Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute

The Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute or CDRI, incorporated in December 1973, is an independent non-profit, scientific and educational organization conducting its operations as a multi-featured Nature Center and Botanical Gardens located on a 507-acre (2.05 km2) tract in the foothills of the Davis Mountains.

While headquartered on the Sul Ross State University campus, the Institute conducted its activities from Honors Hall (1983-1991), and later from the Barton Warnock Science Building (1991-1997).

Each of the panels found on Clayton's Overlook are also displayed in the Powell Visitor Center's lobby, to be studied before or after experiencing them at the summit, or to be enjoyed by those who are unable to see them outdoors.

This site has been developed as a multi-featured Nature Center and Botanical Gardens, from which research is conducted and educational programs are delivered to students and adult visitors alike.

With the construction of its new Visitor Center in January 1998, the CDRI moved operations from the Sul Ross campus to its permanent home near Fort Davis where it has been open to the public year-round ever since.

CDRI operations are funded through admissions, programs, tax-deductible contributions, annual memberships, the proceeds from special events, and short and long-term investments.

Map of the Chihuahuan Desert. Satellite image from NASA . Ecoregion boundary based on World Wide Fund for Nature ecoregions. The US-Mexico border is shown as a black line.