On October 31, 2025, a gorgeous fall day in Houston, the University of Houston’s Institute for Ecological Resilience (IER) brought together leaders, researchers, and community changemakers for its first ever Nature-Based Solutions for Resilience and One Health Bus Tour, designed to be a dynamic, on-the-road exploration of how nature can help cities thrive.
This was IER’s first public event that took participants on a journey along the Brays Bayou watershed to highlight the powerful intersections among nature-based solutions, human health and biodiversity, and community resilience.
The tour visited several distinct sites, each illustrating a needed or emerging nature-based solution and grounding participants in the policy, science, education, research, and implementation opportunities that could accelerate their adoption in communities, especially those with limited access to nature. On board, a multi-sectoral group of participants reflected UHIER’s vision and the interdisciplinary collaboration required to tackle complex resilience challenges: educators, public health professionals, local funders, engineers, technologists, ecologists, resiliency and sustainability experts, foresters, prairie specialists, community leaders, landscape architects, artists, academics, and representatives from private, public, and nonprofit sectors.
The team visited Burnett Bayland Park, a model of community-centered green space restoration; a CenterPoint Energy powerline corridor, demonstrating the ecological potential of utility easements; and a drive-by of the MD Anderson Prairie, redeveloped with seeds harvested from UH Coastal Center’s Aumann Prairie and now contributing to flood and heat resilience. The tour also included Hermann Park’s Bayou Parkland, a powerful example of urban rewilding, and Mason Park, where constructed wetlands help filter neighborhood stormwater before it enters Brays Bayou.
Jaime Gonzalez, Director of IER, with the bus tour participants
Throughout the journey, experts from Harris County Flood Control District, Houston-Galveston Area Council, Rice University, Houston Parks Board, Houston Methodist Hospital System, Harris County Office of Sustainability, the Texas Workforce Commission, the Brown Foundation, and several other organizations participated in discussions on integrating ecological restoration with public health, infrastructure, and climate resilience. Together, they explored what it will take to move the needle on nature-based solutions across Houston’s neighborhoods and how UHIER can help lead that transformation.
“UH Energy’s talented team worked seamlessly to help UH Institute for Ecological Resilience present our first public event—an interactive bus tour of Houston communities focused on resilience and nature-based solutions and One Health,” said Jaime González, Director of IER. “It was critical that we put our best foot forward for our inaugural event, and everyone from events, communications, finance, operations, and transportation were indispensable in making this event a smashing success!”
This experience is already creating new collaborations and fruitful discussions of future UHIER events, including an event around novel financing for nature-based solutions at a time of scarce funding.
Launched in May 2025, the Institute for Ecological Resilience under the Division of Energy and Innovation positions UH as a national leader in deploying nature-based solutions to reduce flooding and extreme heat, improve air and water quality, restore biodiversity, and enhance community and economic resilience. Rooted in the Houston–Galveston region, IER is pioneering approaches that help people and nature thrive together across the Texas Triangle. Guided by a multidisciplinary vision, IER aims to be the nation’s leading testbed for validating nature-based solutions in urban areas and scaling them to communities most in need.