With the US presidential election less than a week away — don’t worry, this is NOT a political post — I wanted to take an opportunity to share Cottonwood Institute‘s (CI) State of the Union in 2020. We are now 8 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and like many, CI’s world has turned upside down…. Read more »
At Cottonwood Institute, we’ve got reasons to love every time of year. Winter means plenty of snow for building quinzhees, spring is time for projects in the garden (or more quinzhees if the snow decides to stick around), and summer brings us down to Westcliffe for adventures at Mission: Wolf. But our favorite time of… Read more »
The beginning of March is an exciting time for Cottonwood Institute (CI) CAP Programs at Centaurus High School (CHS) and Angevine Middle School (AMS). We play creative games and brainstorming games as we come up with ideas for how to solve problems in our communities. Students form coalitions to lobby other students on their… Read more »
If you’re familiar with the Leave No Trace framework, you may have heard of the first principle: “Plan Ahead & Prepare.” At Cottonwood Institute (CI), we use wilderness as a tool for teaching skills that we hope transcend a weekend on the trail— from navigating weather to finding water, we try to instill in our… Read more »
We hope you and your loved ones are safe, happy and healthy during these uncertain times. Usually around this time of year, the CI staff are busy working to put on our annual Base Camp Bash, but due to the present circumstances, we’ve had to postpone our in person event to September. In the meantime,… Read more »
Overview The CAP Program is an award-winning elective class offered during the school day for academic credit. During CAP, students meet in class 3-5 days per week, challenge themselves on hikes and overnight camping trips, explore inspiring solutions to hyper-local environmental issues, choose an issue to address as a class, and collaborate with other local… Read more »
Overview Tucked below the Sangre De Cristo mountains of Southern Colorado resides a unique sanctuary called Mission: Wolf that hosts a group of 40 wolves born into captivity. Wild wolves were once abundant in Colorado, playing an important role in the health of the ecosystem, but today there are fewer than 4,000 wild wolves in… Read more »
2019 was a big year for Cottonwood Institute. We connected hundreds of students to the outdoors, watched them create some inspiring Action Projects, were honored as the ColoradoBiz Magazine Top Company in the nonprofit category, and even bought our own 15-passenger van to help us increase our impact! We are excited to share our Best… Read more »
CAP Program Elective The CAP Program is an award-winning elective class offered during the school day for academic credit. During CAP, students meet in class 3-5 days per week, challenge themselves on hikes and overnight camping trips, explore inspiring solutions to hyper-local environmental issues, choose an issue to address as a class, and collaborate… Read more »
What a semester! With five CAP classes, 16 field excursions, and more than 100 students served, Spring 2019 was one of our busiest yet. From taking their frigid first steps on winter Field Days to making incredible strides to improve their communities in their Action Projects, Cottonwood Institute students have achieved so much this year…. Read more »
