Webinar with Kristy Rangel, former Head of Professional Learning with the City of San Antonio’s Pre-K 4 SA program and Consultant

Americans are spending about ninety percent of their time if not more indoors, with children being no exception. The mental and physical benefits are compelling, so why are we not seeing a turn in this staying indoors trend? Even when outdoor access is created and built, in some areas the space still sits unused. Curious about why this might be, I learned that for many families there are some common, generalized obstacles standing in their way. This session will address these repeated concerns, provide research, and sound evidence on how to address parent education on these topics. This session will be useful for anyone in a position to speak to parents or adults who are care-taking young children on the importance of taking children outdoors and hacks for the obstacles in the way.

Kristy Rangel is the former Head of Professional Learning with the City of San Antonio’s Pre-K 4 SA program serving early childhood education throughout the city and is now independently specializing in facilitating workforce development in young adults, organizational health, and the art of effective communication for leaders. She is an avid lover of the outdoors and has been advocating for outdoor learning in schools for the past 25 years.

Webinar with Rachel Caldwell Hill, MA | ᏣᎳᎩ, Ph.D. Student, University of Texas at Austin

Osiyo! Join the Central Texas Cherokee Township to celebrate Native American Heritage Month. We'll share some traditional Cherokee stories, introduce the traditional Haudenosaunee Three Sisters gardening techniques, share about our community garden efforts throughout Central Texas, and have plenty of time for questions. Participants will come away with some Native American stories and indigenous gardening information they can incorporate in their programming to connect children and families to the natural world and Native American heritage.

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership

If you are a member, please refer to your Membership Information Email to see instructions for registering

Webinar offered at 2:00 Central on November 19

Ticket Sales will end on November 19, 2025

Webinar will be recorded and available for members and registrants

A Zoom link will be emailed from a TCiNN Staff Member to registrants prior to the event

Registration: https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/texaschildreninnaturenetwork/lessons-from-the-three-sisters-garden

Webinar with Alex Mylius, First 3 Years

Join First3Years for a dynamic conversation about how outdoor learning spaces can be powerful platforms for nurturing emotional connection and development during the earliest years of life. This session will explore how Baby Day, Texas’s only statewide celebration of infants and toddlers, fosters early relational health through joyful, curated activities that centeron caregiver-child interaction. You'll learn how your organization can bring Baby Day to life in parks, gardens, and outdoor classrooms—creating enriching experiences that support bonding, exploration, and developmental growth.

Participants will walk away with a deeper understanding of early relational health and why it's essential to lifelong well-being, actionable strategies for planning interactive events that promote connection and resilience, and ideas for engaging families and partners in activities rooted in everyday moments of joy and discovery. Whether you're a nature center educator, early childhood professional, or community organizer, you’ll leave inspired and equipped to make outdoor spaces a hub for healthy early relationships.

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

Webinar with East Foundation, Guadalupe River Trout Unlimited, Texas Brigades, Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society, and Texas Section Society for Range Management

Looking for opportunities for your child/grandchild/community youths to become more engaged in natural resources, conservation, and the outdoors?

We’ve invited five organizations to share their youth conservation opportunities:

East Foundation - Land Stewardship Ambassadors

Guadalupe River Trout Unlimited - Youth Trout Camp

Texas Brigades

Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society - Wildlife Conservation Camp

Texas Section Society for Range Management - Youth Range Workshop

Learn from the organizations’ leaders the purpose behind each program, the who/what/where details, how both youths and you can become involved, and the impact these programs are making on the lives of the young people that attend!

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

If you are a member, please refer to your Membership Information Email to see instructions for registering

Webinar with Monica Lopez Magee, Children & Nature Network

Many parents (myself included) struggle to get their kids away from screens and into the outdoors. In this workshop, you will hear a creative approach to turning a child's love of online gaming into a nature-based adventure—which became the inspiration for Nature Quest, a fun outdoor learning game for families and educators that uses nature as a “game board.” Nature Quest doesn’t require special supplies, skills or training, just a willingness to let kids’ imaginations and gaming experience take the lead. You’re invited on this journey to engage your child or family in a multidimensional adventure in nature while giving children tools for self-guided exploration and learning, and creating a storyline to sustain play.

This workshop is led by Monica Lopez Magee, Chief Program, Research, and Policy Officer for Children & Nature Network. Monica is a public servant, systems thinker, doer, dot connector, and advocate for equity, children’s learning and wellbeing, community health, sustainable practices, and healing in the outdoors. As a parent and educator, she is always exploring creative ways to play outdoors.

Webinar with Sharon Barnes, Founder and CEO of BLOOM Solutions

In this dynamic session, Sharon Barnes—Founder of Barnes Lead in the Outdoors, Outreach and Mentoring (BLOOM Solutions)—introduces Nature-Based Leadership Concepts as a powerful lens for cultivating resilient, purpose-driven teams. Drawing inspiration from ecological systems—where collaboration, adaptability, and interdependence are essential for survival—she explores how leaders can model these principles to foster trust, accountability, and sustained productivity. Participants will examine how natural rhythms and relationships offer practical strategies for navigating complexity, resolving conflict, and nurturing team cohesion in fast-paced environments.

​Rooted in her work mentoring youth and guiding community partnerships, Sharon invites leaders to reimagine their roles not as controllers, but as cultivators of thriving ecosystems. Through real-world examples and interactive reflection, attendees will gain actionable tools to align team goals with shared values, support individual growth within collective success, and lead with clarity and compassion. Whether in education, nonprofit, or corporate settings, this approach empowers leaders to build teams that are not only high-performing but deeply rooted in purpose.

Webinar with Janice Haggerman

Green schoolyards are invaluable campus assets that can improve students' physical and mental health, academic outcomes, social-emotional learning benchmarks, and access to nature. However, the existence of a green schoolyard itself does not guarantee that the space is accessible, or that school community members uses it. This presentation's research explores students, teachers, parents, and community members' personal experiences and opinions of two green schoolyards within the Austin Independent School District (AISD). The case study qualitatively identifies how end-users interact with and conceptualize their greenspaces on campus, providing quality improvement data for other green schoolyards within AISD, and offering suggestions for other districts. Findings include the ways in which socioeconomic contexts, campus-level policies, and urban development trends can negatively impacts on users' experiences on green schoolyard sites.

The presentation will illustrate current green schoolyard processes by describing an existing green schoolyard network in AISD, including its context and implementation strategy. AISD is considered a flagship in the green schoolyard field due to its early adoption of nature-based amenities on school campuses, partnership with the Cities Connecting Children to Nature initiative to grow and support green schoolyards, and innovations in campus sustainability. AISD’s varied socioeconomic service area provides a useful framework for comparing green schoolyards’ functionalities across unique campuses. The presentation will end with a series of practical recommendations for current and future green schoolyard managers that can help ensure that green schoolyards can equitably deliver all possible benefits.

Webinar with Amy Foster Palmer, MS, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension

Children’s play often involves risk—whether climbing high, running fast, jumping far, or sliding into a muddy hill. While risky play carries the possibility of injury, it also fosters exploration, confidence, and essential skill development. Instead of focusing on preventing risks altogether, educators can learn how to thoughtfully manage them through intentional planning and active supervision. This training explores what “risk” truly means in the context of children’s play, how it benefits learning and growth, and practical strategies for creating safe yet stimulating environments that encourage curiosity and resilience.

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

If you are a member, please refer to your Membership Information Email to see instructions for registering

Webinar offered at 2:00 and 7:00 Central on March 4, 2026

Ticket Sales will end on March 3, 2026

Webinar with Aasya Peera

Nature and wildlife are not things that only exist beyond our front doors; they are an intricate part of our everyday lives. Whether children enjoy spending time outdoors or prefer to stay inside, broadening our language to be more inclusive of varying interests and abilities can help ensure children and their families feel connected to nature no matter where they are. Together, we will discuss the importance of this kind of inclusivity in the conservation and education field and share examples of how to incorporate it in different subjects and settings.

Aasya Peera is an informal educator with experience teaching at nature centers and zoos in DFW. She writes and produces Maritimus, a children's magazine that explores the natural world through the lens of urban life, helping readers deepen their appreciation and understanding of the role nature plays in our lives.

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

If you are a member, please refer to your Membership Information Email to see instructions for registering

Webinar with the City of San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department

The session will cover the story of the San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department’s Aim to Float program as part of a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TWPD) Community Outdoor Outreach Program (CO-OP) grant to provide an archery and kayaking program for youth from historically underserved communities of low income and color in San Antonio.

During this session, attendees will hear about the successes, challenges, and lessons learned from the grant process and implementing the outdoor recreation program.

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

If you are a member, please refer to your Membership Information Email to see instructions for registering

Webinar offered at 2:00 Central on April 11, 2026

Ticket Sales will end on April 10. 2026

Webinar will be recorded and available for members and registrants

A Zoom link will be emailed from a TCiNN Staff Member to registrants prior to the event

Webinar with Dr. Christine Norton, Texas State University

In a time of increasing stress and burnout, the natural world offers a powerful, evidence-based path to healing. Join us for an engaging webinar with Dr. Christine Norton, social work professor, outdoor therapy practitioner, and researcher, that explores how outdoor therapy interventions can enhance wellbeing, foster resilience, and support mental health across the continuum of care.

Participants will deepen their understanding of the therapeutic components of outdoor therapy, develop greater awareness of nature’s benefits for physical and emotional health, and gain practical tools to integrate nature-based mindfulness into their personal and professional practices. Through a blend of research, theory, and experiential learning, this session will offer strategies for promoting resilience, reducing vicarious trauma, and cultivating sustainable wellness for both clients and clinicians.

Whether you're a mental health professional, educator, or wellness practitioner, this webinar will also create space to build community and open doors for ongoing education and growth in the field of outdoor therapy.

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

Webinar with Staryn Wagner, City of Austin Watershed Protection, and Lauren Maples, PEAS

In this webinar, Staryn Wagner will walk participants through the design and installation of Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) at Reilly Elementary, a demonstration site, where twelve cisterns and five rain gardens now capture and infiltrate more than 621,000 gallons of water each year. He will review how these features help control stormwater runoff, reduce localized flooding on campus, and provide practical benefits such as watering landscaping and sustaining trees. Participants will also gain insight into how to evaluate soil infiltration when selecting locations for rain gardens, as well as how to balance aesthetic goals with maintenance needs.

Following this technical overview, Lauren Maples will share how GSI projects open doors for meaningful student and teacher engagement. From planting native species to maintaining rain gardens and monitoring cisterns, these hands-on activities help connect learning to real-world environmental stewardship. Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of how GSI can address onsite flooding challenges and serve as a living laboratory for students, teachers, and the wider community.

Presenter: Dr. Jodi Nerren - AgriLife

While outdoor education, nature, conservation, and green industry professionals like you have amazing expertise about how to help children connect with nature, many early childhood educators are far more comfortable growing kids than plants! Early care and education (ECE) programs serve as the primary setting for learning and development for millions of children ages birth to 5 across the state of Texas, making them a prime locale for instilling a love of nature and cultivating the benefits of time outside. The goal of this webinar is to introduce a resource you can use to learn more about what is (and isn’t) happening in ECEs and identify ways to use your unique knowledge and skills to promote more Nature Play for Tiny Texans!

Register

Webinar with Michelle Medina

Children need champions, and we are growing a community of childhood conservationists. We will explore the necessity of nature play for our children and ourselves. We will identify strategies for building a close-knit community of families, while also engaging the greater community. There’s magic waiting to be uncovered. Let’s go!

Registration $10. Members can always register for FREE - learn more about membership: https://www.texaschildreninnature.org/give/membership

If you are a member, please refer to your Membership Information Email to see instructions for registering

Webinar offered at 2:00 Central on June 17, 2026

Ticket Sales will end on June 16, 2026

Webinar will be recorded and available for members and registrants

A Zoom link will be emailed from a TCiNN Staff Member to registrants prior to the event

Please note - no AI note takers will be allowed into the webinars

Registration: https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/texaschildreninnaturenetwork/a-community-of-childhood-conservatinists