Passport to Texas

Evolution of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine

Tech: TPW Magazine Evolves with the Times Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Before Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine Art Director, Nathan Adams started work on an app for the publication, he wanted to know:

03— How do people interact with digital media?

Whereas print readers may find a comfy chair to sit and digest content at a leisurely pace, digital readers consume their content on the go.

06— [So] it was very important to me that we didn’t just take the print version and throw it onto an app.

The app addresses expectations of younger readers coming to the magazine.

08— It‘s not just a matter of reading, but there’s interactivity; there’s an expectation that you can touch and that the app will react to swipes and touches and whatnot.

Adams said these new readers expect traditional print content integrated with the agility, innovation, and depth of a digital platform.

32—[As well as] the expectation of always being connected and of always having whatever information you wanted right at your fingertips. So, for example, if you were reading in the magazine about an activity at a state park, there is an expectation digitally that you should be able to push a button and find out how to get to that state park. How far away is it from where I’m at? Is there a map to that state park? What are the hours? All of that information which would be very labor intensive, very space intensive, in a printed publication becomes just a tap away in a digital version.

The user experience; that’s tomorrow.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

TPW Magazine App

Tech: New App for TPW Magazine Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In the midst of World War II, Texas Game and Fish—the predecessor to Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine—hit newsstands.

09— So, can you imagine what it would be like to start a magazine at that time? We have a print version of the magazine that’s been published continuously since then, and that print version is not going to go away.

Publisher Randy Brudnicki says the 73 year old publication, with black-and-white text and visuals, gave way to modern design, writing and brilliant color photos. What hasn’t changed is its mission to inspire Texans to preserve and enjoy the natural wonders of Texas.

16— We cover most of the concepts that support Texas Parks and Wildlife Department: hunting, fishing, state parks, and other conservation areas. [We have] articles about [the work of] game wardens, biologists…what’s happening with endangered species. Just a big, wide variety of what happens in the [Texas] outdoors.

Audiences change, and Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine is keeping pace beginning with digital issues, which require an internet connection to read, to a new app, which doesn’t. Art Director, Nathan Adams.

16— Well, it was very important to me that we didn’t just take the print version and throw it onto an app. Paper and digital are completely different media. And so, when we sat down and said we are going to do an app, it was very important to say how do people interact with digital media.

Insights on that question tomorrow. Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

Buffalo Soldier Reenactors

TPW TV: Buffalo Soldiers Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

With a lack of relatable role models, it’s easy to understand why some urban youth may feel estranged from the outdoors.

04— You get raised thinking: Okay, these things are not really for me.

Twenty-two-year-old Devonte Hill recently graduated from college, and makes short documentary films about the outdoors. Meet him on the Texas Parks and Wildlife TV show.

07—What I really want to be is a storyteller. I just want to show people things that maybe they hadn’t seen before – give them a
different reality.

Hill learned about the Buffalo Soldier Program when he was a State Park Ambassador, and started sharing their reality with other young people.

13—The Buffalo Soldiers were created in 1866 to assist and protect the settlement as it continued to move further out west. Luis Padilla works with the Buffalo Soldier Program; he says they were the first black professional men in the US Army.

14—When the Native Americas saw the Buffalo Soldier, he wasn’t used to seeing a man of this color in the wool uniform. So, the only thing the Indian could do at that point is compare this new soldier to something he knew out on the frontier. And that something on the frontier just happened to be the buffalo.

The soldiers also had a reputation for being fierce fighters. Learn about their contributions to Texas history on the PBS Texas Parks and Wildlife TV series the week of March 29 through April 4, 2015. Check your local listings.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Wildflowers at LBJ State Park

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Spring in Texas is a colorful time of year thanks to wildflowers growing statewide. Jackie Poole says these native plants create a sense of place.

09— That is something Ladybird Johnson said that was so great about these wildflowers: they really are unique to different areas.

I spoke with Jackie, a former Texas Parks and Wildlife Botanist, at the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center. To get a sense of how wildflowers define a locale, she says look beyond the roadside.

20—If you get away from the roadside, you’ll notice that the wildflowers are different in South Texas to Central Texas to the Trans Pecos to East Texas to the High Plains. And so, they’re all unique; it’s like having a home town. You can always go back and you can recognize these areas of the state by the plants that are growing there.

As bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes start winding down, look for other flower forms to begin popping up.

21— [Such as] Little yellow daisy-like flowers. Later in May, there’s a plant that called the basket flower; it’s a tall plant, three to four to even six feet tall with large pinkish-white flowers. Right before that, you’ll have Mexican Hats and Fire wheels starting in April
and going through May and maybe even going into June.

Find more wildflower information at the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Seen during 2008 Great Texas Birding Classic. What will you see?

Event | Birding: Birding Classic Puts FUN in Funding Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

For the first 16 of its 19 year history, birders had to flock to coastal areas to participate in the Great Texas Birding Classic.

09— We’ve now gone statewide. So, this will be our third year to be a statewide competition, and people love it. They’re coming out to do all the different tournaments.

Shelly Plante is nature tourism manager for Texas Parks and Wildlife. The tournament has experienced 40% growth in participation since expanding statewide, and a 50% increase in funds available for grants.

23— The whole point of the event, and the reason this growth is so great, is all the money raised goes towards conservation grants for birding and birders. So, they can be enhancement grants, which can be boardwalks, or birding blinds. They might be acquisition grants, or restoration grants that restore native habitat that’s great for birds, or remove invasive species. So, it’s a really great win-win.

Since becoming statewide, Shelly Plante says they’ve seen greater diversity in habitat projects that receive funding.

11— Two years ago, we funded a community park project in Utopia, Texas – Central Texas Hill Country area – and that was our first project ever to not be on the coast. So, that was very exciting.

The event is April 15 – May 15. Registration ends April 1. Check out all the Great Texas Birding Classic tournaments and habitat projects at birdingclassic.org.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti