Colorado Climate Week Events by CSU Climate Hub

Hosted on Tuesday, March 31st from 6:30pm-8:00pm

​gracegallagherdance presents There is No Planet B — an evening-length professional dance performance that fuses art with environmental activism. This compelling event will also include climate-centered exhibits, photography, and a panel discussion exploring how art can inspire change—bridging climate literacy, social impact, and individual expression.

​Join us for a powerful evening of performance, education, and conversation, designed to transform climate awareness into purposeful action.

Tickets are $15 and open to the public. All are welcome. Hosted in the Hydro Building’s Confluence Theater

Speakers:

• Courtney Schultz, Director of School of Global Environmental Sustainability, Colorado State University; Dr. Schultz is the Director of the School of Global Environmental Sustainability (SoGES) at Colorado State University. In this role, she is responsible for advancing an ambitious institutional vision that integrates interdisciplinary scholarship, innovation in sustainability education, and solutions-oriented partnerships across campus, Colorado, and international networks. Dr. Schultz holds a Ph.D. in Forestry from the University of Montana, an M.S. in Conservation Biology and Sustainable Development from the University of Maryland, and a B.A. in International Relations from Stanford University.
• Melissa Burt, Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Access and Success, Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering at Colorado State University; Atmospheric scientist, educator, and leader in access and inclusion in STEM. An Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Access and Success in the Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering at Colorado State University, her work centers on science identity and belonging, mentorship, well-being, and social justice in STEM education. A Fellow of the American Meteorological Society, she is an award-winning scholar and active leader in national organizations advancing equity and excellence in science. Burt is a co-founder of Science Moms, a non-partisan group of climate scientists and mothers working to give our children the planet they deserve.
• Fiona Rose, Owner and Photographer, Fiona Rose Photography; Professional photographer, dancer, yoga instructor, activist, death doula, herbalist and life long homesteader. **Her visual work, created in collaboration with dancer Tara Yax, is featured in the photography installation and promotional materials for There is No Planet B.
• Claire Kendall, Communications and Community Engagement Manager for OneEnergy Renewables, and Founder, Alpine Artist Collective; Multidisciplinary artist, community engagement manager, and outdoor advocate. A former professional dancer in New York and Denver, Claire now works in environmental policy and serves as Community Engagement and Communications Manager for OneEnergy Renewables. She is also the founder and lead member of Alpine Artist Collective, which connects people to nature through art.
• Grace Gallagher, Assistant Professor of Dance at Colorado State University; Educator, dancer, choreographer, and artistic director. An Assistant Professor of Dance at Colorado State University, her creative research and engaged scholarship center on inclusivity, access, and the power of community, particularly within dance education. Grace is the artistic director and maker of There is No Planet B.

Hosted on Wednesday, April 1st from 3:30pm-5:00pm

“New Frontiers – Perspectives to Emerging Climate Innovations” presents some of the most intriguing frontier technologies and tools that soon might be available to us and challenges our thinking about what’s possible. With the guidance of leading experts, we will dive into carbon removal innovations that could speed up our progress towards climate goals. In addition, we will explore emerging approaches such as solar geoengineering and what needs to be understood for what role they might play. Collectively we ask, is it time to expand the range of what responses might be needed to combat climate change?  

We will provide “Explainers” – quick expert talks to present the new innovations: how do they work, and what is their societal and environmental impact? What are the open questions? The event will close with a broader analysis of future pathways.  

Free and open to the public. All are welcome. Hosted in the Hydro Building’s Confluence Theater and virtually

Speakers:

• Kenneth Shockley, Professor and Chair in the Department of Philosophy at Colorado State University (Moderator)
• Sasha Post, Director, Outlier Projects; Sasha Post directs Outlier Projects, a climate philanthropy that accelerates research to better understand the risks posed by unstable earth systems and to identify tools that could safely and effectively stabilize them.
• Jim Hurrell, Professor of Atmospheric Science, Colorado State University; Dr. Hurrell is the Scott Presidential Chair of Environmental Science and Engineering at Colorado State University. Dr. Hurrell’s research has centered on empirical and modeling studies and diagnostic analyses to better understand climate, climate variability, climate predictability, and proposed climate intervention approaches. He has been extensively involved in the World Climate Research Programme, including leading the Scientific Steering Groups of both the U.S. and International Climate Variability and Predictability (CLIVAR) research programs. Dr. Hurrell has also served the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) in many ways, and he is currently chairing a NASEM Committee to examine the impacts of climate change on extreme weather and climate events. He is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society, the U.K. Royal Meteorological Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Geophysical Union
• Lisa Dilling, Associate Chief Scientist, Environmental Defense Fund; Lisa Dilling, Ph.D. is Associate Chief Scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund. She leads teams of scientists working on emerging science for climate actions to address greenhouse gases and build societal resilience, including decarbonizing the energy system, adaptation, carbon dioxide removal, and solar radiation modification. Prior to EDF, she was Professor of Environmental Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder, studying the intersection of science and decision making for climate adaptation, carbon management, and urban water management. She has published numerous peer-reviewed articles, national reports, and a co-edited book entitled “Creating a Climate for Change: Communicating Climate Change and Facilitating Social Change.” Lisa served as editor for three journals, and is or was a member of several Boards and Advisory Committees including the now dissolved National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Board on Environmental Change and Society.
• Rich Conant, Interim Dean, Warner College of Natural Resources, Colorado State University; Dr. Richard Conant is professor for the Ecosystem Science and Sustainability department at Colorado State University and serving as the interim Dean for the Warner College of Natural Resources. He is a soil biogeochemist and his work is focused on understanding carbon and nitrogen cycling in soils to help us understand how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon. He feels lucky to be working in a field that is so important and with so much to learn at a time when new analytical tools can quickly generate insights never before imagined. To expand the reach of their work, he worked with other ESS faculty to create the graduate-level Carbon Management program that’s impacting students across campus. He has helped launch startup companies in the sustainability arena and is a leader of the CSU Carbon Management Thematic Unite of Excellence. Dr. Conant earned his Ph.D at Arizona State University in 1997.
• Megan L. Melamed, Program Director, Methane Removal, Spark Climate Solutions; Megan Melamed is an atmospheric scientist and strategic leader dedicated to accelerating climate solutions through science, collaboration, and innovation. As Program Director for Methane Removal at Spark Climate Solutions, she works to assess the viability of proposed methane removal approaches across scientific, social, economic, and governance dimensions. Before joining Spark, she served as Deputy Director of NOAA’s Chemical Sciences Laboratory and earlier as Executive Director of the International Global Atmospheric Chemistry (IGAC) Project, building a global coalition of scientists dedicated to understanding the changing atmosphere. She has also served as an AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow at the U.S. EPA and as an NSF International Research Fellow in Mexico City. A Colorado native, Megan holds a PhD in Environmental Engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder.
• Brent Minchew, Chief Scientist and Co-founder, Arête Glacier Initiative, and Professor of Geophysics, California Institute of Technology;
  Brent Minchew is Professor of Geophysics at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and co-founder and Chief Scientist of Arête Glacier Initiative, a nonprofit pursuing direct intervention strategies to stabilize the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and slow its contribution to sea-level rise. His research focuses on glacier dynamics, ice sheet physics, and sea-level projection, drawing on satellite remote sensing, field observations, and computational modeling to constrain the timing and magnitude of ice-sheet-driven sea-level change. Before entering academia, he served eight years on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, then earned degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and a PhD in geophysics from Caltech. He has held faculty positions at MIT and Caltech, and his current work bridges fundamental ice-sheet science with actionable approaches to one of the most consequential and least reversible dimensions of climate change.

Hosted on Wednesday, April 1st from 5:00pm-6:00pm

Hosted on Wednesday, April 1st from 6:00pm-7:00pm 

​Auden Schendler spent his career in sustainable business, first at RMI and then at Aspen Skiing Company. He focused on large-scale, meaningful actions including movement building, policy, and activism, but also pioneered projects in small hydroelectricity, green building, coal mine methane capture, and utility scale solar. He is the author of two books: Getting Green Done, and new last year: Terrible Beauty: Reckoning with Climate Complicity and Rediscovering Our Soul. He was named a “climate innovator” by Time magazine and a “climate saver” by the EPA. He has been a Colorado Air Quality Control Commissioner in and a town councilman in Basalt. With partners, he recently purchased a coal mine in Paonia to destroy leaking methane. ​

Veera Mitzner, Director of the CSU Climate Hub will be interviewing Auden about his work and his latest book. Join us for a lively, fun, and interactive conversation.

​Free and open to the public. All are welcome. Hosted in the Hydro Building’s Confluence Theater and virtually

Hosted on Monday, March 29 to Friday April, 3.

Visit Resilient Earth, Resilient Communities, a traveling exhibit about Earth system science and local responses to hazards and severe weather. Collaboratively designed by the U.S. National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) the exhibit explores how through careful observation, we gather vital information that helps us prepare for the future and build stronger, more resilient communities. Come learn how communities and scientists alike contribute to our understanding of the Earth. 

Free and open to the public. All are welcome. Hosted in the Hydro building lobby.