The average person uses a plastic bag for only about 12 minutes, then that plastic is doomed to roam the earth forever. People think they are going to recycle the bag, but really only about 1 percent of those bags are recycled. Beyond that, plastic is not able to be recycled infinitely, it can only… Read more »
It is that time of year and we are excited to announce Cottonwood Institute’s annual Top 10 Inspiring Stories from 2017! So what were our students up to this year? Check it out! 2017 Ripple Effect Award Winners Change Their World Daily Camera Covers Angevine Middle School Action Project STRIVing For A Sustainable Future –… Read more »
In August 2016, Cottonwood Institute (CI) took on a very important last minute project to officially have our Community Adventure Program (CAP) curriculum approved by the Boulder Valley School District Board of Education. This has been a long time coming and will open opportunities for work with more schools in Boulder County. Curriculum approval was… Read more »
Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) announced that the Nature Kids/Jovenes de la Naturaleza (NKJN) Coalition in Lafayette, CO, which Cottonwood Institute is a lead partner for, won a $2.8M Inspire Initiative grant! NKJN will focus on a one-square mile area, in a network of public schools serving the lowest income children in the Boulder Valley School District…. Read more »
Our Why Many students are feeling isolated and alone and are struggling with mental health. They are spending a majority of their time indoors on screens. Students are craving meaning, purpose, and community. At the same time, students are inheriting the most challenging issues we have ever faced in human history. Many students don’t… Read more »
We are excited to do a little bragging about our amazing Cottonwood Institute (Cottonwood) Senior Instructor, Erin Angel (she/her)! Erin is a woman of many talents, interests, and passions, and we are excited for you to get to know her better! Erin teaches Cottonwood’s core CAP Class and Changemaker Program in Boulder County. Erin helps… Read more »
Ongoing and workshop-based professional development for education organizations. Cottonwood Institute collaborates with schools and youth organizations along the Colorado Front Range—primarily for middle and high school students—to provide high quality, high impact environmental education and service-learning programs. We work with schools and other organizations to develop their own toolkits for facilitating student challenge and meaningful… Read more »
2020 has been a lot of things, and while “inspiring” may not be the first word that comes to mind, there were in fact many things to be inspired by in the world of Cottonwood Institute! Our instructors stepped up to the challenge of adapting their programs in a big way, and our students were… Read more »
Any student that’s taken a CAP Class with Cottonwood Institute can tell you that Action Projects are of the highlights of their experience. Typically, students choose an issue that they want to tackle as a whole class. Together, they find solutions and work to plan an action in their community; classes in the past have… Read more »
It has been a whirlwind since accepting my new position as Cottonwood Institute’s Program Director. Not only did I get to learn about our CI programming and meet the incredible staff, but I was able to attend educational sessions at Outdoor Retailer Snow Show 2020. As if that wasn’t exciting enough, the cherry on top… Read more »
