Staff

Robert Mace is the Executive Director and Chief Water Policy Officer at The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment and a Professor of Practice in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Texas State University. Robert has over 30 years of experience in water resources and policy.

Before joining Texas State University in 2017, Robert worked at the Texas Water Development Board for 18 years, ending his career there as the Deputy Executive Administrator for the Water Science & Conservation office. While at the Board, Robert worked on understanding groundwater and surface-water resources in Texas, advancing water conservation and innovative water technologies such as desalination, aquifer storage and recovery, reuse, and rainwater harvesting; regional and state water planning; and protecting Texans from floods. Prior to joining the Texas Water Development Board, Robert worked for nine years at the Bureau of Economic Geology at The University of Texas at Austin as a hydrologist and research scientist.

Robert has a B.S. in Geophysics, an M.S. in Hydrology from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, and a Ph.D. in Hydrogeology from The University of Texas at Austin. He published a book on groundwater sustainability in 2022 and is currently working on a book about water resources and climate change.

Andrew Sansom is one of Texas’ leading conservationists. He is a former Executive Director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Executive Director of the Texas Nature Conservancy. For his commitment to the management and protection of natural resources, Dr. Sansom is a recipient of the Chevron Conservation Award, The Chuck Yeager Award from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, The Pugsley Medal from the National Park Foundation, the Seton Award from the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Nature Conservancy. He is a Distinguished Alumnus of Austin College and Texas Tech University.

Under his leadership at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Dr. Sansom spearheaded a number of significant programs, including:

• Founding the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation 
• Adding over 500,000 acres to the State Parks and Wildlife Management Areas
• Creating two nationally recognized aquatic facilities, which include hatcheries, research laboratories, educational centers, and aquariums.
• Initiating an aggressive program to introduce urban children to nature and the outdoors

Dr. Sansom has dedicated his life to environmental conservation. He has served on the Board of Trustees of the Texas Historical Foundation, Bat Conservation International, KLRU Public Television in Austin, The National Audubon Society, The Institute of Nautical Archaeology, and The Texas Travel Industry Association. He joined the staff of the National Recreation and Park Association in Washington, D.C., in l969. He served as Environmental Coordinator for the White House Conference on Youth, Special Assistant to Secretary of Interior Rogers C.B. Morton, Director of Conservation Education at the Federal Energy Administration, and Deputy Director of the Energy Institute at the University of Houston.  

His published works have appeared in Texas Monthly, The Texas Observer, Houston City Magazine, Politics Today, Texas Highways, Texas Parks and Wildlife, and Texas Town and City. He is the author of five books: Texas Lost, Texas Past, Scout the Christmas Dog, Water In Texas, Southern Plains Bison, and Resurrection of the Lost Texas Herd.  

Andrew Sansom now serves as Research Professor of Geography and Founder of The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University, where he coordinates university policy and research related to freshwater resources, manages the headwaters of the San Marcos River; administers the most extensive freshwater environmental education program in Texas; and supervises the training and coordination of more than 1000 volunteer water monitors in rivers and streams throughout the State. 

Carrie Thompson is the Director of Operations at The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment. Carrie is a recognized leader in natural resource administration, stakeholder partnerships and creative, solutions-oriented conservation delivery. With a multi-disciplinary background in the physical and biological sciences, conflict resolution, and natural resources policy and administration, she has served in leadership roles for - and as technical advisor to - stakeholders, Federal agencies and state, local, and tribal governments in some of the nations most complex environmental challenges. 

Carrie’s previous professional roles include that of Managing Principal for Water Table Consulting, LLC, Senior Program Manager and Freshwater Sector Lead for the U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution, Associate Director for Freshwater Protection for The Nature Conservancy in Texas, and fifteen years with the US Fish and Wildlife Service as an Administrator and Biologist, specializing in conservation partnerships (particularly those involving endangered species, water, private land and agricultural interests). 

Carrie is a North Texas native and earned her Masters of Public Service and Administration and Natural Resource Management from the George Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, where she also earned a Bachelor of Science in Geography/Environmental Science.

Dr. Rob Dussler earned his B.S. degree in Psychology from Saint Edward’s University, his M.Ed. degree in Outdoor Education Administration from Georgia College and State University, and his Ph.D. in Recreation and Leisure Studies from the University of Georgia.

Dr. Dussler developed the Bachelor of Science degree program in Outdoor Leadership at Young Harris College and has over 30 years of experience teaching and leading outdoor education programs.

Dr. Dussler currently serves as the Chief Education Officer and Director of Spring Lake Operations at The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University. In this capacity, he oversees the operations, programming, and research for the education program, which sees 120,000 visitors annually. His research interests include mindfulness, nature connection, and interpretation.

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Miranda Wait has worked for the Meadows Center since 2006. She oversees the on-site educational programming at Spring Lake, including TEKS-aligned field trips, the historical glass-bottom boat tours, and recreational eco-tours. Her programs see over 95,000 visitors annually, with over 25,000 school-aged children attending field trips. Miranda employs 60-100 Texas State University students each year, teaching them how to be effective interpreters when trying to teach about the importance of water conservation and land stewardship.

Her educational background is in biology, with an emphasis on wildlife ecology. She has her Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Biology and Exercise Sports Science from Texas State University and graduated with her Master of Science in Wildlife Ecology in 2023, where she focused her research on the impacts of learning about science out of the classroom on student’s interest in science, STEM, and the environment. She has a passion for getting kids and adults outdoors. Miranda is on the board of the Texas Informal Science Educators Association and is currently serving her second three-year term. She is also on the San Marcos Visitor Center and Convention Bureau board and serves as the river advocate.

As the Director of the Watershed Studies, Jenna Walker oversees several multi-year, grant-funded research initiatives, including the Texas General Land Office-sponsored Clean Coast Texas initiative, a Texas Hill Country groundwater/surface water interaction research series, the Cypress Creek Watershed Protection Plan, and the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality-sponsored Texas Stream Team – an award-winning, statewide community science program designed to educate and empower the public to support watershed protection efforts and foster community-based partnerships.

Jenna’s previous professional roles include several leadership positions in regional watershed protection and legislative work for municipal, state, and non-governmental organizations. She also has over ten years of experience working as a senior manager for a multinational corporation and as an educator in Central Texas and Cuenca, Ecuador. Jenna has been recognized as an emerging leader within the water sector, including by the Texas Water Foundation and the City of Waco, and as an Aspen Ideas Festival Fellow. She earned a Master of Applied Geography in Resource and Environmental Studies from Texas State University and a bachelor’s from Texas A&M University. Jenna is a 7th-generation Texan and the mother of 2 young children.