Robert Kent is the Texas State Director for The Trust for Public Land, where he leads a team of colleagues and volunteers working to make the health, climate, equity, and community benefits of parks and nature accessible to all. Born and raised in Dallas, Robert is passionate about building green, resilient cities in the Lone Star State.

Since joining the TPL in 2014, Robert has led their work to develop a network of parks and trails across southern Dallas, help pass a $310 million bond package for parks and trails, develop an open space plan for City of Fort Worth, and acquire hundreds of acres of land for new parks throughout Texas, to name a few things. In 2009, Robert completed a 2,100-mile thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, followed by a coast-to-coast hike across Scotland in 2011.

You will hear about Robert’s formative time at Baylor University in my home town of Waco, TX, his international studies in Scotland, his Appalachian Trail thru-hike, and all about the TPL’s work in Texas communities, from dusting off historic city plans for urban greenways and parks to the 2 billion dollar idea for a Texas Land and Water Conservation Fund.Head to TPL.org to find out more and to see some of the projects we discussed.