Water Wonks Hour: Online Monthly Lecture Series
The Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance is pleased to introduce our 2024 Water Wonks Lecture Series. Mark your calendars for 3:30 p.m. on the 4th Wednesday of each month.
Water Wonks will feature a host of experts sharing innovative ideas and details about their work in the world of water. The series is a free community education opportunity.
Water Wonks Hour Lecture Series Topics
Lecture #1: Wednesday January 24th | 3:30pm CST
Water Reuse in the Hill Country: Analyzing Opportunities in Comal County Texas. Presented by Rachel Hanes (GEAA Policy Director).
Lecture #2: Wednesday February 28th | 3:30pm CST
Use Of Comprehensive Models For Targeting Green Stormwater Infrastructure. Presented by Dr. Sheeba M. Thomas Dominguez (San Antonio River Authority Senior Technical Engineer).
Lecture #3: Wednesday March 27th | 3:30pm CST
Integrating Stormwater Ecosystem Services Into Local Governance. Presented by Danielle Craig (Graduate Part-Time Instructor, Department of Landscape Architecture, Texas Tech University)
Lecture #4: Wednesday April 24, 2024 | 3:30pm CST
Comparative Analysis of Assured Water Supply Policies and Regulations Across the Western United States and Texas at the Municipal, County, and State Level. Presented by Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance Policy Director Rachel Hanes.
Lecture #5: Wednesday May 22, 2024 | 3:30pm CST
The Regional Flood Planning Process and Why Conserving Floodplains are Important. Presented by Annalisa Peace (GEAA Exec Dir) and Debbie Reid (GEAA Tech Dir) with a video by David Skuodas (Director of Design, Construction, and Maintenance at the Mile High Flood District) that was presented to the San Antonio River Regional Flood Plan Group.
Lecture #6: Wednesday June 26, 2024 | 3:30pm CST
Transportation, Growth, and Planning in the Greater San Antonio Region. Presented by Isaac Gonzalez (Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization Short-range Transportation Planner II)
A full list of lecture topics coming soon!
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Lecture #5: The Regional Flood Planning Process and Why Conserving Floodplains are Important
Wednesday, May 22nd at 3:30pm CST
Presented by: Annalisa Peace (GEAA Executive Director) and Debbie Reid (GEAA Technical Director) with a video by David Skuodas (Director of Design, Construction, and Maintenance at the Mile High Flood District) that was presented to the San Antonio River Regional Flood Plan Group
Bio: David Skuodas is an Urban Stream Advocate, Engineer, Storyteller and AEC (Architectural Engineers Collaborative) Professional. He has extensive work experience in the field of engineering and environmental science. In 2010, David joined Mile High Flood District as a Project Manager, overseeing the design, construction, and maintenance of projects and later took on the role of Watershed Manager. Currently, David serves as the Design, Construction, and Maintenance Director at Mile High Flood District- Located in the Denver area.
Synopsis: Ms. Peace and Ms. Reid will explain the Texas Water Development Board’s regional flood planning process, which will allocate state funds for flood mitigation strategies and provides opportunities to employ green infrastructure and land conservation strategies. The video by Mr. Skuodas presents his analysis of why governments are often playing catch-up to pay for maintenance of stormwater channels, basins, and other structures. In many cases, it would take hundreds or thousands of years for a city to collect enough taxes to pay to adequately maintain drainage infrastructure from new development. Mr. Skuodas advocates for working with the existing natural stream channels, maintaining flood resiliency and water quality, protecting public safety, and saving taxpayers money.
REGISTER FOR LECTURE#5
Water Wonks Hour Lecture Series Speakers
Rachel Hanes (Lecture 1 Speaker) 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 nonprofits 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.
Dr. Sheeba M. Thomas Dominguez (Lecture 2 Speaker) has been with the San Antonio River Authority since 2008 and currently holds the position of a Senior Technical engineer. She has over 16 years of experience with hydrology, hydraulics, and water quality models.
She is a licensed professional engineer with the State of Texas and has Project Management Professional (PMP) and Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM) certifications. For more than a decade, her focus has primarily been on the development of comprehensive water quality models and tools to quantify issues and mitigation and she has presented her work on multiple local, state, and national platforms. These endeavors have earned multiple state and national recognitions. She enjoys occasionally teaching Water Resources Engineering at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Danielle Craig (Lecture 3 Speaker) holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, a Master of Landscape Architecture, and a Juris Doctorate, all from Texas Tech University. She is also currently working on her Ph.D. in Land Use Planning, Management, and Design and is a part-time instructor at Texas Tech University in the Department of Landscape Architecture.
She has taught undergraduates in design studios focusing on landscape systems and urban design, highlighting the importance of stormwater management and design. While at Texas Tech, her research has focused on stormwater policy in local governance and produced water. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the American Society of Landscape Architects, and the American Planning Association, for which she is currently serving as Secretary of the Northwest Section of the Texas Chapter.
Rachel Hanes (Lecture 4 Speaker) 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 nonprofits 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.
Brenda Chapa (Lecture 4 Contributor) is a fresh graduate from UT Austin as an international political-economy major and the newest policy-analyst fellow for GEAA. She recently completed a semester-long policy research project for GEAA which included a literature review of assured water supply policies, laws, and regulations at the municipal, county, and state level in the Western United States compared to those policies within Texas.
David Skuodas (Lecture 5 Speaker) is an Urban Stream Advocate, Engineer, Storyteller and AEC (Architectural Engineers Collaborative) Professional. He has extensive work experience in the field of engineering and environmental science. In 2010, David joined Mile High Flood District as a Project Manager, overseeing the design, construction, and maintenance of projects and later took on the role of Watershed Manager.
Currently, David serves as the Design, Construction, and Maintenance Director at Mile High Flood District- Located in the Denver area.
Isaac Gonzalez (Lecture 6 Speaker) joined the Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Office (AAMPO) in 2023 as the Short-Range Transportation Manager. He specializes in business analytics and project management. Prior to his joining the AAMPO, he worked with the Center for Health Care Services in Bexar County and the State of Colorado, bringing evidenced-based, data-driven ideas and solutions to the public sector. He earned his Master’s Degree in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon in 2020, is a native of San Antonio, Texas, and enjoys woodworking in his free time.
