Dear COOLER friends,

In this newsletter we want to share with you a few highlights of our year 2024, introduce you to a few more of our CLImates cohort members, and some useful resources like funding for faculty, a new micromobility program by the City of Greeley, and some ideas around Climate Resilience resolutions.

2024 was an exciting year for the COOLER program! Here are a few of our milestones:

• Our Ask Me Anything event series was launched. In this series, we chat with a different invited guest from the Greeley community about their work with climate resilience. In 2024, we hosted eight guests and look forward to hosting more in the coming year. Recordings of this series can be found here.

• Tabling at different events has been one of the best ways that we learn about and connect with people in the Greeley community about climate resilience. In 2024, we hosted 6 tables at venues ranging from UNC campus to the farmer’s market, and to events around wetland conservation and cultural connection.

• The CLImates (Climate Leadership Institute) program kicked off! On September 14th, cohort members and the COOLER leadership team had the pleasure of meeting each other in person for the first time. Each cohort has developed and collaborated in such unique ways over the past year; we are all looking forward to seeing the culmination of the cohorts’ diligence and hard work over the next months.

• Connecting people together through a shared mission of learning about and taking action on climate resilience in Northern Colorado is one of our biggest goals at COOLER. As part of this effort, we send out newsletters (9 in 2024!) and grow our social media network through posting relevant information (our network is in the hundreds now). We also stood up a brand new COOLER website! Next year, we hope to continue expanding and deepening these connections, including by hosting more public-facing and COOLER community events.

Craftivism Crochet Bomb

Beginning on November 11th, UNC’s Craftivism class, led by Stephanie Spindler of the CLImates faculty cohort, installed a crochet bomb on the sculpture in front of UNC Campus Commons. The theme of this crochet bomb was “nature” and aimed to raise awareness around climate change. The result left a colorful and poignant mark on UNC campus, showcasing the power of harnessing art for social change through craftivism. For more information on the topic of craftivism, check out our Ask Me Anything event with Stephanie Spindler from October 2024!

UNC Campus Xeriscape Transformation

Following the success of the xeric garden in 2021, the University of Northern Colorado is set to convert an additional 3.4 acres of land to water resilient plantings. This success in on-campus water conservation features the contributions of Dena Egenhoff, water conservation manager and CLImates Organizations cohort member, alongside Chelsie Romulo, professor of Geography, GIS and Sustainability and COOLER director, and student cohort member and student LEAF president Lorayne Aguinaldo. With the assistance of Chelsie’s Leadership and Community Building class, the project was awarded a $630,105 grant from the City of Greeley this fall. Drought-resistant natural grasses are set to begin replacing the existing bluegrass to complement our semi-arid landscape and conserve an estimated 2,626,890 gallons per year. This new area will feature hammock stations, seating areas, walkways, and student art displays. It is expected to be fully realized by 2027. Click here for additional information on this story.

Four Elements Community Event

CLImates Organization cohort member KJ Burrola from the organization Voices of the Land put on a community event November 9th celebrating Indigenous voices and heritage. The event featured many pillars of Greeley’s BIPOC communities such as food by Tacos "El No Se Que" LLC and Sweet Talk Shoppe LLC, a puppet show featuring Xicano-Puppet Theater, and a dance competition featuring Indigenous Corporation 5280. Follow Voices of the Land for further opportunities to connect with and find community in the Greeley area!

River Watch

Over the course of this fall, Sharon Bywater-Reyes, Chelsie Romulo, and Genevieve Hankins of the COOLER leadership team have re-established a water quality monitoring site for the River Watch of Colorado database. Spearheaded by Sharon, this project aims to both gather publicly accessible water quality data of our local Poudre River as well as allow volunteers and students the opportunity to get hands-on experience with river sampling.

Envisioning a Sustainable Future with AI and Art

On November 20th, UNC’s Michener library hosted the “Envisioning a Sustainable Future with AI and Art” reception in the Mari Michener Gallery. This event featured student work from the Global Climate Change class taught Cindy Shellito, COOLER director. This was done in conjunction with traveling exhibit “Promising Future, Complex Past: Artificial Intelligence and the Legacy of Physiognomy.” Student work explored the intriguing intersection between art, hope, and the future of Earth, both in terms of climate change and artificial intelligence—all things up-and-coming students will soon need to contend with.

We asked our CLImates cohort members to share a little bit about themselves so you can get to know them a little better.

Andrew Dominguez

Student Cohort

What brought you to the COOLER CLImates program?

“It seemed like a great opportunity to find other people on campus with the same interests as myself, and to make a tangible, local impact on issues that are important to everyday life. I hope it to be a precursor to something I could see myself doing as a career.”

What is one change you would like to see in the Greeley community?

“With all the agriculture in the area, I would love to see some more sustainable farming practices be implemented, which would be beneficial in many ways.”

What is your favorite local outdoor space?

“UNC has many spots on campus that are great to sit and work at, Wi-Fi permitting.”

What is a project you are currently working on or are excited about?

“I plan to be part of the Transportation/Infrastructure and Water teams. The specifics of projects are still being worked out, but I look forward to making an impact in those areas.”

What is something you are looking forward to in the coming year?

“I look forward to going deeper into my education on Earth Sciences and learning more about the UNC and Greeley community.”

______________________

Sarah Burke

Organizations Cohort

What brought you to the COOLER CLImates program?

“The whole idea behind the CLImates program is so unique and cool! I love the concept of bringing together like-minded people with different skillsets and backgrounds working to build climate knowledge and resilience in Greeley. I feel like there are so many passionate groups that have projects but don't have the support they need, and so many passionate people looking for ways to plug in and COOLER is bringing those together to get people connected.”

What is one change you would like to see in the Greeley community?

“I would love to see renewable energy start to become the norm! Oil and gas is polluting our air and water and poisoning the people. Greeley deserves so much better and we are starting to have the technology and capability to be able to do better!”

What is your favorite local outdoor space?

“Any and all little ponds! I love sitting by a cheeky little pond to watch the ducks.”

What is a project you are currently working on or are excited about?

“We are working on a project called Greeley Clean Air! We are working to bring awareness around air pollution, health, and advocacy to communities in Greeley. Everyone deserves to breathe clean air and we are committed to spreading awareness and working to fight the systems that are making our air unsafe to breathe.”

What is something you are looking forward to in the coming year?

“I am looking forward to making connections with people! There are so many cool people and groups in the program and I can't wait to build relationships and create a strong community in the COOLER group!”

______________________

Angela Steele

Faculty Cohort

What brought you to the COOLER CLImates program?

“I remember watching "An Inconvenient Truth" when it came out, and I brought some of the math from that documentary into my Math for Liberal Arts class. After a few years of teaching these ideas, the students seemed uninterested in climate change. Twenty years later, I jumped at the opportunity and joined COOLER to have the support of experts in the climate change field. I want to be able to incorporate this social justice issue into my classroom again.”

What is one change you would like to see in the Greeley community?

“Greeley currently has many cattle feedlots, and I would love to see them converted to regenerative farming.”

What is your favorite local outdoor space?

“Horsetooth Falls.”

What is a project you are currently working on or are excited about?

“Everyone has the right to good health (and not to be fed propaganda that benefits the food and pharmaceutical industries). The food industry cares more about its profit and disregards how its practices hurt our land (example: using mono-crops and cattle feedlots instead of regenerative farming and food forest ecosystems).”

What is something you are looking forward to in the coming year?

“Making small changes that can have a larger impact.”

Greeley Clean Air 350 Colorado Events:

January 28th, 11am-3pm, location: TBD - Casual Team (Work) Day! Greeley Clean Air will be in Greeley! Stop by to chat, connect, ask questions, and learn more about our project!

February 22nd, 11am-3pm (subject to change), - Air Pollution & Community Action day

OER Grant Opportunity for Faculty

We are excited to share that the COOLER team has been awarded a small grant from the Colorado Commission on Higher Education for developing Open Education Resources (OER) for Teaching Climate Change Across the Curriculum. UNC faculty who participate in the program will be provided a $1,000 stipend and support for developing the OER materials during Spring and Summer of 2025. You can find more details about the program and an application form here. Applications are due by midnight on Jan 27th.

New App to limit food waste and relieve food insecurity

A Colorado engineer has launched a new app to combat food waste and hunger! The Hungree App is designed to share excess food with the local community and was inspired by the creator’s personal experience growing up in Nigeria with his own food insecurity. Launched in late 2023, Hungree App users can choose whether they want to give or receive food and get connected with others to coordinate sharing extra food, rather than let it go to waste. Check out the Hungree App here or read more on this story here!

Pilot Program brings e-bikes and e-scooters to Greeley

Beginning last October, the City of Greeley’s Micromobility pilot project has brought approximately 75 e-scooters and e-bikes to UNC’s campus and downtown Greeley. These bikes and scooters are available for short term rental through the SPIN app. Additionally, members of the UNC community can use their UNC email and receive 50% off all rentals. This pilot is currently slated to run through December 2025. For more information on the program and SPIN app, click here.

With a rapidly approaching future and climate dread only increasing it may be difficult to feel like you can make a difference. Here at COOLER, in an effort to maintain some hope and make a positive impact while doing so, we propose creating some climate resilience resolutions for the new year! Not only can this help the environment, it can also help keep a positive outlook in these trying times. Even the smallest changes can create an impact, particularly if we can begin making changes as a community.

Here are just a few ideas on climate resilience resolutions you can actually follow through on:

1. Choose foods with a lower carbon footprint

Not all foods are created equal in terms of environmental impact. From land use to transportation, the foods we eat are responsible for a considerable portion of human-based carbon emissions. However, learning which foods have a more drastic impact than others can help you make educated choices when deciding what to eat. For example, beef is responsible for 60 kg carbon dioxide per kilogram of food product produced, whereas eggs are responsible for only 4.5 kg carbon dioxide per kilogram of food product. Our World in Data has an article on the topic here, with a handy graph that can help put greenhouse gas emissions of different foods in perspective.

2. Reduce food waste

As discussed in the resource section above, there is a new app to help with this very resolution! Too many leftovers after an event? Whether it be a wedding, graduation, or holiday party, there is no reason to throw it out. The Hungree App makes it convenient not only to reduce food waste, but also to do good for those with food insecurity in your community. Check it out here!

3. Avoid fast fashion

Why buy overpriced, cheaply made clothes that weren’t built to last? There is so much variety and quality to find in local thrift shops! Each visit is a unique treasure hunt where you will never find the same loot twice. Secondhand clothes are not only budget-friendly, but can often yield even higher quality articles of clothing. Clothes today are often not created with longevity in mind (in fact, it serves the industry if clothing is created to fall apart). While it may take a little more dedicated searching time to find the right fit, I find the results are almost always worth it. Next time you go clothes shopping, check out some thrift shops, you may find unique gems you can’t get anywhere else!

4. Support sustainable practices

An easy resolution that doesn’t involve giving up something you love: simply find the more sustainable, ethically sourced options and practices, then make an effort to support them. There’s no need to get wrapped up in black and white thinking when it comes to the climate, any mitigation is beneficial for everyone. Our COOLER leadership have shared some of their personal examples on this topic:

For Sharon Bywater-Reyes, it’s coffee. While coffee can have a significant carbon footprint, Dr. B chooses Higher Grounds Coffee, with a mission for sustainability and ethics. You may even find you prefer the more sustainably-sourced option!

For Cindy Shellito, it’s chocolate. This is another example of a product with a high carbon footprint, and a history of unethical practices. Cindy enjoys Alter Eco, Equal Exchange, and Endangered Species as her choices in ethically-sourced chocolates.

All this to say, you don’t have to give up your favorite things! Even sometimes is better than never. With that, we hope you all can find some hope going into 2025. While the future may be intimidating and sometimes even outright scary, know that you are not alone, we have our little community to rely on. Thank you all for making 2024 an amazing year!

Happy New Year from the COOLER team! We look forward to working with you this year!

Meet the COOLER Team:

COOLER Directors and UNCO faculty: Cindy Shellito (Principal), Sharon Bywater-Reyes, Chelsie Romulo

COOLER Community Director: Arika Virapongse (Middle Path EcoSolutions)

COOLER Evaluation Director: Rupu Gupta (Rupu Gupta Consulting)

COOLER Community Managers & UNCO Student Team: Anna Dispirito, Kyle Thoutt, Genevieve Hankins