Texas Master Naturalist Program

Introduction

The natural Texas is home to all of us, no matter where in the state we live. The natural Texas, the real Texas, is still to be found all across out state – from the wilds of rural areas to the squirrels in a city park to a wildflower in our backyard.

But as Texas grows more urban, we hurry to keep up with the hectic pace of urban and even suburban life. And we don't take the time to notice, to enjoy, and ultimately conserve the natural resources around us.

Become a Certified Master Naturalist!

Through the Texas Master Naturalist volunteer program, you can help children and adults in your community learn about Texas's natural resources, inspire them to a new appreciation of their environment, and ensure that others will be able to enjoy the natural Texas for years to come.

In the Texas Master Naturalist program, you will enhance your love of nature with research-based, scientific knowledge. You will receive in-depth training in wildlife and natural resource management taught by recognized experts in the field and customized to focus on the native ecosystems of your home. You will also have the opportunity for advanced training in special subjects that interest you.

In return, you will provide your community with volunteer service in the form of educational activities, projects, or demonstrations. You might serve on a speakers bureau to make presentations to community organizations, or you might introduce children to local plants, insects, and animals through an after-school project. You might serve as a guide at a local nature center, or you might build trails or exhibits at a local park. The possibilities are endless, limited only by your imagination!

As a Texas Master Naturalist, you will be helping people appreciate the natural environment around their homes, while you enhance your own knowledge and skills. And, perhaps most satisfying of all, you will have a chance to build friendships and work with others who share your love of the natural Texas.

Dedicated to providing instruction and volunteer opportunities for adults who wish to educate their community and demonstrate beneficial management of natural resources in Texas.

There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot. ...Like winds and sunsets, wild things were taken for granted until progress began to do away with them. Now we face the question whether a still higher 'standard of living' is worth its cost in things natural, wild, and free. For us of the minority, the opportunity to see geese is more important than television, and the chance to find a pasque-flower is a right as inalienable as free speech." - Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac