FORT DAVIS — This month, as part of Chinati’s weeklong grassland restoration practicum, participants visited the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute (CDRI) with Marfa-based landscape designer and soil scientist Jim Martinez, who also serves as president of the board of directors at CDRI.
Organized by Chinati’s education and preservation departments in collaboration with Martinez and mentors from Borderlands Research Institute, Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute, Rio Grande Joint Venture, Sul Ross State University, and Texas Parks and Wildlife, the paid experiential workshop included visits to research sites and a greenhouse, hands-on intervention demonstrations, and talks with regional experts, including a wildlife biologist and a botanist.Chinati would like to extend a special thanks to the practicum participants and workshop leaders. Participants included Kleo Belay, Sherry Cardino, Sarah Madero, Miguel Mendías, Tina Rivera and Calletana Vargas, with support from Fatima Anaza and Sterry Butcher. Mentors included Asia Cornelius, Jason Crosby, Gray Hancock, Andres Solorio Pulido and Audrey Taulli of Borderlands Research Institute; Jeff Bennett, Karen “Mickey” Chapman and Price Rumbelow of Rio Grande Joint Venture; Kelsey Wogan of the Sul Ross Environmental Lab; Dr. Michael Powell of the Sul Ross Herbarium; and Kiddo Campbell and Rachael Connally of Texas Parks and Wildlife.
