University of Texas at El Paso
EN-9: Community Partnerships

From the website: Rio Bosque Wetlands Park is a 372-acre City of El Paso park the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) manages through its Center for Environmental Resource Management (CERM). Wetlands and riverside forests once graced the banks of the Rio Grande in the Paso del Norte region. They were the most productive natural habitats in the region, but today they are virtually gone. At Rio Bosque, the environment is still changing, but in a new way. Here, a diverse partnership is working to bring back meaningful examples of the unique and valuable ecosystems once found in our river valley. Activities on lands adjacent to Rio Bosque Wetlands Park can have a significant influence on ecological conditions within the park. An important part of the management program for Rio Bosque is staying abreast of activities on adjacent lands and working to influence those activities so that they will have positive rather than negative impacts on the park. In November 1996, the City of El Paso and UTEP signed a 30-year agreement for UTEP to manage the site. UTEP and its partners are working to guide and shape this recovery to promote native river-valley plant communities. Their goal: recreate an approximation of the wonderfully rich mosaic of habitats characteristic of the Rio Grande and its floodplain in pre-settlement days. Rio Bosque is located along the US-Mexico border, in El Paso, Texas. Rio Bosque serves economically disadvantaged communities around the Rio Bosque area and the greater El Paso area. Rio Bosque Project Partners A diverse partnership makes the Rio Bosque project possible. The City of El Paso and UTEP have included the following partners: Ducks Unlimited provided the design, the initial management plan, and the water-control structures for the wetland project at Rio Bosque. The U.S. Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission built the wetland complex. El Paso Water Utilities and El Paso County Water Improvement District #1 cooperate to provide water to the Park. UTEP manages the Park under an agreement with the City of El Paso. The Friends of the Rio Bosque provide vital help in all phases of operation and maintenance of the Park. In addition, the Park has many other dedicated friends and supporters. Over the years, these groups have provided invaluable technical guidance, funding, logistical support, volunteer help, and more: Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge Boy Scouts of America, Yucca Council Carolina Welding Chihuahuan Desert Wildlife Rescue City of Socorro, Texas The Coca-Cola Company Coca-Cola Enterprises County of El Paso El Paso Community Foundation El Paso County Juvenile Probation Department El Paso Electric Company El Paso Inc. El Paso/Trans-Pecos Audubon Society El Paso Zoo Environmental Advocates, UTEP Epson El Paso The Frontera Land Alliance Girl Scouts of the Rio Grande Hoblitzelle Foundation Innovative Recycling Keep El Paso Beautiful The Meadows Foundation Mission Trail Association National Park Service Rivers & Trails Program Texas Clean Rivers Program Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Texas Forest Service Texas Master Naturalists, Trans-Pecos Chapter Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Paso del Norte Health Foundation Rio Grande Compact Commission Sierra Club, El Paso Regional Group U.S. Border Patrol U.S. Bureau of Reclamation U.S. Environmental Protection Agency U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Wal-Mart Foundation West Texas Community Supervision and Corrections Department West Texas Urban Forestry Council Western Dewatering Western Refining Woman's Department, Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce World Wildlife Fund, Chihuahuan Desert Program

The Rare partnership in the Department of Communication is a master's program for conservation campaign managers in subtropical and tropical regions of the world. Campaign managers are recruited from environmental non-governmental and governmental organizations in South America, South East Asia, China, Africa, and Micronesia. Campaign managers implement two year conservation campaigns in their rural communities as part of the master's program.