Organization: RGISC INC
Mission: THE RGISC MISSION IS TO PRESERVE AND PROTECT THE RIO GRANDE-RIO BRAVO, ITS WATERSHED AND ENVIRONMENT, THROUGH AWARENESS, ADVOCACY, RESEARCH, EDUCATION, STEWARDSHIP AND BI-NATIONAL COLLABORATION FOR THE BENEFIT OF PRESENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS.
Activities: 1ST EXEMPT PURPOSE ACCOMPLISHMENT: EDUCATION/AWARENESS ANNUAL MEETING: IN THE SECOND QUARTER OF EACH YEAR, AS PER ITS BYLAWS, RGISC HOLDS AN ANNUAL MEETING WITH ITS MEMBERSHIP. IT'S THE MOMENT WHEN WE RECAP OUR ORGANIZATION'S WORK OVER THE PAST YEAR, GIVE AN ACCOUNTING OF OUR FINANCES, ELECT A NEW BOARD OF DIRECTORS, RECRUIT NEW DUES-PAYING MEMBERS, AND RECOGNIZE OUR COMMUNITY HONOREES AND SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS. BORDER WALL ADVOCACY: IN 2019, AN EXTRAORDINARY AMOUNT OF TIME AND EFFORT WAS SHIFTED TOWARD ADVOCACY WORK TO OPPOSE CONSTRUCTION OF THE LOOMING BORDER WALL AND THE SWEEPING NATIONAL EMERGENCY DECLARATION PLACED ON OUR COMMUNITY AND ALL OTHERS ALONG THE BORDER. RGISC QUICKLY FORMED A COALITION OF ELECTED OFFICIALS, ENVIRONMENTALISTS, NONPROFITS AND EVERYDAY PEOPLE TO BEGIN CREATING AWARENESS ABOUT THE DESTRUCTIVE HARM THAT THE PROPOSED WALL WOULD WREAK ON OUR LANDSCAPE, ENVIRONMENT AND RIVER. WE ORGANIZED MULTIPLE EVENTS FOR THE COMMUNITY WHICH INCLUDED: TOWNHALL, INTERFAITH SIT-IN AT THE RIVER, FILM SCREENINGS, AND FILED A LAWSUIT TO CHALLENGE THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY. WE DEEPENED OUR ALLIANCE WITH ACTIVISTS IN TEXAS AND ACROSS A MULTI-STATE COALITION, TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF THE FUNDING, LAND SELECTION, LACK OF TRANSPARENCY, WAIVER AND SUSPENSION OF NEARLY 50 FEDERAL LAWS TO RUSH CONSTRUCTION, AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS THAT COULD BEFALL OUR SOUTH TEXAS COMMUNITY. GOVERNMENT PLANS FOR 2019 INCLUDED RIPPING THROUGH THE URBAN HEART OF LAREDO, AND BUILDING MORE THAN 120 MILES OF WALL IN WEBB COUNTY AND ZAPATA COUNTY, TEARING THROUGH NEIGHBORHOODS, PARKS, NATURE TRAILS, AND PRIVATE RANCHES. LAREDO BIRDING FESTIVAL: IN EARLY FEBRUARY, RGISC HOLDS ITS ANNUAL LAREDO BIRDING FESTIVAL, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE MONTE MUCHO AUDUBON SOCIETY AND LAREDO CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU. IN 2019, RGISC HELD ITS 8TH FESTIVAL - A HIGHLY STRUCTURED, MULTI-DAY NICHE FESTIVAL DESIGNED TO ATTRACT BIRDERS FROM ALL OVER THE U.S. AND CANADA TO LAREDO. THE GOAL IS TO HIGHLIGHT THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIOLOGICAL BENEFITS OF ECO-TOURISM, AND TO DEMONSTRATE THE NEED FOR LOCAL LEADERS TO PRESERVE REGIONAL GREEN SPACES. WE HAD A RECORD NUMBER 152 REGISTERED BIRDERS FROM 19 OTHER STATES AND 39 OTHER TEXAS CITIES WHO IDENTIFIED A RECORD NUMBER OF 188 SPECIES. THEY WENT ON DAILY FIELD TRIPS WITH PROFESSIONAL FIELD GUIDES, AND ATTENDED MULTIPLE TALKS BY BIRDING EXPERTS. WE PARTNERED WITH ROUGHLY 20 RANCHERS FROM WEBB AND ZAPATA COUNTIES. THE FESTIVAL ALSO INCLUDE AN ANNUAL COMMUNITY OUTREACH EVENT FOR LOCALS: "BIRDS OF THE BRUSH" ART CONTEST, WHICH HAS BECOME THE LARGEST ART CONTEST IN LAREDO. WE 360 ART SUBMISSIONS FROM STUDENTS AND PROFESSIONALS. RIO RESEARCH ROUNDUP: EACH OCTOBER, WE HOST OUR ANNUAL RIO RESEARCH ROUNDUP, AN AWARD-WINNING BINATIONAL STUDENT WATER TESTING PROJECT THAT TAKES PLACE THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE WATERSHED. OUR GOAL IS TO EDUCATE MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM THE U.S. AND MEXICO WITH A S.T.E.A.M.-FOCUSED APPROACH ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RIO GRANDE WATERSHED BASIN AS A PRIMARY, AND IN SOME INSTANCES, ONLY SOURCE OF DRINKING WATER IN THEIR RESPECTIVE COMMUNITIES, AND HOW ITS FRAGILE ECOSYSTEM IS DETERMINED BY A NUMBER OF FACTORS INCLUDING HUMAN INTERVENTIONS. STUDENTS SUBMIT OTHER COMPONENTS, WHICH ARE THEN REVIEWED BY A TEAM OF JUDGES: SHORT VIDEOS, SHORT ESSAYS, ARTWORK, AND PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS. IN 2019, WE ORGANIZED OUR 10H ROUNDUP WITH NEARLY 2,000 STUDENTS VIA TEAMS FROM COLORADO, NEW MEXICO AND TEXAS (U.S.) AND DURANGO, CHIHUAHUA, COAHUILA, NUEVO LEON AND TAMAULIPAS (MEXICO) AND TEACH THEM HOW TO COLLECT AND PROCESS WATER SAMPLES; AND INCORPORATE BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY, GEOGRAPHY, AND ECOLOGY LESSONS INTO THE PROJECT FOR A MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCE. DIA DEL RIO CELEBRATION: EACH OCTOBER, WE HOST OUR ANNUAL DIA DEL RIO CELEBRATION, A MONTH-LONG CELEBRATION OF EVENTS. IN 2019, WE HOSTED OUR 24TH ANNUAL CELEBRATION THAT INCLUDED: 1)MORE THAN 400 VOLUNTEERS TO HELP CARE FOR LAREDO'S OLDEST NATURE TRAIL, PASO DEL INDIO, AND IN SO DOING, WORKED TO INSTILL RESPECT AND CARE FOR OUR NATURAL RESOURCES THROUGH HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES IN OUR COMMUNITY, WHICH INCLUDES TRASH REMOVAL, MULCHING OF TRAILS, PLANTING NATIVE PLANTS, TREES, SHRUBS AND WILDFLOWERS, AND POTTING NATIVE TREE SEEDLINGS AT THE NURSERY OF THE LAMAR BRUNI VERGARA ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CENTER. 2)ENGAGED 74 MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY + 1 DOG FOR OUR 3RD ANNUAL DDR RIVER PADDLE AS A WAY TO RECONNECT LAREDOANS WITH THE RIVER BY PROVIDING A KAYAK EXCURSION. MOST HAD NEVER PADDLED THE RIVER. WE BELIEVE THIS ACTIVITY HELPS TO CREATE GREATER UNDERSTANDING AND AWARENESS OF THE RIVER AND THE LOCAL FLORA AND FAUNA THAT DEPEND ON IT. 3)HELD OUR ANNUAL BINATIONAL PROCLAMATION ALONG THE BANKS OF THE RIVER WITH OFFICIALS FROM LAREDO AND NUEVO LAREDO. 4)HELD A SECOND LOVING LAREDO HALLOWEEN BAT HIKE ON THE CHACON HIKE & BIKE TRAILS WITH AN ON-SITE PRESENTATION BY DR. TOM VAUGHAN ON THE MEXICAN FREE-TAILED BAT WHICH CAN BE SEEN TAKING FLIGHT AT DUSK FROM THE MEADOW STREET BRIDGE. GENERAL RIVER: WE CONDUCTED MONTHLY RIVER MONITORING THROUGH THE TEXAS CLEAN RIVERS PROGRAM. THIS ALLOWS US TO MEASURE AND DOCUMENT WATER FLOW AND THE LEVEL OF POLLUTANTS AND PATHOGENS IN THE RIO GRANDE. FOR NEARLY 25 YEARS, RGISC HAS CONDUCTED MONTHLY SAMPLING OF WATER AT MULTIPLE POINTS ALONG THE RIVER AND SUBMITTING THE DATA TO FEDERAL AND STATE AGENCIES. WE REMAINED DEEPLY ENGAGED WITH THE ONGOING ISSUE OF UNTREATED SEWAGE ENTERING THE RIVER FROM OUR SISTER CITY IN MEXICO, ACROSS THE BORDER, NUEVO LAREDO. WE CONDUCTED MEETINGS TO GET AN UPDATE ON THE CURRENT SITUATION INVOLVING RAW SEWER DISCHARGES. THE AMOUNT HAS STEADILY INCREASED EACH YEAR TOPPING MORE THAN 10 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY BY YEAR'S END, WITH THE LION'S SHARE HAPPENING THROUGH NUEVO LAREDO'S THREE MAJOR CREEKS, PLUS ILLEGAL SEWER LINE CONNECTIONS INTO THE STORM DRAINAGE SYSTEM. COYOTE CREEK, MEANWHILE, HAS ROUGHLY 35-40 RAW SEWER DISCHARGE POINTS FROM DENSE WORKING AND MIDDLE CLASS NEIGHBORHOODS, DESPITE CITY CODES THAT REQUIRE SEWER CONNECTIONS. SOLA CENTER WE CONTINUED TO WORK WITH THE CITY OF LAREDO TO SECURE A LONG-TERM LEASE TO LAUNCH WHAT WOULD BE CALLED THE SOUTH LAREDO NATURE & BIRDING CENTER (SOLA CENTER) ALONG THE RIVER, WITH A CENTRAL BUILDING AND 18 ACRES OF TRAILS ALONG THE RIVER. PROGRESS ON THIS PROJECT WAS STYMIED BY THE AMOUNT OF TIME REQUIRED FOR OUR BORDER WALL ADVOCACY EFFORTS.
2ND EXEMPT PURPOSE ACCOMPLISHMENT: CONFERENCES 2019 WAS THE YEARS THAT OUR ORGANIZATION REALLY BEGAN TO MAKE A PRESENCE ON THE NATIONAL LANDSCAPE AMONG OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS. WE WERE INVITED TO ATTEND AND PRESENT AT MULTIPLE CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS IN MAY 2019, THE RGISC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ATTENDED A CONFERENCE IN BOULDER, CO, WITH THE WORLD WILDLIFE FUND, ONE OF THE ONLY BIG GREENS THAT MONITORS THE HEALTH OF THE RIO GRANDE BASIN IN CERTAIN GEOGRAPHICAL SECTIONS. THE FOLLOWING MONTH, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ATTENDED A SUMMIT FOR GREEN LATINOS IN THE ADIRONDACKS OF UPSTATE NEW YORK TO PRESENT ON THE BORDER WALL DEVELOPMENTS AND RESPONSE. ALSO THAT MONTH IN JUNE, A BOARD MEMBER AND STAFFER TRAVELED TO CLEVELAND, OH FOR THE ANNUAL RIVER RALLY CONFERENCE, AN ANNUAL GATHERING OF RIVER ADVOCATES FROM THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY. IT'S AN INTENSE MULTI-DAY CONFERENCE THAT HOSTS A CROSS SECTION OF TOPICS AND TRAINING FOR RIVER ADVOCATES AND NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. IN JULY 2019, A RGISC ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER ATTENDED AND PRESENTED ON BEHALF OF RGISC AT THE "RIO GRANDE RIO BRAVO WATER SYMPOSIUM" ORGANIZED BY THE BIG BEND CONSERVATION ALLIANCE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH AUDUBON TEXAS, PRONATURA NORESTE, AND RIO GRANDE JOINT VENTURE. IN THE SPRING AND FALL, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ATTENDED PLANNING MEETINGS FOR THE BREAKFREEFROMPLASTIC MOVEMENT IN OCCIDENTAL, CA AND PITTSBURGH, AND RGISC SOON BECAME A CHARTER MEMBER. MEANWHILE, STAFFERS ATTENDED THE 2ND ANNUAL PLASTIC POLLUTION SYMPOSIUM IN GALVESTON, AND A PERMIAN GULF COALITION TO STUDY AND DISCUSS THE PLANNED EXPANSION OF OIL AND GAS INFRASTRUCTURE IN TEXAS.
3RD EXEMPT PURPOSE ACCOMPLISHMENT: GREEN SPACE PRESERVATION OUTDOOR ADVENTURE: IN 2019, WE HELD SEVERAL LOVING LAREDO HIKES, SOME IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CASA YOGA, TO BETTER ACQUAINT MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY WITH SOME OF LAREDO'S CREEK SYSTEMS AND NATURE TRAILS ALONG THE RIVER AND OTHER PARKS. WE CONTINUED TO PRESS THE ISSUE OF CREATING A MASTER ECOTOURISM PLAN WITH CITY OFFICIALS TO ESTABLISH FORMAL LANDMARKS OF NATURAL ASSETS IN LAREDO AS WILDLIFE PRESERVES AND BIRDING SANCTUARIES ALONG THE RIO GRANDE THAT WOULD INVOLVE ENDANGERED SPECIES LIKE THE FEDERALLY ENDANGERED INLAND LEAST TERN (BIRD) AND TEXAS HORNSHELL (MUSSEL). CLEAN-UPS: IN 2019, RGISC ORGANIZED VARIOUS CLEANUPS THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY, PARTICULARLY ALONG CREEK SYSTEMS AND OTHER WATERWAYS: 1.IN APRIL, WE HELD OUR 5TH POST-EASTER CLEANUP BLITZ AT LAKE CASA BLANCA INTERNATIONAL STATE PARK WITH 100 VOLUNTEERS WHO REMOVED SEVERAL TONS OF TRASH LEFT BEHIND BY THOUSANDS OF VISITORS OVER THE EASTER WEEKEND; 2.IN SEPTEMBER, WE PARTNERED WITH A COUNTY COMMISSIONER AND CITY COUNCILMAN FOR OUR 2ND CHACON CREEK CLEANUP THAT DREW IN MORE THAN 400 VOLUNTEERS TO BEAUTIFY THIS HIKE & BIKE TRAIL IN SOUTHERN LAREDO. MONARCH: IN SPRING 2019, WE COMPLETED THE INSTALLATION OF EDUCATIONAL INTERPRETIVE SIGNS FOR THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY AND POLLINATOR GARDEN THAT WE CONSTRUCTED IN FALL 2018 AT A LOCAL COMMUNITY CENTER. WE ALSO BEGAN WORK FOR PLANNING A LARGE-SCALE MURAL CALLED "PLIGHT OF THE MONARCH." SINGLE-USE PLASTIC BAGS: IN JANUARY 2019, WE PARTICIPATED IN THE FILMING OF A NETFLIX 5-PART DOCUMENTARY CALLED "BROKEN" TO TELL THE STORY OF OUR ORGANIZATION AND LAREDO IN THE DECADE LONG SINGLE USE PLASTIC BAG BATTLE. THAT WORK WAS FEATURED PROMINENTLY IN THE EPISODE "RECYCLING SHAM" RELEASED IN NOV. 2019. WE ALSO BEGAN WORKING WITH THE BREAKFREEFROMPLASTIC MOVEMENT ON NARRATIVE STORY-TELLING TO CREATE GREATER AWARENESS OF THE SINGLE USE PLASTICS CRISIS AND HOW WE CAN BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION. IN LATE DECEMBER, WE PARTICIPATED IN THE ANNUAL LAREDO CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE MONTE MUCHO AUDUBON SOCIETY. RGISC ALSO PROVIDED NUMEROUS TALKS AND PRESENTATIONS YEAR-ROUND TO DIFFERENT GROUPS AND SCHOOLS ABOUT CERTAIN ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS, AND TO INFORM THEM ABOUT THE PRESENCE OF ECOLOGICALLY RICH AREAS IN OUR MIDST.
NTEE category: Environment
Secondary category: International, Foreign Affairs & National Security