Hispanic Access Selected as a Liquid IV Grantee for Confluence 2023

Hispanic Access Foundation is honored to announce its selection as a grantee to participate in Liquid IV’s Confluence 2023. Confluence is Liquid IV’s signature program to support innovative leaders who share its ambition to expand equitable water access to communities in need.

THE HILL: Is Environmental Justice Momentum Slowing?

It is widely recognized that the mainstream environmental movement has historically dismissed the leadership and concerns of communities of color in the U.S., and internationally, in the Global South.

Hispanic Access Rio Grande Valley Wildlife Refuge Project Selected for Inaugural Peregrine Accelerator Cohort

Hispanic Access Foundation is honored to announce its selection for The Salazar Center's inaugural Peregrine Accelerator for Conservation Impact cohort for the Rio Grande Valley Wildlife Refuge project. Through this support, Hispanic Access, with the help of its network members, will work towards establishing a wildlife refuge in Southeast Texas between the border wall and the Rio Grande, while advancing Latino grassroots leadership in local conservation efforts and increasing access to recreation opportunities.

PUBLIC NEWS SERVICE: MANO Internships Broaden Horizons for NM Latinos

More than 200 young U.S. Latinos completed internships last year, which could lead to jobs historically difficult for them to access. Unpaid positions sometimes lead to permanent jobs but can be challenging for first-generation college students, in New Mexico and elsewhere, who often work full-time while completing a degree.

Signing Off, But Not Signing Out

This may be my last update with you all it, but it does not mean the end of the line for my work and project. This fellowship while I wish could last longer, comes to an end in July this year and I can’t help but say this has been both enlightening, informative, and an incredible experience. Just thinking that we were brought almost a year ago and knowing how much I’ve learned, done, and plan to do is both daunting and reassuring.  Much of this growth both personally and professionally, have in large part been due to the mentors and managers support during this program. Moving through the first few phases of implementing the Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) framework and understanding the local species, habitats, and conditions to understanding how changes in the climate regime will have an impact has been a large part of the work, and the informative part.  Coalescing all the data and information from the biological and environmental, to the climate data, and management capacity/needs necessary to assess and address vulnerability to climate change has really stretched out the concept of being interdisciplinary. There’s still more work to be done of course, as we are in the midst of phase 3 of implementing the RAD framework for adapting to climate change at our individual stations, and phase 4 is yet to start.

Intersections in Nevada

This past week, I traveled to Reno, Nevada to attend a meeting for the Truckee Meadows Trails Initiative. The coalition associated with this initiative has partnered with the Truckee Meadows Parks Foundation in an effort to increase access to open space and alternative transportation for residents of the Truckee Meadows region. Instead of one project, this initiative seeks to create a cohesive network of trails around the Truckee Meadows by linking multiple trails together, and to main access points in urban areas. 

Close Out at Corn Creek Visitor Center (Desert National Wildlife Refuge)

As I look back on the past year of my internship, I cannot help but be overwhelmed with emotions. It feels like I blinked, and it is suddenly coming to an end so quickly. Yet when I reflect on all the experiences and growth it just blows my mind to think about everything I have managed to achieve. I came into this internship with some goals in mind and I feel that I most certainly accomplished them. One of the primary goals for me was to reach out and engage with the Latino community in order to help them be aware of the resources that are available to them, being public lands. 

I was able to accomplish this goal through various different avenues to further develop a better connection with public lands. One of the first examples of this was helping out a non-profit named Get Outdoors Nevada. I was able to assist them with field trips hosted at the refuge, after school programs, library programs and community events. What is great about this organization is that they target underrepresented groups which often tended to be Latinos. Although the majority of these programs were in English, I believe having someone that looks like you gives you a feeling of representation. Outside of helping with these different programs, I was able to host some programs in Spanish myself. One of the more basic programs was hosting a Junior Ranger guided hike, this held in Spanish and from my understanding has been one of the few programs that has been held in Spanish. I also developed my very own programs about Bobcats that was also in Spanish as well.

Outside of these programs I was also able to develop content for social media in Spanish and also develop missions for an environmental education app named Agents of Discovery that was also in Spanish. This particular refuge does not have a lot of Spanish signage so I did my best to provide as much content as I could for them. I also hosted the very first Latino Conservation Week event at the refuge, which was also in Spanish. On one my previous posts I went more into depth about the event itself. Over all it was a success and I was very pleased with the turnout considering it was during the hottest time of the year. I could go on about all the rest my experiences but I feel like my previous blogs have been a great buildup for the final and last blog. I cannot thank Hispanic Access Foundation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service enough for providing me with such a great experience to be able to start my career. 

Anything Worth Doing