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The Texas A&M Institute of Renewable Natural Resources' Texas Land Trends has published its latest report on the status of the state's rural working lands, which include the state's forests, farms and ranches.
The Texas Water Resources Institute’s Texas Watershed Planning Program will present a social media workshop for natural resources professionals Oct. 28-29 at the Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons Lane, Suite 120, in Houston.
The vast majority of Texas land — 83 percent — is part of a farm, ranch or forest. But Texas is losing such rural land more than any other state, in large part because of the exploding growth of metropolitan areas, according to newly released data.
Two state agencies and one federal agency will conduct a multi-county Private Land Stewardship Field Day Nov. 5 at two sites in Coryell County.
Talk of Texas often conjures images of wide open ranch land and farmers at work their fields. But that iconic territory is being lost, according to a new analysis.
Texas experienced a net loss of nearly 1.1 million acres of privately owned farms, ranches and forests from 1997 to 2012, continuing the trend of rural land conversion and fragmentation in Texas, according to Dr. Roel Lopez, director of the Texas A&M Institute of Renewable Natural Resources.
The saying goes that a picture is worth a thousand words. I believe the same could be said about an organization’s name. We should understand an organization’s work and mission by its name.
That is one of the reasons why we recently changed our name from the Texas A&M Institute of Renewable Natural Resources to the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute.
The renaming was part of a strategic planning and brand-building process that the institute began a few years ago and has culminated in 2017 with our updated website, brand and name.
Our primary work includes work with endangered species conservation, military land sustainability and land trends to name a few, which the term “renewable” does not precisely describe. In fact, the majority of our work is in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, and state agencies such as the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, which focus on the conservation of natural resources on both private and public lands.
It is for these reasons that we decided to change the name of the institute - not to change the scope of our work but instead to better describe what we do. Our new name better reflects our mission and vision:
“Our mission is to solve complex natural resource challenges through discovery, engagement, innovation, and land stewardship. Our vision is a future where the benefits of private lands are enhanced and the value of land stewardship is promoted and strengthened.”
- Dr. Roel Lopez, NRI Director