Episode 19: Evgenia Spears & Teri Marsh
In Episode 19, we are taking with Teri Marsh from the League of Women Voters of Texas and Evgenia Spears of the Lone Star Sierra Club. We discuss our state’s plans to supply water for a growing population in an unpredictable future.
A native Texan, Teri Marsh exchanged the big city lights of Houston for tiny Brackettville, Texas in 2020 upon retiring after 23 years of teaching in the Houston ISD. A Fort Worth native and the mother of two adult sons, Teri holds degrees from Baylor University and the University of Houston.
After retirement, Teri discovered the League of Women Voters as a way to engage as a citizen in her new community. She especially enjoys registering first-time voters at nearby community colleges. As concerns grew about the drying of Las Moras Springs beginning in 2022, Teri began attending groundwater conservation district meetings and educating herself about groundwater law and science. Recognizing the importance of a stable water supply for all Texans (and for the future of our state), she agreed to serve as the Water Advocacy Chair for the LWV of Texas in 2024.
Teri and Jack, her husband of 45 years, enjoy being surrounded by nature, history, and wildlife on Fort Clark Springs, where they reside. When not at home with their four cats, you’ll probably find them in their RV touring a national forest, visiting a state park, or visiting their two grandchildren in Houston.
Evgenia Spears is the Water Program Coordinator at the Sierra Club's Lone Star Chapter, where she leads advocacy efforts to protect access to clean water resources in Texas. Through grassroots organizing, water education, and legislative advocacy at the Texas capitol, she works to ensure that communities across the state have a voice in shaping a sustainable water future.
Having lived in rural Ukraine, suburban Russia, and now in the U.S., Evgenia brings a unique perspective on water management, viewing water not simply as a resource to manage but as a relationship to nurture. Guided by this philosophy, one of the new initiatives Evgenia is leading is the Sierras Club Water for People & the Environment Committee, created to educate Texans about water issues across the state and empower them to become stronger advocates in their communities. Through her leadership, this committee brings together Texans from diverse backgrounds and geographic regions, united by a shared commitment to protecting our water resources.
Prior to joining Sierra Club, Evgenia spent several years at Texas A&M University in College Station where she earned a doctorate with a focus on natural resource management, taught undergraduate courses on natural resource policy, served as a watershed coordinator with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, and collaborated with Texas A&M and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to develop strategic natural resource planning documents for the state.
Outside of her work, Evgenia enjoys being with her family, spending time in nature, and traveling.
DIVE DEEPER!
League of Women Voters of Texas, Take Action
Sierra Club’s water op-ed in The Dallas Morning News
Recent blog containing updates on the TCEQ surface water quality standards
Article about a new Exxon Plastic Plant in Point Comfort
Send a letter to your legislator through our action alert to support HB 3728 and direct TCEQ to establish salinity criteria for our bays and estuaries (This bill is going to be heard by the House Committee on Culture, Recreation and Tourism next Wednesday, April 23. It needs our support!)
Sign the petition to TCEQ to let them know that our waterbodies need better protection standards
Give a call to your legislator! Click here to learn more how you can do it.
Register for the next Legislative Team call to learn how to more effectively engage with your legislators: Saturday meetings, Thursday meetings
Visit the Sierra Club Legislation Action Center - your next stop to become more familiar with the issues that we’re working on at the legislature + Factsheets on various water issues.