Who we are
About the ACC
More than 55 years of advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation work in Arlington, Texas.
Mission
Protecting and enhancing the natural environment of Arlington
The Arlington Conservation Council is a volunteer-led nonprofit working at the intersection of advocacy, education, and stewardship. We bring a conservation voice to City Council, host a monthly Speaker Series open to the public, support native-plant restoration at the Molly Hollar Wildscape, and publish the Post Oak newsletter to document the issues and people shaping Arlington’s natural environment.
Our story
ACC was founded on July 24, 1969 — the summer of the Santa Barbara oil spill and the first moon landing — by a group of UTA professors, local activists, and community members who believed Arlington’s natural resources were worth fighting for. Early campaigns for recycling, linear trails, and outdoor education earned the 1973 Texas Conservation Award before momentum faded late in the decade.
In 1993, when a beloved Witness Tree died and Arlingtonians rallied around a tree-protection ordinance, Julia Burgen revived ACC — its 501(c)(3) status still intact. The ordinance passed in 1994, a Texas Parks & Wildlife grant funded the Wildscape at Veterans Park, and ACC beat the Army Corps’ concrete channel on Johnson Creek — the first time a U.S. city rejected a major Corps flood project for a greener alternative.
That momentum never stopped — behind the Sheri Capehart Nature Preserve, the New York Avenue Blackland Prairie, the O.S. Gray Natural Area, and a $100,000+ endowed scholarship fund at UTA. More than 55 years in, members fund the work, volunteers do it, and the board steers it.
Focus areas
Four pillars of local conservation
Advocacy
Voice at City Council, planning commissions, and Texas environmental hearings on issues from water to wildlife to land use.
Education
A monthly Speaker Series bringing researchers, naturalists, and policy experts to Arlington. The Post Oak newsletter archives every talk.
Restoration
Volunteer work days at the Molly Hollar Wildscape, native-plant rescue, and partnerships with parks and watershed groups across DFW.
Community
A network of Arlington neighbors who care about land, water, air, and wildlife, gathered each month at Fielder Museum and online.
A coalition we founded
Meet FAUNA
In 2019 the ACC founded FAUNA — Friends of Arlington’s Unique Natural Areas — a coalition of the friends-of-the-park groups who care for the city’s natural areas, so they can share resources, coordinate plans, and speak with one voice for Arlington’s wild places.
Find your way in
Join as a member, volunteer for a work day, sponsor as a business, or simply show up at our next Speaker Series.