While the stars at night are famously big and bright (insert four claps) here in Texas, it’s a team effort to keep them that way. One nonprofit organization, the Hill Country Alliance (HCA), is dedicated to doing just that by working with partners across the region to preserve the open spaces and starry night skies we all know and love in Central Texas.

On January 14, the organization announced the first-ever recipients of its Night Sky Preservation Fund. Spanning seven counties, the projects are each dedicated to improving regional night sky quality by improving outdoor lighting; educating communities about night skies preservation and its benefits; and measuring changes in our region’s sky quality over time.

Established in 2024 with support from the Coypu Foundation, the fund supports regional nonprofits, local government entities, and small businesses interested in ramping up initiatives to preserve clear night skies.

Among the organizations pledged to put those funds to use is the Travis County Parks Foundation, an organization that aims to increase community involvement in parks. Its domain includes the Hamilton Pool Preserve, Hippie Hollow Park, and smaller parks beyond the edges of Austin's more urban areas. Its contributions will include educational programs and installing sky monitoring systems all around its network of parks.

“By keeping light pollution at bay,” reads a release from the Alliance, “these efforts help reduce energy waste, protect wildlife habitats and migratory pathways, make our roads safer for both drivers and pedestrians, and preserve our region’s stargazing and astrotourism opportunities.”

While there are numerous funding opportunities for land and water conservation across the state, night sky preservation funding is harder to secure. The HCA fund is the first project specifically aimed at night sky protection in Central Texas, and the organization hopes to offer the fund again in future.

HCA invited applications during the annual Hill Country Night Sky Month in October 2024, releasing its list of seven winning projects on January 14, 2025. The full list of awardees is below, along with details from the release about their individual initiatives:

• Blanco County Friends of the Night Sky will expand their sky quality monitoring and Night Sky Friendly Business Recognition programs while also helping Johnson City become a designated International Dark Sky Community.
• Comal County Friends of the Night Sky will expand their sky quality monitoring efforts and assist the Cities of Spring Branch and Bulverde in becoming designated International Dark Sky Communities.
• Gillespie County will support their Dark Sky Initiative by replacing non-compliant light fixtures at the county courthouse with night-sky-friendly compliant light fixtures approved by Dark Sky International.
• Jonestown Night Sky Advocacy will automate its sky quality monitoring efforts, further supporting its designation as an International Dark Sky Community.
• Keep It Real Beautiful will continue to grow and expand its Real County Friends of the Night Sky group, providing public education and outreach, as well as assistance to and recognition of Night Sky Friendly Businesses.
• Northwest Hills Homeowners Association will support the wellbeing of their residents and the surrounding environment by upgrading non-compliant security lighting in communal areas with night-sky-friendly and compliant light fixtures approved by Dark Sky International.
• Real County Public Library will support their dark skies education and summer reading programs through the purchase and promotion of youth and adult literature about night skies and night sky preservation.
• Travis County Parks Foundation will establish educational public programs focusing on night sky preservation, and contribute to regional data collection efforts through the installation of sky quality monitoring stations throughout the Travis County Parks system.
• Vision Lampasas, Lampasas County Friends of the Night Sky will provide night sky preservation outreach and education, resources, and networking opportunities through their annual Stars at Night Event.

To contribute to the Night Sky Preservation Fund and help safeguard Texas’ natural nighttime splendor, donate here.

“We are honored to play a supporting role in these projects and grateful to everyone who applied to the fund this year,” said Executive Director for the Hill Country Alliance Katherine Romans. “Our region is known for its awe-inspiring celestial vistas, and like so many things in the Hill Country, unless we work to protect them, we could easily lose those starry views as our region grows and the impacts of light pollution cloud the skies. The Night Sky Preservation Fund and the projects it enables will help achieve that goal.”