Written by Senior Cottonwood Field Instructor, Amy Kopkin Atkins It is both intuitive and well known that spending time outdoors is a healthy anecdote to the mental and physical health issues that arise when one spends too much time on a screen. It’s another thing to see it in action. As Cottonwood CAP and… Read more »
Written by CAP Instructor Erin Angel (Escrito en español más abajo) The Centaurus High School CAP class partnered with Lucky to Ride for our September Field Day. Feeling actually lucky to ride, 13 intrepid humans hailing from seven different countries came together for a joyful day of mountain biking and building community. We’ll leave it… Read more »
Vicki Whisenhunt wears many hats for Cottonwood Institute. As Administrative and Special Events Coordinator, Vicki provides critical support to CI programs and performs all the behind-the-scenes magic to make the Bash and our other events go off smoothly. She also serves as in-house aerialist, resident cat lover, and occasional mixologist for CI team events. Get… Read more »
Just shy of her one-year anniversary with Cottonwood Institute, Program Director Katie Vega has already made her mark on this organization, spearheading the creation of multiple new programs and constantly evaluating the ways we can address the needs of the communities we serve. Get to know Katie (and her constant companion/relentless Zoombomber Penny) in our… Read more »
Our friends and frequent collaborators at Re:Vision Westwood and Lifespan Local have been working hard to support members of the Westwood community during the COVD-19 crisis through their weekly No-Cost Grocery Distribution Program. Residents facing food insecurity can drive up on Wednesday afternoons to collect boxes of food and home goods. With the help of… Read more »
Our next staff spotlight features Program Manager Andrew Miller! After guiding backpacking and paddling programs in the Bay Area, Andrew took a detour to work in the entertainment industry before returning to environmental education with Cottonwood Institute in 2019. As CI’s Program Manager, he’s responsible for many of the logistics behind our field programs, from… Read more »
Hannah Melomo joined the Cottonwood Institute team as a Field Instructor this spring, and has already proven herself to be a multi-talented graphic designer and curriculum developer in the creation of our Explore Outside Handbook and summer programs! If it was designed by CI and it looks amazing, Hannah probably had something to do with… Read more »
Over the last year Cottonwood Institute has been working with Martin Ogle at Entrepreneurial Earth to spread the word about an initiative to change our collective language around “green jobs”. Environmental education has often focused on introducing students to environmental or green careers in hopes of growing interest in this field. It’s a great field,… Read more »
Cottonwood Institute set out with a very excited group of 22 Littleton Academy fifth grade students this May on their much anticipated trip to Mission: Wolf! With bags packed, eager smiles, and helping hands, we loaded the vans and were off! Many songs were sung on the way to Mission: Wolf along with curiously anxious questions… Read more »
Colorado Youth for Change and Cottonwood Institute teamed up to create an impactful experience for ten very lucky high school students from Prairie View and Brighton high schools this summer. We loaded up the vans and were off on an adventure to Mission: Wolf! Students didn’t really know what they had signed up for, although… Read more »
