RGISC INC

1. YOUTH & COMMUNITY IN NATURE (YCN) SUMMER ECO-CAMPS HOSTED IMMERSIVE WEEK-LONG CAMPS AT LAKE CASA BLANCA AND LOCAL NATURAL SPACES, PROVIDING HANDS-ON STEAM LEARNING, KAYAKING SAFETY INSTRUCTION, WILDLIFE AND ECOLOGY LESSONS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP ACTIVITIES TO DEVELOP YOUNG CONSERVATION LEADERS. SPRING ECO-CAMPS PILOTED SPRING BREAK NATURE DAYS OFFERING STRUCTURED FIELD EDUCATION, INCLUDING WATERSHED SCIENCE, WILDLIFE IDENTIFICATION, BEGINNER PADDLE SKILLS, AND PLACE-BASED STORYTELLING TO EXPAND YEAR-ROUND ACCESS TO OUTDOOR LEARNING FOR YOUTH AND FAMILIES. RRR RIO RESEARCH ROUNDUP THE RIO RESEARCH ROUNDUP, ESTABLISHED IN 2010, IS ONE OF RGISCS LONGEST- RUNNING ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS AND REMAINS THE ONLY BINATIONAL, BASIN-WIDE STUDENT WATER-TESTING INITIATIVE ALONG THE RIO GRANDE/RIO BRAVO. OVER THE PAST DECADE, THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS FROM TEXAS, NEW MEXICO, AND NORTHERN MEXICO HAVE PARTICIPATED, GAINING SCIENTIFIC FIELD EXPERIENCE AND BUILDING RIVER STEWARDSHIP ACROSS THE WATERSHED. WE CONTINUED OUR COORDINATION OF OUR AWARD-WINNING BINATIONAL WATER-QUALITY RESEARCH PROGRAM WHERE STUDENTS COLLECTED AND ANALYZED RIO GRANDE WATER SAMPLES, LEARNING SCIENTIFIC FIELD METHODS AND ENGAGING IN ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP ACROSS THE BASIN. FALL ECO-CAMPS WE EXTENDED OUR SEASONAL PROGRAMMING INTO FALL OF 2024, REINFORCING ECOLOGY AND OUTDOOR SKILLS AND OFFERING ADDITIONAL ACCESS FOR FAMILIES UNABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN SUMMER SESSIONS, STRENGTHENING CONTINUITY OF YOUTH ENVIRONMENTAL PATHWAYS. LOVING LAREDO HIKES (LLH) LAUNCHED IN 2016 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MONTE MUCHO AUDUBON SOCIETY (MMAS), OUR LOVING LAREDO HIKING SERIES HAS BECOME A FLAGSHIP PROGRAM INTRODUCING RESIDENTS TO THE REGIONS BIODIVERSITY, NATIVE BIRD SPECIES, AND RIPARIAN ECOSYSTEMS. THIS SIGNATURE SERIES HAS HELPED NORMALIZE OUTDOOR RECREATION IN A HISTORICALLY UNDER-ACCESSED BORDER COMMUNITY AND HAS CULTIVATED A LOCAL CULTURE OF NATURE APPRECIATION AND CONSERVATION. WE CONTINUED TO DELIVER ON OUR SIGNATURE GUIDED HIKES ACROSS VARIOUS PUBLIC GREEN SPACES THROUGHOUT LAREDO, INCLUDING NATURE TRAILS, PARKS, AND OTHER OUTDOOR SPACES, TEACHING HIKERS ABOUT NATIVE SPECIES IDENTIFICATION, URBAN WILDLIFE ECOLOGY, WHILE BUILDING COMMUNITY CONNECTION TO OUR BEAUTIFUL OUTDOOR NATURE SPACES. LOVING LAREDO PADDLES (LLP) THE LOVING LAREDO PADDLING SIGNATURE SERIES BEGAN AS A COMMUNITY-BASED EFFORT TO SAFELY RECONNECT LAREDO RESIDENTS TO THE RIO GRANDE AND PROVIDE SAFE, GUIDED ACCESS TO THE RIVER, TEACH FUNDAMENTALS OF RIVER SAFETY AND ECOLOGY, AND HELP SHIFT PUBLIC PERCEPTION TOWARD VALUING THE RIVER AS AN ECOLOGICAL, CULTURAL, AND RECREATIONAL ASSET. RGISC HOSTED TWO RIVER PADDLES IN 2024, ONE IN APRIL FOR DIA DEL RIO (DDR), AS WELL AS OUR THIRD ANNUAL DR. JAMES EARHART PADDLE IN OCTOBER IN MEMORIAM OF RGISCS CO- FOUNDER AND AN ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATE. THIS EVENT HONORED DR. EARHARTS LEGACY AND FOSTERED COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS TO THE RIVER, UNDERSCORING THE IMPORTANCE OF PROTECTING THE RIO GRANDE. MONARCH & POLLINATOR GARDENS EXPANDED AND MAINTAINED NATIVE POLLINATOR GARDENS AS LIVING OUTDOOR CLASSROOMS, CONDUCTING PLANTINGS AND VOLUNTEER WORKDAYS THAT EDUCATED PARTICIPANTS ON URBAN ECOLOGY, NATIVE SPECIES, AND POLLINATOR HEALTH. YCN GENERAL SUPPORT MAINTAINED A STRUCTURED YEAR-ROUND YOUTH ENGAGEMENT MODEL, ALIGNING CURRICULUM, VOLUNTEER SUPPORT, AND FAMILY OUTREACH EFFORTS TO ENSURE EQUITABLE PARTICIPATION, ESPECIALLY FOR LOW-INCOME AND FIRST-TIME-IN-NATURE YOUTH.

2. AGUA RIVER MONITORING (TEXAS CLEAN RIVERS PROGRAM) RGISC HAS SERVED AS A CORE PARTNER IN THE TEXAS CLEAN RIVERS PROGRAM SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 1994, MAKING THIS OUR LONGEST-RUNNING SCIENTIFIC MONITORING INITIATIVE. FOR OVER 30 YEARS, STAFF HAVE COLLECTED MONTHLY WATER SAMPLES ALONG THE RIO GRANDE TO TRACK E. COLI, SALINITY, METALS, AND OTHER INDICATORS, PROVIDING ONE OF THE MOST CONSISTENT AND COMPREHENSIVE DATASETS FOR BORDER-REGION RIVER HEALTH. THIS LONG-STANDING PARTNERSHIP SUPPORTS STATE WATER-QUALITY DECISION-MAKING, INFORMS PUBLIC HEALTH UNDERSTANDING, AND STRENGTHENS BINATIONAL COORDINATION TO PROTECT THE RIVER FOR CURRENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS. AGUA GENERAL ACTIVITIES FACILITATED COORDINATION WITH RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS, CITY PARTNERS, AND ENGINEERS ON DROUGHT MITIGATION, WASTEWATER RECLAMATION, AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECHARGE, AND LONG-TERM WATER SUPPLY STRATEGIES, ADVANCING LOCAL AND REGIONAL WATER-SECURITY PLANNING. RIVER RALLY 2024 STAFF PARTICIPATED IN RIVER RALLY 2024, HOSTED BY RIVER NETWORK. THE EVENT WAS A NATIONAL WATERSHED AND RIVER MANAGEMENT CONVENING WHERE STAFF LEARNED ABOUT ONGOING RIVER RESTORATION EFFORTS IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, COMMUNITY SCIENCE, AND WATER-EQUITY FINANCE TOOLS TO INFORM LOCAL POLICY AND PROGRAM PLANNING. WECR STATE REVOLVING FUNDS COHORT THROUGHOUT 2024, RGISC ENGAGED IN A NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL STATE REVOLVING FUNDS TRAINING AND ADVOCACY COHORT WITH ORGANIZATIONS FROM ACROSS THE SOUTH, ADVANCING STRATEGIES TO ENSURE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING FOR UNDERSERVED BORDER COMMUNITIES, ESPECIALLY IN TEXAS. HARVARD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF DESIGN PARTNERSHIP IN EARLY 2024, AS PART OF A DESIGN COURSE, WE HOSTED A GRADUATE COHORT OF STUDENTS FROM THE HARVARD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF DESIGN (GSD) DEVELOPING WATER REUSE RECOMMENDATIONS AND PRESENTING RESILIENCE AND WASTEWATER RECLAMATION CONCEPTS TO CITY OF LAREDO LEADERSHIP, POSITIONING THE COMMUNITY FOR LONG- TERM REGIONAL WATER PLANNING. CITY OF LAREDO THIRD-PARTY FUNDING THROUGH SUPPORT FROM THE CITY OF LAREDOS THIRD-PARTY FUNDING PROGRAM, RGISC ADVANCED CIVIC COORDINATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING RELATED TO THE BINATIONAL RIVER CONSERVATION PROJECT. FUNDING SUPPORTED STAFF PARTICIPATION IN MULTI-AGENCY AND STAKEHOLDER PLANNING MEETINGS, COLLABORATION WITH MUNICIPAL LEADERSHIP AND DESIGN TEAMS, AND CONTINUED ADVOCACY TO ENSURE THAT ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION, EQUITABLE RIVER ACCESS, CULTURAL STEWARDSHIP, FLOOD RESILIENCE, AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT REMAIN CORE PRIORITIES FOR THIS ONCE-IN-A-GENERATION PUBLIC PROJECT. USDA LAS PALMAS RIPARIAN RESTORATION PROJECT RGISC CONTINUED ADVANCING THE MULTI-YEAR, FEDERALLY FUNDED LAS PALMAS RIPARIAN RESTORATION INITIATIVE ALONG APPROXIMATELY 40 ACRES OF THE RIO GRANDE CORRIDOR IN DOWNTOWN LAREDO. THIS PROJECT REPRESENTS ONE OF THE FIRST LARGE-SCALE ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION EFFORTS LED BY A COMMUNITY-BASED NONPROFIT ALONG THE BORDER AND AIMS TO REMOVE INVASIVE SPECIES, STABILIZE SOILS, RESTORE NATIVE HABITAT, ENHANCE PUBLIC ACCESS TO NATURE, AND IMPROVE LONG-TERM RIVER HEALTH. IN 2024, RGISC FINALIZED CONSULTANT PROCUREMENT, ADVANCED ENGINEERING AND DESIGN COORDINATION, REFINED INVASIVE MANAGEMENT AND PLANTING PLANS, AND SUPPORTED PERMITTING AND ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PREPARATION. THESE EFFORTS HELPED POSITION THE PROJECT FOR ON-THE-GROUND IMPLEMENTATION, IMPROVED TECHNICAL READINESS, AND STRENGTHENED PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN RESIDENTS, LOCAL AGENCIES, AND CONSERVATION EXPERTS TO RESTORE A HISTORICALLY IMPACTED BUT ECOLOGICALLY SIGNIFICANT STRETCH OF THE RIO GRANDE.