Do you remember the first time you encountered the wild beauty of a natural landscape? When we think back to these moments, we sometimes find a deeper connection to land conservation than we assume we have. For Ranger, CPC Outreach Assistant and volunteer, five acres of land next to a cornfield near her house provided the opportunity to forge a connection to the wild spaces she once roamed around growing up.

When asked where her lifelong love of science came from, Nova Morales proudly thanks her parents. Nova was always interested in the outdoors as a child, and her parents never missed a chance to take her to the Houston Museum of Natural Science and nature preserves around the area.

Growing up on South Padre Island, Grecia Azoulay learned the importance of caring for the environment and all forms of life from a very young age…