We are excited to announce that Mashal Awais joined the team as our Watershed Specialist! For several years, Mashal has worked with communities around the Greater Houston area, including the Coalition for Environment, Equity, and Resilience, the Houston Climate Movement, West Street Recovery, and TEJAS, advocating for communities’ right to clean air and water.
Mashal joined Bayou City Waterkeeper in February 2021 as its Watershed Specialist. She utilizes her skills as an environmental scientist to partner with communities in the pursuit of healthy waters and communities throughout the Lower Galveston Bay Watershed. Prior to joining Bayou City Waterkeeper, her work centered on risk management in disaster recovery, and mitigating health impacts from environmental pollution for fenceline and underinvested communities. Mashal’s previous work in the private sector focused on Environmental Health and Safety compliance and regulation, emission monitoring, and groundwater remediation.
Her interest in ecosystem conservation and habitat restoration draws from her time working alongside coastal communities and ecologists at a sea turtle sanctuary in Guerrero, Mexico in 2014. Interested in the intersection of ecosystem conservation and our built environment, Mashal is excited to explore sustainable solutions to protect our habitat and advance the regional vision of just and resilient communities.
Currently, Mashal supports local environmental education efforts and youth-based climate resilience initiatives throughout the region. Holding a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from UT-Austin and Master’s in Environmental Analysis from Rice University, she has been living in the Houston area since 2008. As an immigrant from Lahore, Pakistan, Mashal enjoys the richness and diversity of Houston, meeting new people, finding new music and art.
Please join us in formally welcoming her to Bayou City Waterkeeper! She can be reached at mashal@bayoucitywaterkeeper.