Trail games are the spontaneous games you play when you have infinite time and imagination and easy rapport with good friends. On CI’s first overnight trip since the pandemic began, the students in our Changemaker Program craved nothing more than being outdoors together. As we wandered up to Solitude Point at Cal-wood, we started playing… Read more »
As Cottonwood Institute prepares for the next season of trips, CI instructors and staff spent a training weekend building community, skills, and a shared mission. Bright and early Saturday morning, we loaded up in the CI van and drove into Bear Creek Lake Park. We spent the day at the Sunset Amphitheater where the clouds… Read more »
When the nation went into lockdown last year and students transitioned to online learning, some learners went into a kind of dormancy. The second period CAP outdoor class at Angevine Middle School had many students who hadn’t participated much in online learning and were both eager and hesitant to go back to school with hybrid… Read more »
Combining things we like to do or want to learn with a desire to help the planet is what Action Projects are all about. The first period CAP class at Angevine Middle School is an enthusiastic bunch with lots of interests, so they decided to bring awareness to pollinators by setting aside a week to… Read more »
Mark your calendars and dust off your best Zoom backgrounds—it’s almost time for the Base Camp Bash! Our annual fundraiser and community celebration will be held on Saturday, April 24th, and this year you can join us from the comfort of your own home. Click here to register! The Base Camp Bash is our annual… Read more »
When the Lafayette Stewardship Youth Corps first met at the Waneka Centennial Farm at the start of November, it seemed like the restoration project list had no end. While there is much work still to be done there, this group of hardworking interns made huge first steps (literally!) towards making this a functional space for… Read more »
“Awesome things happen when you get awesome people together.” -Ford Church If there were a guiding philosophy that underlies everything we do here at Cottonwood Institute, that might just be it; from students to instructors and partners to donors, this past year has only reinforced that CI’s strength truly lies in its people. So when… Read more »
The collaborative Lafayette Stewardship Youth Corps, co-led by CI Instructor Adam Fedyski and Wildlands Restoration Volunteers Project Coordinator Jackie Curry, continues going strong throughout the winter months. While much of their time is spent on restoration and improvement projects for Lafayette Open Space, the interns also had opportunities to participate in two trainings, Leave No… Read more »
This past weekend, students from our Changemaker Program got off their screens (finally!) and into the field for a chilly Saturday afternoon of practicing primitive skills. “We’ll be lucky if they make a little smoke,” we told the land managers that had given us permission to teach bow drill fires at Walden Ponds Wildlife Habitat…. Read more »
Cottonwood Institute is excited to invite you to join The Seedling, our new monthly giving program. The Need: Public school students have shared that they feel isolated and alone, and that they are craving the meaning and purpose that CI programs provide. CI needs help raising critical funding to support our students and programs during… Read more »
