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NEWS |
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Teaching/Learning Network focuses on GMF in film
 A
PBS film crew was in Corpus Christi, Texas, recently shooting footage
for a "Voices of Vision" program focusing on the Gulf of Mexico
Foundation. When aired on the Teaching/Learning Network, the program
will reach about 15 million viewers. The GMF's Dr. Quenton Dokken
assisted with the project, working on a script and storyboard for
the video filming. The film crew took footage offshore and also filmed
the GMF's Science & Spanish Clubs. During an earlier trip, the crew shot
footage of the Down Under Out Yonder coral reef education workshops.
The film crew joined local conservationists Richard Gonzales and Kendal Keyes (GMF),
Kris Benson (NOAA) and Kay Jenkins (TPWD Project Manager) on a site
visit of the
Goose Island Marsh Restoration project, where they filmed construction of a new breakwater at
Goose Island State Park near Rockport, Texas.
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State of the Gulf Summit set for March 28-30, 2006
 The
Gulf of Mexico Foundation is one of the sponsors of the upcoming State
of the Gulf Summit, scheduled for March 28-30 in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The summit will bring together the
top leaders of government, industry, education, science, and
conservation to focus attention on the state of the Gulf of Mexico. As a
VIP event, the governors of the Gulf States of the United States and
Mexico will anchor the participant list. The 2006
Gulf Guardian Awards will be presented during the summit.
Read more. |
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RESTORATION
GMF staff Kendal Keyes,
Richard Gonzales and Quenton
Dokken join project leader Thor Lassen
at the dedication.
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Bahia Grande reflooding success, greenhouse ready
BROWNSVILLE, TX — More than 80
supporters met Sept 19, 2005, to dedicate the Carl “Joe” Gayman Bahia
Grande Restoration Channel and to discuss the progress made on the
largest wetlands restoration project in the United States. The Gulf of
Mexico Foundation was one of the project's supporters, funding
construction of two greenhouses that are growing marine plants for the restoration project
through a Gulf of Mexico Community-based Restoration Partnership grant.
The overall Bahia Grande restoration project, receiving funding from
multiple sources, is only partially complete. The greenhouses and the pilot channel
are complete, but the channel will eventually be enlarged and more channels will be dug.
Read more.
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Bahia Grande in South Texas before and after July 2005 reflooding
photos by Carrie Robertson for NOAA
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Eight restoration projects selected for 2006 funding
The Gulf of Mexico Foundation and its partners have selected eight new restoration projects for funding
under the Gulf of Mexico Community-based Restoration Partnership
(GCRP) for 2006.
Representing restoration projects from all five gulf states, the
new grant recipients are:
• Grasses in Classes Program - Alabama
• Robinson Island Restoration and Protection - Alabama
• Northwest Florida Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Salvage - Florida
• Don Pedro Land Base Wetland Restoration - Florida
• Oyster Reef Restoration and Shoreline Protection - Louisiana
• Lakeshore Savanna Invasive Species Removal - Mississippi
• Planting sea oats for sand dune restoration at McFaddin NWR - Texas
• Isla Del Sol Shoreline Protection and Marsh Restoration Project - Texas
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Steering committee reviews Caribbean proposals
The steering committee for the Gulf
of Mexico Community-based Restoration Partnership Caribbean Territories
has requested full proposals from a list of projects and will be
deciding which will receive funding this spring. The Caribbean grant is
a an expansion of the Gulf of Mexico Community-based Restoration
Partnership. It provides funding for community-based restoration
efforts in the U.S. Territories of the Caribbean region which are
Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
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EDUCATION
Applications available for coral education workshops
 This
summer the Gulf of Mexico Foundation, together with the Flower Garden
Banks National Marine Sanctuary, will bring teachers to the reef by
sponsoring the 11th annual "Down Under, Out Yonder" coral reef
workshops for educators, along with a two-day land-based "Corals to
Classrooms" workshop.
Read more.
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Science & Spanish Clubs participate in field trips
 The Gulf of Mexico Foundation's Science & Spanish Clubs participated in field trips during the fall
of 2005, from
cleaning up a "trashy hot spot" along the Tres Palacios River in
October to exploring Texas flora and fauna at Welder Wildlife Refuge in
November. Science & English Clubs in Mexico also participated.
Read more. |
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Board plans to expand marketing, receives donation
The GMF Board of Directors met in Houston on Nov 2, 2005. In addition
to discussing the foundation's business matters, the board formed a
subcommittee to develop an expanded marketing plan. It also elected
its newest member, Michael Kieschnick, to the position of treasurer.
Michael's uncle, Lawrence Kieschnick, served as the GMF's treasurer
until his death in August 2005.
Following the board meeting, Rowan Companies at Houston hosted a reception at the Petroleum Club,
where representatives from both BP and Rowan Companies donated funds to the Gulf of Mexico Foundation.
Read more. |
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STAFF
Dokken delivers message in
US Virgin Islands
GMF's Executive Director Dr. Quenton
Dokken delivered a verbal presentation at the Ninth Annual Virgin Islands Non-point
Source Pollution Conference Nov 30, 2005. His presentation was entitled: “Habitat Restoration: The NOAA Community Based Restoration Program,
EPA Gulf of Mexico Program & Gulf of Mexico Foundation Partnership.”
"We are excited about extending the Habitat Restoration Program to the U.S.
Caribbean territories," Dokken said. "Each of the islands is a mirror image of the
socioeconomic, environmental, public health, and governance issues being faced on a continental
scale in the Gulf of Mexico watershed area. We will work with the citizens and vested interests of the
Caribbean islands to help restore and protect the natural resources that make these islands so unique,"
he said. |
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GMF reaches science teachers at CAST in Houston
GMF staff members Kendal Keyes and
Richard Gonzalez exhibited Foundation programs at
the annual
Conference for the Advancement of Science Teaching (CAST) in
Houston Oct. 27-29, 2005. CAST is the annual statewide conference and
membership meeting of the Science Teachers Association of Texas
(STAT). The conference featured three days of continuing education
sessions, workshops, field trips, exhibit booths and other activities
designed to assist Texas science teachers. Approximately 6,000
teachers (K-12) from across the state attended the event. Programs
showcased at the GMF booth included the Foundation’s Science and
Language Club Network, the Down Under, Out Yonder coral reef education
projects, and several Gulf of Mexico Community-based Restoration
Partnership projects.
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GMF speaks to boating group, fisheries council
Nov. 10, 2005 - GMF's Kendal Keyes made a presentation to the Coastal Bend Sail and
Power Squadron in Corpus Christi, Texas. She presented general information about what the Foundation does and
mentioned a possible move toward a membership program in the future.
The group made a donation on the spot and wants to be remembered as the
Foundation’s first member.
Jan 9-10, 2006 - GMF's Dr.
Quenton and Kendal Keyes made presentations
the
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council Habitat Protection Committee
in Corpus Christi, Texas. Keyes spoke on the Gulf of Mexico
Community-based Restoration Partnership, while Dokken gave an update
on the upcoming Gulf of Mexico Summit and the Harte Research Institute
for Gulf of Mexico Studies. |
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