeted infrastructure, and appropriately deployed personnel — can enhance border security in ways that are cost-effective, more adaptable, and less disruptive. In a region defined by sensitive ecosystems and challenging terrain, flexible approaches are likely to prove more practical over time. What is at stake in the region is nothing less than the integrity of one of the most remote, ecologically intact, and culturally significant landscapes in Texas. Federal planning maps indicate that more than 100 miles of border wall infrastructure could extend along the Rio Grande corridor within Big Bend National Park — nearly the entirety of the park’s river boundary. Additional segments are identified through Big Bend Ranch State Park and continuing through the Lower Canyons toward Amistad National Recreation Area. Taken together, publicly available documents show plans for hundreds of miles of new or expanded barrier infrastructure across the TransPecos, including stretches of the Rio Grande formally designated as Wild and Scenic River and landscapes recognized for their extraordinary ecological, cultural, and historical significance. What is clear is this: cnstruction at that magnitude would fundamentally alter one of the most intact desert river systems in North America — fragmenting habitat, restricting river access, affecting working ranchlands, and reshaping landscapes that have remained largely uninterrupted for generations. This is not a partisan position. It is a conservation position grounded in stewardship of public lands and respect for private property rights. TCA urges policymakers to pursue border security solutions in the Trans-Pecos that safeguard both the safety of Texans and the integrity of one of our state’s most extraordinary landscapes. The section below is under construction. Links will be included in descriptions below. Municipal Water Recycling Cost efficient and wildlife friendly alternatives to unnecessary reservoirs. Recovering America's Wildlife Act RAWA information and video. Wildlife Protection of Texas wildlife. National Forest Management Thousands of forest acres saved through promoting select logging and special management Native Prairie Restoration Restoring Tall Native Prarie Grass. Oyster Recovery Oyster recovery text . Partnership for Conservation Over 55 state alliance member groups, numerous community partners, and the Texas affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation River & Watershed Protection 5 Texas rivers and forest bottomlands protected from reservoir impoundment Big Bend Border Wall Read TCA's statement. Mountain Lions Mountain Lions. Texas Habitat Champion Policy work has inlfuenced smart water planning, public lands management, and funding for state parks Refuge for Wildlife 250,000 acres of forest and prairie saved for wildlife habitat and watershed protection TAKE ACTION Your donation helps protect wildlife and wild habitat for future generations to enjoy. Give Now

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Get involved with Texas Conservation Alliance today by signing up with one of our many events. Upcoming Events Preventing Bird Window Strikes Workshop Sat, Sep 05 Wild Birds Unlimited More info RSVP Forestry Forward Summit 2026 Wed, Sep 23 Holiday Inn Texarkana Arkansas Conv Ctr More info RSVP Annual Meeting at Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge Fri, Sep 25 Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge More info RSVP Connected Through Conservation Thu, Nov 19 YETI More info RSVP Log In