Promote Bike Commuting!

Fully seizing the opportunity to make a difference in their community, middle school students in the Community Adventure Program (CAP) class at PS1 Charter School decided to focus their Action Project on alternative transportation.  Seeing as none of them are able to drive yet, they quickly discovered that they were all pretty good at using public transportation. But after a little bit of brainstormin, the students found it would be more efficient, sustainable and healthier if they could ride bikes to school, friends houses and on errands.

To make this possible the CAP students partnered with a free, volunteer-run bike shop called Derailer Bike Collective. The students creatively found 14 bikes to be donated to their cause and worked with the volunteers at Derailer to get the bikes into working condition.

By the end of the semester the 8 students in the CAP class who did not own bikes had a functioning bike to take home with them! The 14 bikes that were originally unrideable looked almost new! Way to go PS1 students! All of the students spent over ten hours in the shop repairing bicycles and learning bike maintenance and safety, rules of the road and safe routs to school. All of the students made a commitment to ride their bikes as much as possible to school, friends houses and elsewhere. Four of the students who already had bicycles of their own donated their bikes to other kids at the school who didn’t, and two students donated their bikes to a local refugee family who who needed transportation to work. The family and students outside of the class received brochures with the information the CAP students collected and made the same commitments to ride their bikes. As a final touch, the CAP class made a presentation for their school to promote bike commuting.

“I liked being able to have someone show me what to do, then getting a chance to try it myself.”  - Indio

Change The World Report: The 2008 Annual Report of the Cottonwood Institute

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR REPORT: At the Cottonwood Institute, we are known for “changing the world, one adventure at a time!” I wanted to take a moment to send you our Change the World Report to share our accomplishments for 2008. We could not have accomplished what we did this past year without the generous support of our donors, instructors, students, educational partners, in-kind supporters, board members, advisory board members, and volunteers that devoted countless hours to making sure we had a successful year.

What excites me about our work with the Cottonwood Institute is that we are on the front lines of inspiring the next generation of active community leaders and environmental stewards through our award-winning environmental service-learning curriculum. It is clear that we cannot expect students to care about their community and the environment if they never have a chance to explore their community and the natural world.

Thank you for helping us inspire the youth of America. Please feel free to contact me at 303.447.1076 with any feedback, wisdom, or advice you are interested in sharing with us. Here is to a phenomenal 2009!

Sincerely,

Ford Church, Founder and Executive Director

Josie Brown during a Community Adventure Program Camping Trip

“The Community Adventure Program was, without a doubt, one of the best classes I have taken at New Vista High School. The Community Adventure Program helped me understand more about my place in the world and how I want to save it. The Community Adventure Program exponentially raised my awareness of the interconnected social and environmental issues that are embroiled in the world… it has helped me understand the incredible potential and opportunity I have as a high school student to make a true difference in the world.”

Josie Brown, Community Adventure Program Alumni from New Vista High School

2008 ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

In 2008, we served 800 participants through the Community Adventure Program, our Summer Courses, programs for Schools & Community Organizations, Free Survival Skills Clinics, and Change the World Movie Nights! Community Adventure Program students completed 5 amazing Action Projects to promote organic gardening at New Vista, to reduce P.S.1’s environmental footprint, to promote bike commuting at P.S.1 and New Vista, and to tackle trash at Manual.

An astounding number of individual donors stepped up to support us this year and we increased our individual donations by 106% in 2008 compared to 2007! Despite the uncertain economy, we met our Annual Giving Campaign goal by December 31, 2008 and finished the year just over $200 in the black. Every donation was critical, so thank you again for your extraordinary generosity! To view a complete list of our 2008 supporters, please Click Here.

During the summer of 2008 we awarded over $7,000 in scholarships, a 250% increase from 2007! We are incredibly grateful to all of our donors who have supported our Jason F. Griffith Scholarship Fund to make our courses accessible to those that otherwise would not have the opportunity to join us for a course this summer.

We successfully met a $2,500 challenge grant from Jack Johnson, the All at Once Community, and the Johnson Ohana Charitable Foundation raising $5,000 for our Jason F. Griffith Scholarship Fund. A few lucky volunteers were able to meet Jack and Kim Johnson in person and we had 2nd row seats for the show! A huge thank you goes out to Jack Johnson for all of their support in 2008.

We received a $19,935 Environmental Education Grant from the US Environmental Protection Agency to help underwrite the costs of implementing our public school initiative called the Community Adventure Program at New Vista High School in Boulder, CO and at P.S.1 Charter School in Denver, CO.

IN-KIND REPORT: Businesses around the country have been extremely generous donating their time, professional expertise, business solutions, and event space. The Cottonwood Institute received the following in-kind support in 2008:

• Patton Boggs, LLP, Denver, CO: James Muchmore, Pro-Bono Lawyer
• De Joya Griffith & Company, LLC, Las Vegas, NV: Jason F. Griffith, Pro-Bono C.P.A.
• Insigniam Performance, Laguna Beach, CA: Nina Keebler, Pro-Bono Business Consultant
• Wynkoop Brewing Company, Denver, CO: Jamie Webb, Free Event Space
• Salesforce.com, San Francisco, CA: Meghan Nesbit, 10 Free Database Licenses Per Year
• Verticalresponse.com, San Francisco, CA: 10,000 Free HTML Emails Per Month

TOP 5 WAYS TO SET THE COTTONWOOD INSTITUTE UP FOR SUCCESS IN 2009:

1. Consider making a monthly donation instead of a 1 time donation at the end of the year. To set this automatically and securely online, Click Here.
2. Come to the Base Camp Bash on Friday, April 17, 2009. The money raised from this event will support our public school initiative called the Community Adventure Program and our Jason F. Griffith Scholarship Fund. For more information, Click Here.
3. Register for one of our 2009 Courses for adventurous students and adults. To view our 2009 Course Schedule, Click Here.
4. Consider donating something from our Wish List (see below) or Click Here.
5. Encourage your friends, co-workers, and family to check out our website and help us spread the word about the Cottonwood Institute grassroots-style! To go to our home page, Click Here.

2009 WISH LIST:

• 15-passenger vehicle
• 4×8 enclosed trailer
• Office space in Denver
• Storage space between Boulder and Denver, Colorado
• Private land access within 1.5 hours of the Boulder/Denver area
• 10×10 canopy tent for festivals and events
• 3 digital video cameras

For more information about our wish list, Click Here.

STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES - JANUARY 1, 2008 – DECEMBER 31, 2008:

Individual contributions:                            $34,407
Fees/earned income:                                 $26,145
Events:                                                      $17,906
Government grants:                                  $19,935
Foundations:                                             $13,175
Business:                                                   $10,144
Other:                                                       $1,573

Administrative Personnel Expenses            $31,343
Business Expenses                                     $8,407
Fundraising                                                $3,628
Insurance                                                   $3,854
Professional Fees                                       $4,402
Programming Expenses                             $66,543
Other Expenses                                         $3,365

Total Expenses                                       $121,543

Net Income Before Investments/Depreciation:                $1,742

Investment Loss:                                        ($43,959)
Savings Account Interest:                           $5
Depreciation:                                             ($1,850)

*In 2007 we created a Designated Fund with the Rose Community Foundation to manage investments that were donated to the Cottonwood Institute. With the struggling economy, these investments lost a significant amount of money, which we recorded as a loss in 2008. Operationally, the Cottonwood Institute is fiscally responsible and in a strong financial position for 2009 and beyond.

Notes From The Field: January Winter Survival Workshop

If you were spending a beautiful, snowy winter day cross-country skiing in the mountains and an unexpected storm suddenly made it impossible to return to your car before night fall, would you know how to survive? On Saturday, January 24, 2009, a group of adults headed into the mountains to participate in the Cottonwood Institute’s Winter Survival Skills Workshop.  This one-day workshop was designed especially for adults who don’t have the time to take several days out of their busy schedule to practice these essential survival skills.

After meeting at Chautauqua Park in Boulder, and receiving all the appropriate gear, the students and their instructors snowshoed to base camp just outside of Ward, Colorado. Having only one day to learn a lot of skills, the group got straight to work. The students participated in a mock survival scenario, learned rescue methods and techniques, modern fire starting methods and how to construct emergency and Quinzhee snow shelters.

When asked about his experience, participant Art Stawski replied: “I enjoyed the course tremendously. I learned how to build shelters and start fires. I also learned the importance of using common sense and planning ahead. Conditions can change rapidly in the wilderness, and you should always have the knowledge to survive if you should have to spend a night or two out there.” Art will be going on a winter camping trip in the near future and plans on making a Quinzhee for his shelter.  For Art, the workshop also provided a chance to meet people. “I especially appreciated the opportunity to meet some new people and hear their stories and experiences. I would recommend the workshop to anyone interested in winter outdoor activities, or just anyone who loves to be outdoors in general.”