Non-Local News Releases
This category will feature news releases from out-of-area government agencies and representatives, as well as events that are not taking place in the four-county area of Grant, Catron, Hidalgo or Luna. For local events please visit Local News Releases.
Spaceport America Releases Economic Impact Study for 2022
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 25 August 2023 25 August 2023
Economic Impact of Spaceport America, 2022 (publish date August 25, 2023)
LAS CRUCES, NM (Friday, August 25, 2023) – The New Mexico Spaceport Authority (NMSA), in partnership with the New Mexico State University (NMSU) Arrowhead Center and Center for Border Economic Development (C-BED), have released an economic impact report encompassing the 2022 calendar year for Spaceport America.
The report provides economic information regarding activities occurring due to the existence of the spaceport. Additionally, the report illustrates numerous positive impacts from customer operations and events held as a result of the existence of the spaceport.
NMSU Art Museum to screen films about uranium mining on Indigenous lands
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 25 August 2023 25 August 2023
The University Art Museum at New Mexico State University is partnering with the Rio Grande Theater for screenings of two films in conjunction with Cara Despain’s “Specter” exhibition and the Branigan Cultural Center’s juried show “Trinity: Legacies of Nuclear Testing.”
Both films consider the duration and devastation of uranium mining and nuclear waste on Indigenous territory in the U.S.
Colleen Keane’s “The River that Harms” and artist Pedro Reyes’ “Under the Clouds” will be shown between 6 and 8 p.m. Wednesday, August 30 at the Rio Grande Theatre, 211 N. Main Street. The films will be followed by a virtual question and answer session with Reyes and Keane’s daughter, Joanna Keane Lopez, a multidisciplinary artist who seeks to investigate the history and ongoing reality of land contamination.
Supreme Court unveils portraits of Chief Justices Barbara Vigil and Judith Nakamura
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 24 August 2023 24 August 2023
Chief Justices Judith Nakamura (on the left) and Barbara Vigil (on the right) at the portrait unveiling in the Supreme Court courthouse. Photo courtesy of the Administrative Office of the Courts.SANTA FE – The Supreme Court honored and celebrated the judicial careers of Chief Justices Barbara J. Vigil and Judith K. Nakamura during a ceremony today to unveil their official portraits.
The portraits will be displayed in the historic Supreme Court building in an area known as the Hall of Chief Justices because it contains portraits of other justices who led the state’s highest court.
“These paintings serve as a permanent reminder of the extraordinary accomplishments and leadership provided by Justices Vigil and Nakamura on the Supreme Court and as trial court judges,” said Chief Justice C. Shannon Bacon. “Each of them strengthened the administration of justice with an unwavering dedication to ensuring that all New Mexicans are treated fairly under the laws of this state.”
Heinrich, Ernst Lead Bipartisan Effort to Improve Agricultural Conservation Practices
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 24 August 2023 24 August 2023
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Roger Marshall (R-Kans.), and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) announced a new, bipartisan bill to streamline the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s (NRCS) process for updating and adopting conservation practice standards that help farmers and ranchers improve soil health, build resilience to climate impacts, and achieve their conservation goals. The bill will close the gap between evidence-based NRCS best practices and emerging research and innovation, enabling producers to more quickly and effectively harness voluntary NRCS conservation programs on their land. The effort will provide more transparency for stakeholders and set a clear, standardized process for producers and the public to participate in improving conservation practices.
“Regenerative agriculture and soil health practices help farmers and producers make their working lands more resilient, something that is widely wanted and needed. As Congress negotiates the next Farm Bill, Republicans and Democrats agree that we must update the process for developing new conservation practice standards at the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and make that process more transparent and accessible for all. By leveraging innovation happening in New Mexico and across the country, producers can build more resilience into their operations and make a real difference in our fight against climate change,” said Senator Heinrich.
State presents the highest general fund revenue forecast in NM history
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 24 August 2023 24 August 2023
Estimated 3.5% recurring revenue increase with $3.48B in "new money."
Las Vegas, NM - State announces the highest General Fund (GF) revenue forecast in New Mexico history with $3.48 billion in “new money,” a 3.5% increase in recurring revenue for FY25. The New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration (DFA), and the Taxation and Revenue Department (TRD) presented the Consensus General Fund Revenue Outlook to the New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee highlighting the unprecedented and historic revenue growth for the state.
“The robust general fund proves that what we are doing in New Mexico’s economy is working,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said. “As we see another record year of projected revenue, we will continue building a solid financial future for our state through meaningful and long-lasting investments, always with an eye on stewardship of public dollars and fiscal responsibility.”
Cookie Classic Golf Tournament is Saturday, September 16, 2023
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 23 August 2023 23 August 2023
Girl Scouts of the Desert Southwest will be holding their 1st Cookie Classic Golf Tournament on Saturday, September 16, 2023, at Butterfield Trail Golf Club located at 1858 Cottonwoods Drive in El Paso, TX, 79925.
This event is open to the public. To participate, please visit gsdsw.org. Registration deadline is Friday, September 8, 2023.
Proceeds generated from the Cookie Classic Golf Tournament provide programs that teach practical life and leadership skills to girls. Your participation gives girls the materials they need to begin their life journey as "Girl Scouts who make the world a better place."
Three NMSU history professors publish books this year
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 23 August 2023 23 August 2023
Elizabeth Horodowich, Jamie Bronstein and Kenneth Hammond, history professors at New Mexico State University published books this year that range from China’s revolution to happiness in Britain to why early mapmakers thought America was Asia.
Horodowich, NMSU history professor and department head, is a historian of early modern Italy and global history and has published books in the past covering such topics. In her newest book, “Amerasia” Horodowich focuses on the historical, common thought that “America” and Asia were the same continent.
“I became interested in the idea of an imagined Amerasian continent when I was doing research for another book,” Horodowich said, “and I kept seeing the same pattern in the sources, which was European explorers and cartographers regularly “confused” the lands in the Western Atlantic with China and India.”
Dunn Solar Telescope tour gives visitors colorful experience
- Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
- Published: 23 August 2023 23 August 2023
“Telescopes play with rainbows,” says volunteer Bill Wren to a dimly lit room packed with visitors of Sunspot Solar Observatory. The crowd is comprised of both young and old tourists who’ve flocked to the Observatory to tour one of the world’s greatest solar telescopes, the Richard B. Dunn Solar Telescope (DST), operated by New Mexico State University. Their eyes remain fixed on the slide show Wren has put together to illuminate the information he shares about the telescope, the Sun, and our long plight to fully understand its marvels.
Wren flips through screens depicting explosive coronal mass ejections, hot gas brimming on the Sun’s atmosphere, light spectrums, and the immensity of the Sun compared to the planets which orbit it, including ours. “It’s incredible, folks,” Wren says, explaining the connection between ancient solar science and modern technological innovations, like the DST.
Wren, who is recently retired from McDonald Telescope in Texas, worked a long career as a public information specialist—and eventually as special assistant to the superintendent—for over thirty years. He was responsible for leading educational outreach programs at the observatory, but his career offered him many other exciting opportunities, including working alongside astronomers, studying distant celestial objects, building telescopes, and promoting the value of dark skies to oil and gas companies. Even now, in his retirement, Wren finds himself drawn to supporting public education efforts, which is why he reached out to Sunspot Solar Observatory after moving to Cloudcroft, NM in 2021.