The 2026 John Spencer River Run 5K and Nature Walk is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 31 beginning at 8 a.m.

The event is held each year at the Odum School of Ecology in memory of John Kyle Spencer, a graduate student at Odum and the River Basin Center who dedicated his research to urban streams, freshwater ecology, conservation and ecological restoration.

Students, alumni, faculty and friends can participate in one of two simultaneous activities: A run that begins at the Odum School of Ecology and loops around South Campus to the Intramural Fields and back; or, a bird-watching nature walk led by Odum School professor Richard Hall at Lake Herrick.

In addition to celebrating the life and legacy of John Spencer, the event benefits the UGA River Basin Center and its John Spencer Research Grant Program, established in his memory to support graduate student research in freshwater ecology and conservation.

By attending or contributing, participants help reinforce the values that John Spencer embodied: kindness, generosity, and a deep commitment to preserving and restoring aquatic ecosystems.

The 5K begins in front of the Ecology Building at 8 a.m. See the John Spencer 5K 2026 Route at MapMyRun.

The bird-watching nature walk with Richard Hall begins in the Lake Herrick parking lot E1 (off College Station Road).

Register for the event and make a donation to the John Spencer Research program.