A New Year of Learning Awaits: Water Wonks 2026!
The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance’s Water Wonks series continues to grow as a hub for learning, connection, and community action. With our 2025 lectures now concluded, we are grateful for the insights shared by this year’s presenters—experts whose work deepened our understanding of the challenges and solutions shaping the Edwards Aquifer region. As we look ahead, we’re excited to begin announcing our 2026 speakers soon. Stay tuned for a new lineup of thought-provoking conversations designed to inspire informed stewardship of our precious water resources.
2026 Water Wonks Hour Lecture Series Topics
Lecture #1: Wednesday January 28th | 3:30pm CST
Soil carbon analysis process, the USDA 2022 soil carbon survey, working with urban areas and the San Antonio baseline soil carbon data -- where do we go from here?
Presented by: Travis Waiser MLRA (Major Land Resource Area) Soil Survey Leader at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Lecture #2: Wednesday February 25th | 3:30pm CST
Building a Grassroots Movement to Protect Urban Waterways in San Antonio
Presented by: Brendan Gibbons, Board President, River Aid San Antonio
Lecture #3: Wednesday March 25th | 3:30pm CST
How Water Utilities Can Protect the Water Supply.
Presented by: Suzanne Williams, Texas Water Company
Lecture #4: Wednesday April 22nd | 3:30pm CST
A Deep Dive into Atmospheric Water Generation
Presented by: Audrey Marik. Trinity University, Environmental Studies Undergraduate Student and Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance Policy and Programs intern
Lecture #5: Wednesday May 27th | 3:30pm CST
An Overview of Water Pollution Criminal Laws from a uniquely Texas perspective
Presented by: Neil Kucera. Assistant District Attorney - Hays County District Attorney’s Office. Adjunct professor of Environmental Law and Criminal Law at Texas State University
Lecture #6: Wednesday June 24th | 3:30pm CST
Data Centers in Texas: A Call for Regulation.
Presented by: Rachel Hanes. Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance Policy Director
Lecture #7: Wednesday July 22nd | 3:30pm CST
San Antonio’s Growing Heat Challenge.
Presented by: Bill Barker, FAICP, FITE
Lecture #8: Wednesday Aug 26th | 3:30pm CST
Stay Tuned for details!
Lecture #9: Wednesday Sept 23rd | 3:30pm CST
Stay tuned for details!
Lecture #10: Wednesday Oct 28th | 3:30pm CST
Stay tuned for details!
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2026 Water Wonks Online Lecture Series #3
Wednesday, March 25th at 3:30pm CST
Synopsis:
Some of the tools Municipal and Private Water Utilities use to protect the water supply are very similar while other methodologies seem very different. Suzanne will talk about what Texas Water Company, a private water utility company, has done to protect the water supply and how various tools can be modified and utilized throughout the public and private water systems.
REGISTRATION FOR LECTURE #3
2026 Water Wonks Hour Lecture Series Speaker Bios
Travis Waiser (Lecture 1 Speaker) Travis graduated Texas A&M University in 2003 with a B.S. in Agronomy and Rangeland Ecology and Management. He continued his education receiving his Master of Science in Soil Science from Texas A&M University in May 2006. He started as a Soil Scientist with the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) in January 2005 and has worked throughout Texas sampling and describing soils and spent time in Oklahoma and Louisiana on detail work. Travis moved to Kerrville from College Station in July 2010 where he now serves as the Edwards Plateau and Central Basin Soil Survey Leader for NRCS. His office covers over 26 million acres of Central and West Texas.
Brendan Gibbons, Board President, River Aid San Antonio (Lecture 2 Speaker) Brendan Gibbons is president of the board of River Aid San Antonio, a 501c3 nonprofit founded in 2021 to promote and facilitate stewardship of the San Antonio River Basin through volunteer opportunities and community engagement. Gibbons has worked for over a decade as an environmental journalist in San Antonio, formerly covering the city’s water and energy utilities, the Edwards Aquifer, land use, endangered species recovery, and outdoor recreation. In his day job, Gibbons works as a writer/editor for Oil & Gas Watch News, an initiative of the Environmental Integrity Project, an environmental watchdog group. He is also a member of the Alamo Chapter of Texas Master Naturalists.
Suzanne Williams. Conservation Manager Texas Water Company (Lecture 3 Speaker)
Suzanne Williams is the Conservation Manager at Texas Water Company with over two decades of experience in Operations and Utilities with a focus on Resource Conservation and Strategic Leadership. Suzanne has her Masters Degree in Environmental and Resource Studies and has been recognized at the state and local levels for her leadership and dedication to successful programming to protect our natural resources. It is not surprising with Suzanne’s belief in leaving the world a better place than you found it, that she enjoys serving on her local Parks Foundation Board, volunteering for the homeless and her community foundation, and appreciates the outdoors through running, hiking, and gardening with native and water-wise landscaping.
Audrey Marik. Trinity University, Environmental Studies Undergraduate Student and Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance Policy and Programs intern (Lecture 4 Speaker)
Audrey Marik is an Environmental Studies major at Trinity University and an intern at GEAA. Her hometown is Austin, TX, where she grew up with an appreciation for the Edwards Aquifer and all it provides us. She is invested in water conservation and environmental protection and is proud to be interning with an organization that furthers these aims. Outside of her studies, she enjoys volunteering, peer tutoring, playing violin in the TU orchestra, and exploring hiking spots around the Hill Country.
Neil Kucera. Hays County Environmental Enforcement Unit (Lecture 5 Speaker)
Neil Kucera is an Assistant District Attorney in the Hays County District Attorney’s Office. He also teaches Environmental Law, Criminal Law and several other classes as an adjunct professor at Texas State University.
Rachel Hanes. Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance Policy Director (Lecture 6 Speaker)
Rachel Hanes holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Spanish from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX and a Master of Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA. She has multiple years of experience in the environmental and water policy fields and in working within and with non-profits and local, state, and federal governments.
Before joining GEAA, Rachel served for three years as a program analyst for the U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation in the Reclamation Law Administration Division and later in the Colorado River Binational Program, working to help manage and conserve water in the West.
Rachel has also worked for the Natural Resources Defense Council on their decarbonization efforts, the City of Pittsburgh Department of Mobility and Infrastructure on their Complete Streets and green infrastructure initiatives, the Tarrant County Tarrant Transit Alliance, the Office of Congressman Joaquin Castro, the League of United Latin American Citizens on environmental issues along the border, and the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center in San Antonio on local water issues.
A Texas native, Rachel grew up in Fort Worth and made frequent trips throughout Hill Country. After short stints in Pittsburgh, Washington, DC, and Denver, Rachel is thrilled to be back in San Antonio, where she can merge her interests in water and environmental policy with her love of her home state and adopted city.
Bill Barker, FAICP, FITE (Lecture 7 Speaker)
Bill moved to San Antonio in 1997 to be the Planning Director for VIA Metropolitan Transit. He has also served as the Executive Director of Solar San Antonio, a Project Manager in the City’s Office of Sustainability, and an Adjunct Associate Professor in the UTSA graduate urban and regional planning program. Currently, he is an advisor to the Great Springs Project, on the Executive Committee of the Alamo Group of the Sierra Club, active in the Urban Land Institute, and was recently appointed by the Mayor to the SA Climate Ready Advisory Committee.
After working in mission simulation at NASA in Houston to help train flight controllers and astronauts in the Apollo lunar mission, his career in transportation started at the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center of the U.S. Department of Transportation. He then joined the North Central Texas Council of Governments (the Dallas–Fort Worth Metropolitan Planning Organization) and became the Director of Transportation and Energy there.
As a consultant, Bill has helped public and private clients in seven states, Canada, and Mexico as well as the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the Agency for International Development. He has been engaged in “think tank” projects with the Houston Advanced Research Center, the Environmental Defense Fund, the Gas Research Institute, the UTSA Center for Urban and Regional Planning Research, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Transportation Research Board, and the Center for Urban Transportation Research at the University of South Florida.
Bill is the only professional recognized as a Fellow by both the Institute of TransportationEngineers and the American Institute of Certified Planners. He has a B.S. in physics and a M.A.in urban affairs.
Coming Soon (Lecture 8 Speaker)
Coming Soon (Lecture 9 Speaker)
INTERESTED IN SPONSORING THE WATER WONKS LECTURE SERIES?
Support Water Education & Showcase Your Business as a GEAA Water Wonks Sponsor today.
The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance (GEAA) invites your business to become a valued sponsor of our Water Wonks Online Monthly Lecture Series—a free, engaging, and informative program focused on the critical water issues facing South Central Texas.
Why Sponsor Water Wonks?
By sponsoring this popular educational series, your business will:
✅ Demonstrate Environmental Leadership – Align your brand with water conservation and sustainability, key issues for businesses and communities relying on the Edwards Aquifer.
✅ Connect with an Engaged Audience – Our attendees include policymakers, industry professionals, scientists, educators, and environmentally conscious residents who care deeply about our region’s water future.
✅ Enhance Brand Visibility – As a sponsor, your business will receive recognition in event promotions, during the live lectures, and across our digital platforms, increasing your reach and credibility.
✅ Support Community Education – Help us provide free, expert-led discussions that empower the public with knowledge about water policy, conservation, and protection efforts in South Central Texas.
Sponsorship Opportunities
We offer a range of sponsorship levels, allowing your business to be featured prominently in our outreach and programming. Let’s work together to create a meaningful partnership that benefits both your company and our community’s water future.
Join us in safeguarding the Edwards Aquifer and promoting informed stewardship of our most precious resource—water.