Celebrate Latino Conservation Week through habitat restoration, outreach, and education with our Texas Representative, Azalia Rodríguez, and Field Intern for the Southwest, Isabella Orta. Defenders of Wildlife partnered with Latino Outdoors for an action-packed weekend highlighting and supporting the Latino community’s role in conservation.
Video Transcript:
Azalia: It’s day 1 of our Latino Conservation weekend event – we’re partnering with Latino Outdoors and of course, Defenders of Wildlife.
One part of the reason I love my job so much is because we get to do a lot of habitat restoration work for community led events just like this. And so we’re helping make sure the wildlife habitat and wetlands are clean for future generations to enjoy.
Isabella: So part of my internship is being able to go out in the field and do field work. And so right now I’m here in public lands at Choke Canyon State Park doing habitat restoration.
Liz: So we are out here cleaning up the park, picking up trash. Just keeping it beautiful, for everybody to enjoy.
Group: Yo puedo!
Azalia: For one of our community events for conservation we’re out here with Latino Outdoors Austin and San Antonio and we are doing fishing today and you can kind of see them right here behind me. And we are practicing managed hunting on public lands.
Today, the families that we’re working with are visiting from Austin and San Antonio, which are on the eastern crescent of the Texas Hill country. The Texas Hill country is the heart and soul of Texas, as this is where east, west and south Texas come together in a harmonious balance.
Right now in Texas, water conservation is at the forefront of everything. And that’s because our state is experiencing rapid population growth. And this is putting pressure on our natural infrastructure. Latino communities have a cultural connection with water, and so educating them about the species that dwell and depend on water really helps round out the work that we are doing here at the Hill Country.
Today, Defenders is leading conservation on the ground – expanding partnerships and engaging new audiences within communities of Austin and San Antonio.
AJ: Hey, I’m A.J. and I’m here with Latino Outdoors and Defenders of Wildlife because it’s Latino Conservation Week. And the way I practice conservation is by cleaning up the earth for the wildlife.
Isabella: And for me, Latino conservation means helping our land, protecting our natural resources, and also getting out as much as possible to spread the word and educate others.
Azalia: This weekend, we have lots of events with habitat restoration, outreach, education, creating awareness for imperiled wildlife in Texas, and of course, any activities that look like getting the Latino community out into the outdoors.
We can all do our part to protect wildlife habitat and practice good water conservation. But that starts with educating our local communities and re-learning and re-thinking the way we see and use water.
For more, visit defenders.org
