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The mission of the Hill Country Alliance is to bring together a diverse coalition of partners to preserve the open spaces, starry night skies, clean and abundant waters, and unique character of the Texas Hill Country.

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Our Work

Oak trees sprawl out, casting shade over a yellow field of tall grass.

Land

The Texas Hill Country region covers over 11 million acres in 17 counties of mostly privately held land.

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Sunset fades over red trees and the flowing water of a rocky creek

Water

Thirteen Texas rivers begin in the Hill Country and provide water for millions of downstream neighbors.

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The Milky Way illuminates a brilliant blue, starry sky over a Hill Country river.

Night Sky

The Hill Country sits on the edge of night and as development pushes westward, we are losing our view of the night sky.

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A little boy in cowboy boots and a button down shirt swings a rope in the middle of a rodeo arena.

Community

90% of Hill Country lands are in unincorporated areas where there is little authority to plan for growth.

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Collaboration

HCA serves as the backbone organization and fiscal sponsor of the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network.

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Latest News

October Pedernales Newsletter Available

October Pedernales Newsletter Available

HCA's Pedernales-specific newsletter was mailed this week with news and events from across the basin. This month's email profiles a brand new report released by the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment to answer the question: "How Much Water is in the...

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Llano River Watershed Week in Review

Llano River Watershed Week in Review

The Watershed Week in Review from the Llano River Watershed Alliance covers important topics impacting citizens, land, water and wildlife along the Llano River. This week's newsletter: "Bush nonprofit partners with State and Feds to Restore Monarch Population," "3...

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Needmore Ranch seeks giant groundwater pumping permit

Needmore Ranch seeks giant groundwater pumping permit

CARD Urges Complete Evaluation and Public Meeting Just east of Wimberley along the Blanco River lies the 5,000 acre Needmore Ranch owned by McAllen businessman Greg LaMantia. This ranch made headlines in 2013 when the Texas Legislature approved a 4,000 acre Municipal...

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Hill Country Alliance

The Hill Country Alliance is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to raise public awareness and build community support around the need to preserve the natural resources and heritage of the Central Texas Hill Country.

Hill Country Alliance
Across the Hill Country, communities of all sizes are facing decisive threats - be they historic drought, land fragmentation, unchecked development, or flash flooding. These challenges can only be met by locally driven solutions, crafted by leaders who understand the singular nature of the region's ecological and economic health.  This panel explores the different solutions leaders have deployed to help their communities respond to present needs and build resilience for the future. Moderator: Mayor Pro Tem Emily Kirchner, City of Fredericksburg Panelists: Judge Bella Rubio, Real County | Commissioner Damon Beierle, Burnet County | Drew Paxton, City of KerrvilleTimestamps: 00:00 Introduction 01:02 Panel begins 20:11 Audience Q&AThis recording was made at the 2025 Hill Country Leadership Summit. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/leadershipsummit
Our Regional Future: A Conversation with Local Leaders - Panel (2025)
Happy Valentine's Day from the Hill Country Alliance! Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate appreciation and connection. Hear from our program staff as they share highlights from the work we accomplished together in 2025—and a heartfelt thank-you to the community that made it possible.
Happy Valentine’s Day from HCA!
In some ways, the climate of the Hill Country is an oasis from the rest of Texas. In other ways, its climate presents particularly acute challenges, such as droughts and floods. We can learn much from nearly two centuries of weather and climate events about what's possible, and we can use climate models and physical science to get a sense of what new possibilities may emerge.In this recording from the 2025 Hill Country Leadership Summit, Texas State Climatologist John Nielsen Gammon with Texas A&M University explore regional climate patterns and answers audience questions.Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction - Katherine Romans 00:51 The Challenges of Hill Country Climate 24:12 Audience Q&AThis recording was made at the 2025 Hill Country Leadership Summit. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/leadershipsummit
Challenges of Hill Country Climate - John Nielsen Gammon (2025)
The Heart of The Hill Country Award is an award created by HCA in 2019 to recognize and thank our region's greatest natural resource champions. Previous recipients of the award, Milan Michalec and Karen Ford, presented the 2024 awards. The 2024 honorees are Brent Evans, social worker and conservationist, and Steve Nelle, wildlife biologist and range conservationist - two individuals who have spent decades championing and stewarding the natural resources of our region.Presented by Past Recipients: Milan Michalec and Karen Ford Honoring: Brent Evans and Steve Nelle00:00 Introduction from Katherine Romans 02:27 Milan Michalec introduces Brent Evans 08:03 Remarks from Brent Evans 21:41 Karen Ford introduces Steve Nelle 28:40 Remarks from Steve NelleLearn more about the Hill Country Alliance and our annual Leadership Summit here: https://www.hillcountryalliance.org/leadershipsummitClick here to support the Hill Country Alliance: http://bit.ly/DONATE2HCA
Heart of the Hill Country Award 2024
In this recording, water advocate Alexander Neal - a volunteer with the Texas Rivers Protection Association - shares several stories of the impact one person with a camera can make in the quest for solving problems.00:00 Introduction 01:30 Presentation 08:10 Save the CutoffThis recording was made at the 2024 Hill Country Leadership Summit - an annual networking event and day of learning hosted by the Hill Country Alliance. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/events/hca-leadership-summit/
Fighting Water Woes with a Kayak and a Camera - 2024 Lightning Round
In this presentation, Justin Rhodes with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department shares updates on the Texas Centennial Parks Fund and how it will be used to support the purchase of new parkland for years to come.00:00 Introduction 00:51 Presentation 04:16 Sneak PreviewLearn more about the Texas Centennial Parks Fund here: https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/park-information/parks-fundThis recording was made at the 2024 Hill Country Leadership Summit - an annual networking event and day of learning hosted by the Hill Country Alliance. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/events/hca-leadership-summit/
Texas Centennial Parks Fund - 2024 Lightning Round
This video shares the story of how upstream and downstream neighbors from Rocksprings to Austin came together to fight and stop a private dam from going onto the South Llano River.Speaker: Glen Coleman, Llano River Watershed Alliance 00:00 - Introduction 00:45 - Presentation 02:40 - Mobilizing the MediaThis recording was made at the 2024 Hill Country Leadership Summit - an annual networking event and day of learning hosted by the Hill Country Alliance. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/events/hca-leadership-summit/
Private Dams on Public Waters : A South Llano River Story - 2024 Lightning Round
In this presentation, LaKeisha Harding with Austin's Thinkery shares how the Central Texas eclipse created an opportunity for community to come together to celebrate joy in learning and build pathways for education and understanding across Austin.Learn more about Thinkery here: https://thinkeryaustin.org/This recording was made at the 2024 Hill Country Leadership Summit - an annual networking event and day of learning hosted by the Hill Country Alliance. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/events/hca-leadership-summit/
Joyful Learning Collaborative: Inclusivity, Accessibility & Totality - 2024 Lightning Round
This video shares a story about the South San Gabriel River - the impact of wastewater and algal blooms on water quality, the impact of neighbors, scientists, and leaders stepping up, and a big win for Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) permitting in Texas!Speaker: Lauren Ice, attorney with Perales, Allmon & Ice, P. C..00:00 - Introduction 01:09 - Presentation begins 04:28 - Second hearing with TCEQThis recording was made at the 2024 Hill Country Leadership Summit - an annual networking event and day of learning hosted by the Hill Country Alliance. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/events/hca-leadership-summit/
Pristine Streams: What Liberty Hill Could Mean - 2024 Lightning Round
As drought and population growth continues in the Hill Country, water supply is top of mind in most communities. New buildings and developments can put additional pressure on our water resource, but with the right design and technology they can also be a source of water supply. This panel will explore multiple case studies from across the Hill Country of local leaders and communities implementing water-efficient technology at the building scale.Moderator: Tara Bushnoe – Upper Guadalupe River Authority Panelists: Art Crawford – Silver Sage Housing | Robert Stefani – Austin Permitting and Development Center | Dennis Lee – Wimberley LibraryThis recording was made at the 2024 Hill Country Leadership Summit - an annual networking event and day of learning hosted by the Hill Country Alliance. More details here: https://hillcountryalliance.org/events/hca-leadership-summit/
Building for a Water-scarce Future - 2024 Panel
As we wrap up the year, we would like to take a minute (or three) to say THANK YOU! 2025 has been a big year for the Hill Country Alliance – and we are so grateful for all the good we have accomplished in the Hill Country over the last 20 years.Whether you joined us in-person for an event this year, made a donation to support our work, or used one of the resources on our website we are grateful to have been a part of your year. Thank you for being a part of our alliance!
Thank you for supporting the Hill Country Alliance!
As we wrap up the year, we would like to take a minute to say THANK YOU! 2025 has been a big year for the Hill Country Alliance – and we are so grateful for all the good we have accomplished in the Hill Country over the last 20 years.Whether you joined us in-person for an event this year, made a donation to support our work, or used one of the resources on our website we are grateful to have been a part of your year. Thank you for being a part of our alliance!
Thank you for supporting the #hillcountry and the Hill Country Alliance!
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