Lifelong Learning Programs

Conant Lecture Series

The Roger Conant
Distinguished Guest Lecturer Program
Please join us for the Roger Conant Distinguished Guest Lecturer Program on Thursday, October 17, 2024, at 7:00 p.m., at the Crowley Theater, Marfa, TX.

We are delighted to announce Jesse Kelsch, Assistant Professor at Sul Ross State University, will be the next lecturer at CDRI's Roger Conant Distinguished Guest Lecturer Program. 
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Jesse's primary field of research and teaching is Structural Geology, or the deformation (stretching, breaking, and folding) recorded in the rocks of Earth's outer layer as a result of plate-tectonic stresses. She received her PhD in 2023 at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), where she conducted research of faults in the southern segment of the Rio-Grande Rift in the Trans-Pecos Region and northern Chihuahua. 
Jesse will report on the geologic formations of our region and how the various land masses formed. 
Click below to watch CDRI's most recent lectures. 
We are grateful to the distinguished guest lecturers, listed below, who have honored CDRI as  Conant Lecturers:

Spring 2015: Gary Paul Nabhan, PhD, ethnobotanist, University of Arizona, Kellogg Endowed Chair.
Fall 2015:  Andy Cloud, archaeologist, Director, Center for Big Bend Studies.
Spring 2016: Agave is Life, Marfa film premiere, Meredith Dreiss & David Brown, Archeoproductions.com.
Fall 2016: Ads Koenig, PhD, author, Cacti of Texas in their Natural Habitat.
Spring 2017: Katharine Hayhoe, PhD, Atmospheric scientist, Chief Scientist for The Nature Conservancy, Distinguished Professor at Texas Tech University.
Fall 2017: Andrew Sansom, PhD, Executive Director, the Meadows Center for Water & the Environment, Texas State University.
Spring 2018: Reggie James, Exec. Director, Lone Star Chapter, Sierra Club, Austin, TX.
Fall 2018: Arvind Panjabi, Avian Conservation Scientist, Bird Conservancy of the Rockies, with ongoing research into the restoration and conservation of desert grasslands for migratory birds in the Chihuahuan Desert of the U.S. and Mexico.
Spring 2019: James Cornett, author and naturalist, with several books about the Chihuahuan Desert, including The Greater Roadrunner.
Fall 2019: Robert Armstrong, PhD, 
Director of the MIT Energy Initiative and the Chevron Professor of Chemical Engineering, MIT. His research is focused on pathways to a low-carbon energy future.
Spring 2022: James Cornett, author and naturalist,  with his lecture titled, "Can't Live Without You: Hummingbirds and Ocotillos."
Fall 2022: Louis Harveson, PhD,  Founder and Director of the Borderlands Research Institute (BRI)
Additional  Conant Lecturers are listed in the next column.

Birding

Take a Visit to
the Bird Blind 
The Bird Blind is the perfect site to view and photograph both regional and migrating grassland birds.  The ADA accessible, covered shelter provides comfortable viewing, plus screens on either side of the shelter allow for photography. The site offers a 30 ft. long, solar-powered water feature, plus a full buffet of wild bird seed, suet, nyger seed, fruit and peanut butter to attract a wide variety of birds.  The Bird Blind is open and accessible during regular business hours at the Nature Center. 
Conant Lecturers continued...

Spring 2023: Lauren Esposito, PhD, Curator and Schlinger Chair of Arachnology, California Academy of Sciences.
Fall 2023: Gary Paul Nabhan, PhD, Known for his work as an Agricultural Ecologist, Ethnobotanist, Ecumenical Franciscan Brother, and author whose work has focused primarily on the interaction of biodiversity and cultural diversity of the arid binational Southwest, Gary is a pioneer in the local food movement and the heirloom seed saving movement. 
Spring 2024: Chris Ritzi, PhD, Professor of Biology at Sul Ross State University, Alpine, TX, whose research has focused on tamarisk beetles imported to the Southwest to eradicate salt cedar.

School Programs

 Volunteering to Assist with
School Programs Leads to
Lifelong Learning
Throughout the year, we offer learning opportunities for T.E.A. Region 18 public school students, as well as for area private school and homeschool students. Thanks to the support  of generous donors, we are able to offer these educational programs free of admission fees to area children. 
    
Each grade level program has a nature-based theme with scripted and well-designed lessons. These lessons are presented by our volunteers at the Learning Stations at our outdoor classrom setting.  We provide the lessons, all of the materials,  and the training, so you are comfortable in your role of "teaching" and engaging children in learning scientific concepts that are fun, meaningful, and memorable. We think you'll agree that it's a rewarding experience. 
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To volunteer, or for more information, call 432-364-2499 or email .[email protected].
For more information about these programs please contact [email protected] or 432-364-2499