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

“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:

REVENUE

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

Total Revenue:                                       $123,285

EXPENSES

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)

*Adjusted Net Income:                            ($44,062)

*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.”

Welcome to the CAP Club!

Welcome to the CAP Club Blog!

Hello!! Welcome to New Vista High School’s NEW CAP (Community Adventure Program) Club! I’m so excited things are finally getting rolling. Not so long ago we didn’t even know what CAP Club was going to be, and now we’ve not only figured out our purpose, but some great activities, too!

So, wait; back up. Who is this ‘we?’ Well, ‘we’ are the three founding members of CAP Club; Hannah, Zander and me, Josie (you’ll be hearing from mainly me online).

All three of us have taken the CAP class before; Hannah and I were in the 1st quarter class, and Zander was in the 2nd. Hannah and I first collaborated to begin the CAP Club at the beginning of 2nd quarter, and Zander joined us a few weeks after. We all loved the CAP Class and wanted to continue CAP after we had finished it.

We have officially decided on our roles for CAP Club, and they are as follows: Hannah is the action of the CAP Club; the public speaker; outgoing and spirited. Zander is the Alternative Transportation Day guy; he always has great ideas and makes them happen. I (Josie) am the voice; the writer, the shy genius (humble I am not). If you’re looking for specifics in any of these categories, talk to the person who knows the most about them. (You can always ask any of us about anything relating to the CAP Club though, of course.)

And now that you know a bit about us, I can explain what CAP Club is all about!

CAP Club aims to inform peers about environmental problems and, more importantly, how to fix them. It is also a great place to start actively bringing about environmental change. But, and this is very important, CAP Club is FUN! It’s not a club that just talks and talks and gets nothing done — it’s a place where kids who want to help the environment can join together and talk, be active and simply enjoy the outdoors. Also, since this club is just getting started, anyone who wants to help shape it will be welcomed! We are always looking for fresh insight.

CAP Club has meetings biweekly, and every single time we meet will not be empty talk, but an event, whether it be hiking, learning at a how-to clinic or a mini Action Project (if you don’t already know, in the CAP Class kids do the Action Project to help the environment/community on an environmental subject, such as water or air pollution). We really hope to have had events in each category by the end of the year, because too much of one thing becomes dull and repetitive.

WE ARE HAVING AN INFORMATIONAL MEETING ON THURSDAY, JANUARY 29th IN ROOM 202 AT LUNCH!!! PLEASE come, even if you are only slightly interested. I have had word that there will be food there, so don’t worry about going hungry. And if you have any questions about CAP Club, ask them on Thursday or respond to this blog! We’ll be happy to answer them as best we can.

That’s it. Thanks a bunch for reading my novel above, and I hope to see you guys soon!

~ Josie

Did you know that…

Did you know that…

• 115 pounds of newspaper is the equivalent of one tree?
• Paper makes up about 34 percent of our garbage– the largest chunk?
• In Boulder you can now recycle plastics numbered 1-7, but only if the plastic is a certain shape?
• There are many other things you can recycle, like plastic bags, if you take them to the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials or CHARM?
• Metal, like steel and aluminium, can be recycled and infinite number of times, while most plastic can only be recycled once?
• That aluminium is mined from beneath the rain forest?
• That if you recycle the “wrong” materials the whole lot of recycling goes to the landfill??

This is just some of what we learned last week when eco-cycle’s Alycia Bouyounan came to visit CAP.

We also learned that New Vista High School students have A LOT to learn when it comes to where their garbage goes, what can and cannot be thrown away and what isn’t trash at all! Check out the photos from  our trash audit!

We found more after this photo was taken: a granola bar, and a pack of cookies.

Much of what we found could have been composted, but composting isn’t slated to arrive at most high schools for at least two years. Meanwhile landfills are filling… could this be a job for CAP kids, stay tuned…

Pick It Up!

Issue: Litter!

During the fall semester of the 2008-2009 school year, the Cottonwood Institute collaborated with Manual High School to offer the Community Adventure Program. During this class, students are empowered to coordinate a student-directed Action Project to address a local environmental issue.

Students jumped right in, rolled up their sleeves, and decided to tackle the issue of trash at their school for their Action Project. They noticed that not only was there a large amount of trash in the hallways, lunchroom, and outside courtyard, but also on surrounding streets and within the community as well. After learning that litter is often correlated with increases in violence and decreases in business success, they knew that something needing to be done!

Plan: Research, Resources, and Education

Students researched the causes and impact of litter. They also met with key community leaders to learn how they have impacted the community, what resources might be available for them, grant writing skills, and marketing and education strategies. Students researched where in the school there was the most litter and interviewed students and staff to find out their perspective on the problem. After all their research was complete, students decided they wanted to increase the amount of trash cans at their school because the current ones were overflowing. Their goal was to make the trash cans more attractive, visible, and to launch an education and awareness campaign so students would be more likely to use them.

Impact: Pickin’ It Up

Student partnered with the Whittier Neighborhood Association and wrote a grant to the Denver Foundation to purchase 10 new trash cans for the school and they won the grant! They painted the trash cans in Manual colors and placed them strategically around the school in high traffic, high litter locations. Students also created an awareness campaign highlighting litter facts, what students can do to help, and why they should care about having a clean school. This information was presented to the students body and posted around the school near the new trashcans. Students were featured in the Whittier Neighborhood Association Newsletter for their efforts.

“ I really enjoyed being in this class. It was a new experience for me and I learned something new about my neighborhood. I also got to do things that I have never tried before. Before I didn’t really care if I littered or what the effect of my littering was. Now, I don’t litter and if there is a trash can by me then I put my trash in it and not on the floor.” -Tailor Boling, 10th grader

“I think the CAP class as a whole is great. I have learned several things like that I can make a change in my community and be a positive role model. My favorite part of this class was that we got to take day trips. I also liked doing our Action Project because it will make our school and community look nice and cleaner.” – Alivia Rodriguez, 9th grader

“It feels good to be the first CAP class because we put our minds towards something and we actually succeeded in it. We not only helped ourselves, but our school, our neighbors, and many other people as well.” – Marissa Holmes, 9th grader

Action Project: Pick It Up!

Issue: Litter!

During the fall semester of the 2008-2009 school year, the Cottonwood Institute collaborated with Manual High School to offer the Community Adventure Program. During this class, students are empowered to coordinate a student-directed Action Project to address a local environmental issue.

Students jumped right in, rolled up their sleeves, and decided to tackle the issue of trash at their school for their Action Project. They noticed that not only was there a large amount of trash in the hallways, lunchroom, and outside courtyard, but also on surrounding streets and within the community as well. After learning that litter is often correlated with increases in violence and decreases in business success, they knew that something needing to be done!

Plan: Research, Resources, and Education

Students researched the causes and impact of litter. They also met with key community leaders to learn how they have impacted the community, what resources might be available for them, grant writing skills, and marketing and education strategies. Students researched where in the school there was the most litter and interviewed students and staff to find out their perspective on the problem. After all their research was complete, students decided they wanted to increase the amount of trash cans at their school because the current ones were overflowing. Their goal was to make the trash cans more attractive, visible, and to launch an education and awareness campaign so students would be more likely to use them.

Impact: Pickin’ It Up

Student partnered with the Whittier Neighborhood Association and wrote a grant to the Denver Foundation to purchase 10 new trash cans for the school and they won the grant! They painted the trash cans in Manual colors and placed them strategically around the school in high traffic, high litter locations. Students also created an awareness campaign highlighting litter facts, what students can do to help, and why they should care about having a clean school. This information was presented to the students body and posted around the school near the new trashcans. Students were featured in the Whittier Neighborhood Association Newsletter for their efforts.

“ I really enjoyed being in this class. It was a new experience for me and I learned something new about my neighborhood. I also got to do things that I have never tried before. Before I didn’t really care if I littered or what the effect of my littering was. Now, I don’t litter and if there is a trash can by me then I put my trash in it and not on the floor.” -Tailor Boling, 10th grader

“I think the CAP class as a whole is great. I have learned several things like that I can make a change in my community and be a positive role model. My favorite part of this class was that we got to take day trips. I also liked doing our Action Project because it will make our school and community look nice and cleaner.” – Alivia Rodriguez, 9th grader

“It feels good to be the first CAP class because we put our minds towards something and we actually succeeded in it. We not only helped ourselves, but our school, our neighbors, and many other people as well.” – Marissa Holmes, 9th grader

What does it all mean?? 1st Web Journal 3rd quarter

  We’ve seen the impact of the “Average” American footprint on the planet, it doesn’t look good.

We’ve hiked to Chautauqua to begin to learn our natural world, and to look at the environmental issues faced by Open Space and Mountain Parks in Boulder

We’ve read a report on Boulder County’s environmental strengths and weaknesses.

We’ve also begun to examine our place in the natural world and ask some challenging questions: how do humans fit into the picture? What are our responsibilities? How do we make change? Should we?

For your first Web Journal please use your notes from our class discussion, What Does it All Mean? To answer the following questions:

1. What does it all mean to you?

• Do you feel inspired, hopeful, overwhelmed?
• Use specific examples from what we have done in class to give an idea of what you are thinking about all this information. 

Every Drop Counts: Water Conservation Action Project

Did you know that the United States alone disposes of over 22 billion petroleum based water bottles every year, and that each of these bottles will take an estimated one million years to decompose? The second quarter Community Adventure Program (CAP) class at New Vista High School heard this and decided to take action! In addition to learning important outdoor survival skills and awareness, each CAP class must take on a current environmental issue in their own self-designed action Project. This past quarter, students at New Vista chose to address local water issues.

Students broke up their action project focus into two separate issues: bottled water and water conservation. The production and transportation of bottled water is contributing to global climate change and chemicals in the plastic are potentially harmful to human health. Water is essential for all living beings, but as humans we tend to take it for granted. Living in the semi-arid region of Boulder, Colorado, water conservation is critical.

To begin their project, students logged on to the net to research bottled water use and abuse. They learned about their local water shed through a presentation by Jennelle Freeston of the Keep it Clean Partnership, and interviewed John Winchester of High Country Hydrology to learn about water issues concerning Colorado and the laws surrounding rainwater harvesting. After all this, the students had a meeting to form a plan of action. They decided on three separate modalities: a proposal to the Boulder Valley School District Coordinator to replace toilets and urinals in schools with water conserving low-flow models, a continuation of their research on rainwater harvesting, and a video to educate peers, family and the community about bottled water and water conservation.

According to Levi McIntire, “the amount of work that was put into this project was amazing. The video that we made will be a huge success for everyone in the CAP class. I am very glad that this project went well and no one had a sour attitude towards it. Because of this we were able to make something so great. I thank everyone in my class. It was so nice to do something for the environment. I learned many things in this class that I would not learn in any other class including group skills and problem solving skills.”

By the end of the class, CAP students completed yet another successful action project. They submitted a Low-Flow Appliance Proposal to Ghita Carrol, the Boulder Valley School District Sustainability Coordinator, and held three different viewings of the movie they created at the New Vista High School Exhibition Day. Even now after the end of the class students are still working to get their movie aired on a local community television station CCTV 54. Already the class has reached over 80 people with their movie. Unfortunately rainwater harvesting proved to be a subject too complicated to include in the video in the short amount of time the students had. To finish it all off the class spent two hours cleaning up Boulder Creek and collected 6 bags of trash and one bag a recycling. Students learned that they can make a difference through action in their own lives and will continue their efforts into the upcoming semester. 

Welcome 3rd Quarter CAP

Third quarter–winter CAP– is here!

This week we’ve been hiking, getting to know each other and our local environment, playing in the beautiful snow, and… more coming soon.

“No problem is insurmountable. With a little teamwork, courage, and determination, a person can overcome anything.” –Peter Scott.

CAP Pre-Course Survey, 3rd Quarter 2009

Welcome to the Community Adventure Program. Before we get started, we need to get some feedback about your outdoor experience, your thoughts about the environment, your community, etc. Please answer this survey honestly and to the best of your ability. The good folks who fund this class use this information to assess the performance of the class and this information will help us acquire new grants. Please Click Here To Take The Survey.