Latest Updates

Thrift store shopping supports a more sustainable world. Read about the joy of thrifting with this Boulder County Thrift Store Guide, developed in collaboration with the Boulder Chamber of Commerce, Boulder County, the City of Boulder and Eco-Cycle!

The Keep it Clean Partnership is hosting the second Boulder St. Vrain Watershed Art Contest! All Kindergarten-12th grade students who live in and/or attend school in Boulder County are invited to participate in a free art contest with the chance to win art supplies, gift cards, and for your art to be featured on the Keep it Clean Partnership website. (This includes both the Boulder Valley School District and St. Vrain Valley School District)

Artwork should explore the following prompt:

Our watershed is a complex and interconnected system of land, water, air, and the humans, plants, and animals they support. Each of these members plays an important role in keeping our watershed healthy and thriving. For this art contest, we challenge you to explore the role of one of these community members in our watershed.

Deadline for Submissions: 11:59 p.m. on Friday, November 17th, 2023

City of Boulder Forestry, the PLAY Boulder Foundation and Cool Boulder are committed to increasing the urban canopy in Boulder and doing our part to cool the city. You can help add to the urban canopy by planting a tree on your Boulder property! Help fight climate change in your backyard!

Cool Boulder is excited to present to you an presentation by rainwater planting pioneer, Brad Lancaster, sharing stories and inspirational examples of how planting rain could help create landscapes and communities that are resilient to climate change, as well as healthier and happier places to live! Read on to find the presentation recording, watch a short film on Brad’s work, review resources provided by Brad and more!

Recruitment is complete for our Environmental Chemical Exposer Study! Thank you to everyone who applied for this community science opportunity! Participants will walk their dogs while wearing a chemical monitoring wristband and clip on their dog's collar to help us learn more about personal and animal exposure to environmental chemicals. Community participation will help us assess the exposure that people (and dogs) are experiencing during daily activities outside in Boulder.

Tune in at 7:00 p.m. Mountain Time on Thursday, June 29th, for a Cool Boulder livestream!

Cool Boulder is excited to offer you an evening with rainwater planting pioneer, Brad Lancaster, sharing stories and inspirational examples of how planting rain could help create landscapes and communities that are resilient to climate change, as well as healthier and happier places to live!

Brad Lancaster has worked with communities all over the world to bring both indigenous and traditional knowledge of rainwater planting together with contemporary approaches and technologies that enable us to live and thrive on the water that comes to us for free from the sky. He will share stories from his experiences with these different places and cultures.

Recognizing that Colorado’s future climate will much more closely resemble places like New Mexico, we need to learn from those who have already been adapting to a limited ground/surface water future. Brad will share the emerging lessons and best practices that are reshaping both the way we approach infrastructure development and water policy, both in his native home of Tucson, AZ (average rainfall 10-12”/yr) and elsewhere. Learn about specific approaches being taken in other communities and examples of household and community projects that are easily implemented at both levels.