About CAMN

Mission

CAMN Volunteers Working at Austin’s Vireo Preserve

To develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities.

The Capital Area Master Naturalist chapter provides instruction and support to adults 18+ who wish to learn and apply the principles of sustainable use, conservation, and maintenance of natural resources of central Texas.

CAMN is a chapter of the Texas Master Naturalist program, a statewide organization sponsored jointly by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.

History

The initial work to create the Texas Master Naturalist Program began in 1996. The Capital Area Master Naturalist Chapter is one of the original four chapters (Bexar County, Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, and Hays County) and is one of the largest of the current 48 chapters in Texas.

CAMN was established as a chapter in 1998 and became a 501(c)3 non-profit in 2001. CAMN trains 30-35 people annually, and these volunteers fulfill many duties in conservation, restoration, and nature-based education programs in and around the Austin area.

Facts

CAMN has almost 300 Active and In-Training members, and in 2021 those members contributed over 10,000 hours of volunteer service to the community. Our Federal matching grant values each volunteer hour at $23, for an annual total contribution of over $230,000.

Member volunteer activities include trail building, habitat restoration, community outreach and education, wildlife rehabilitation, native plant propagation, invasive plant removal, leading hikes and tours, conducting bird, plant, and insect surveys, performing the administrative tasks necessary to keep a chapter running, and so many more contributions to our natural world and local community.

We work with state, county, and city governmental agencies providing support to their staff working to preserve and protect parks, preserves, and natural areas. We work with non-profit organizations, schools, and universities. All of our projects focus on preserving and protecting our natural world, engaging the public and connecting them with nature, and enhancing scientific understanding.