JUNE 1st-24th, 2020: Yampa River Festival goes VIRTUAL.The flagship event of Friends of the Yampa, the Yampa River Festival, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. Unfortunately in light of the current health crisis, the event will not be the familiar river party. That being said, Friends of the Yampa hope to leverage partnerships and the latest technology to promote virtual participation in the 2020 Yampa River Festival. Please head HERE to participate in the celebration!
JUNE 17th, 2020: Virtual Youth Camp | Colorado Trout Unlimited | 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. In lieu of this year’s River Conservation and Fly Fishing Youth Camp, Colorado Trout Unlimited will be hosting a series of five two-hour virtual camp events called TU Teen LIVE. These Zoom events will cover various topics in relation to Trout Unlimited’s mission and fly fishing. Participants will get a virtual tour of a Colorado Parks and Wildlife hatchery, learn more about their watershed, determine how to select their fly based on macroinvertebrates, and meet a panel of people who have careers in water conservation or fishing. There are only 20 spots available, so secure your ticket today HERE!
JUNE 18th, 2020: Colorado Outdoor Regional Partnerships Webinar | Partners in the Outdoors | 9:00- 10:15 a.m. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and members of the Colorado Outdoor Partnership (CO-OP) will present a concept for a new statewide initiative to support and encourage locally driven collaborative solutions for ensuring that Colorado’s lands and waters thrive while providing opportunities for all Coloradans to enjoy the outdoors. To do this, partners are exploring the development of Outdoor Regional Partnerships around the state in a manner that supports existing coalitions. For more information and to register, click HERE.
JUNE 18th, 2020: “No Occupation without Representation: Creating an Inclusive Workforce” | Partners in the Outdoors | 10:30- 11:45 a.m. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) and the National Park Service (NPS) are striving to better represent the public that they serve by diversifying their workforce. During this presentation Environmental Learning for Kids (ELK) and NPS will highlight the Urban Ranger program and how it is addressing the challenges associated with the task of recruiting and retaining a workforce that best represents the communities that we serve. For more information and to register, click HERE.
JUNE 24th, 2020: Trout Tank Virtual Pitch Event and Demo Day | Colorado Small Business Development Center | 4:00-6:00 p.m. During the first-ever Trout Tank: Virtual Pitch Event and Demo Day, you will hear the top 5 pitches of the Trout Tank Cohort, be able to ask the founders questions, and have an opportunity to interact with attendees and founders in small format breakout rooms for a truly interactive virtual Trout Tank experience. For more information and to register, click HERE.
JULY 6th-10th, 2020: Water & Wildlife Camp | Nature & Wildlife Discovery Center | 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. This is for campers entering 3rd-4th grades. Let your littles have fun in the sun exploring along the Arkansas River banks, to the Mountain Park ponds and creeks in search of local wildlife! Adventures include hiking, nature games, team building, paddle-boarding, and kayaking at Lake Pueblo State Park! Partial scholarships are available. The application deadline was June 12th. For more information click HERE.
JULY 11th, 2020: Nearly a Night at the Park | Mountain Area Land Trust | 7:00 - 7:30 p.m. Pre-event begins at 6:30 pm. To keep the sense of togetherness alive, Mountain Area Land Trust celebrates land and water conservation in the comfort of our own home, driveway, or deck - wherever you have WiFi! For more information click HERE.
JULY 27th, 2020: Apiary Tours with The Peoples Bees | Living Systems Institute | Golden, CO | 10:00 - 10:30 a.m. Whether you're interested in beekeeping, looking to broaden your gardening skills, or just curious about LSI services, please join a free tour of the apiary on the last Friday of every month! You’ll see 5 hives from a comfortable distance, learn about LSI mission and services, and, if time allows, crack open a hive and observe a frame! Registration is free but donations are welcome. To register and look at more dates, click HERE.
AUGUST 2nd, 2020: Virtual Garden Tour - Designing Backyard Wetlands for Wildlife, Diversity, and Tranquility | Colorado Native Plant Society | 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. John Giordanengo will host the Virtual Garden Tour, showing off the backyard wetland that he created. This is a peaceful space to hang out and enjoy the trickling of water and birdsong. He will talk about the mechanics of how he created his pond and wetland with Colorado native plants bordering its banks. John is the principal ecologist and owner of the firm, AloTerra Restoration Services in Fort Collins. He has wide and deep experience with restoration of not only wetlands, but forests, prairies, stream banks, and open spaces. For more information and to register, click HERE.
AUGUST 3rd-4th, 2020: Forests to Faucets | Mountain Studies Institute | Pagosa Springs, CO. Mountain Studies Institute partners with San Juan Mountains Association, the Water Information Program, and Fort Lewis College to host a two-day workshop to introduce regional educators to the My Water Comes from the San Juan Mountains teaching guide. This place-based approach to watershed education rotates each summer to a different geographic area. The 2020 workshop will explore the Upper San Juan River watershed and will be based out of Pagosa Springs. Check it out HERE.
AUGUST 20th-21st, 2020: Summit for Action Online. Summit for Action is a 2-day event for thought-provoking discussions and solutions-based recommendations for Justice, Equity, Diversity, Accessibility, and Inclusion. The Summit for Action model brings together a variety of community leaders and key stakeholders to develop shared understanding around the steps needed to inspire and drive social change around Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion issues. Register by July 10th for early bird pricing HERE.
AUGUST 20th & 21st, 2020: Water Education Colorado’s Water Educator Network Symposium: Equipping Learners for Action in a Climate of Uncertainty | Keystone Science School. The annual symposium includes training and professional development as well as a time for educators around the state to gather, share best practices, learn from each other and problem-solve to overcome challenges in water education. Educators, water professionals and decision-makers are encouraged to attend. In the workshop, facilitators will model four activities and participants plan and teach a lesson to peers and receive feedback from workshop facilitators. Project Wet Workshop: The Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) workshop provides a hands-on immersion in a water education curriculum recommended by the National Science Teachers Association. In the workshop, facilitators will model four activities and participants plan and teach a lesson to peers and receive feedback from workshop facilitators. Participants who successfully complete the training receive a Project WET Educator certification and Project WET Curriculum Guide 2.0. Find out details, register, and join a carpool HERE.
SEPTEMBER 2020: Colorado's 2020 Advancing Environmental Education Conference | Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE) | Snow Mountain Ranch in Granby, CO. Registration will be closed until further details are available. Colorado’s Advancing Environmental Education Conference is annually hosted by the CAEE, a statewide leader in environmental education since 1989. CAEE facilitates communication, coordination, resource sharing and professional development to advance environmental education among over 900 members across the state among various sectors. CAEE also advocates for increased access to environmental learning opportunities for all Colorado residents in order to increase environmental literacy in Colorado. Click HERE to read all about it.
SEPTEMBER 9th-11th, 2020 | ESRI Water GIS Conference 2020 | Chicago, IL or online. Discover all-new GIS solutions for the water industry, learn from Esri experts, build your professional network, and bring home new GIS skills that will make you a valuable asset at your organization. For more information click HERE.
SEPTEMBER 15th, 2020: RiverBank | Colorado Water Trust | Denver Botanic Gardens. This annual fundraiser seeks to restore flows to Colorado’s rivers in need. It’s a fun-filled evening of food, drinks, a silent auction, and the presentation of the David Getches Flowing Waters Award. Visit the event page HERE.
SEPTEMBER 18th, 2020: President’s Reception | Water Education Colorado | 6:00-10:00 p.m. | Balistreri Vineyards. Join a night of celebration, networking, and awards to honor water leadership and raise money for Water Education Colorado at one of the best events of the year. Enjoy a cocktail hour, seated dinner, awards presentation, and lively auction at a beautiful indoor/outdoor venue. This year's award recipients have been announced! Purchase tickets by September 14th. Click HERE to get tickets.
SEPTEMBER 21st-23rd: 2020 Colorado Open Spaces Alliance Conference | Community Conservation: Keeping it Relevant | Vail, CO. Do you have open space, natural resource management, or conservation expertise you’d like to share? COSA is seeking presentations and they are proud to present this year’s keynote speakers, Nina Simon, Of/By/For All, and Lori Weigel, New Bridge Strategies. Nina will speak to the challenges and opportunities we all face as we work to make our open spaces welcome to diverse audiences. Submit your proposal HERE. The deadline to submit a session proposal is June 19th, 2020.
OCTOBER 6th-8th, 2020: 15th Annual Sustaining Colorado Watersheds Conference: Business as (Un)Usual | Westin Riverfront Resort, Avon, CO. For 2020 we’ll be focusing on work that challenges the status quo, represents different perspectives around any given issue, or highlights new partnerships and/or business models that are helping to sustain and advance projects, programs, or even entire organizations. Please give your input on our participant survey HERE. Sponsorship opportunities are available HERE or visit the conference homepage HERE.
OCTOBER 28th, 2020: Water Conservation Symposium | Colorado WaterWise | Mile High Station. Colorado WaterWise invites you to save the date for the 12th annual conservation symposium. They are continuing to monitor the latest information related to the COVID-19 pandemic and will adhere to all regulations related to public gatherings in effect at that time. For more information on the event, click HERE.
DECEMBER 2nd-3rd, 2020: South Platte Forum. SPF may offer a condensed, online event that would still include timely speakers and topics from within the South Platte Basin. Browse the agenda topics HERE, and register early HERE before October 1st.