November 2014 BLOG POSTS

Exploring the connections between nature and our health

More than one-third of Houston-area children are overweight or obese, a startling statistic that is common to many communities across the U.S. Moreover, more than three-quarters of our children are not getting the level of physical activity recommended to maintain a healthy weight.  What does... Read More >

Deep in the heart of the Land of Bears and Honey

In 1984, Joe Truett and Daniel Lay, authors of “Land of Bears and Honey: A Natural History of East Texas,” put to paper what many old-timers in East Texas had quietly observed for decades—the ebbing of a Garden of Eden at the hands of humans:  “When white people... Read More >

One thing Americans can agree on

Politicians, pundits and ordinary people are scanning the horizon for clues about the deeper meaning of the November 4 election. Are voters shifting to the right, or did the Republican gains in the House and Senate primarily reflect dissatisfaction with an unpopular Democratic president?  With... Read More >

Will Texans ever see land as a community to which we belong?

Last February, I took Jack Ward Thomas, former Chief of the U.S. Forest Service and my graduate school advisor, on a road trip through the Texas Hill Country. It was his first time to visit that area since working for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in Llano, Texas in the 1960s. As expected,... Read More >