In 1985, an act of the Texas Legislature created HARC's Geotechnology Research Institute (GTRI), to improve the technology used in oil and gas exploration.

The Center organized the Woodlands Conferences, managed the Mitchell Prize competition, and developed field work in Houston, the Rio Grande and Northeast Brazil.

New laboratories were opened for DNA technology and geographical information systems centering on the work of Tim Saldaña.

In 1993, HARC researchers in the high-bay test facility set a world record for the highest current through a super-conducting cable.

Working together with Varian Instruments, HARC produced the world's first actively shielded magnet for NMR spectroscopy to The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in 1995.

In 2005, George P. Mitchell established the Endowment for Regional Sustainability Science, which provides stable income for HARC's continuing operations.