The Cool Boulder Newsletter
Let's talk about soil.
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Dear <<First Name>>,
It's almost spring, and it's exciting to see green and growing things starting to appear. This month's theme is SOIL HEALTH AND REGENERATIVE PRACTICES, and it couldn't come at a better time. Farmers and gardeners are preparing fields and beds as the life under our feet wakes up, and this month also brings notable changes to local composting rules.
Did you know that composting is an important nature-based climate solution (also known as a natural climate solution)? Scroll down to learn more about the changes to local rules and why these matter to you.
Have you heard of regenerative farming? Do you know how local restaurants and their patrons are supporting this crucial climate effort? Keep reading to learn more about the folks tending to the soil and our local food, as well as ways to support them through Zero Foodprint.
Passionate about trees? In April, we will highlight TREE PLANTING AND TREE CARE. Scroll to the bottom for some volunteer and tree planting opportunities!
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+ Learn and Act: Free No-till Farm Tour and Workshop on April 1st.
Thank you to the Mark DeRespinis of Esoterra Culinary Garden for partnering with Cool Boulder to offer a FREE no-till workshop and farm tour on April 1st from 10:00am to noon.
Join Mark for an informative, practical, and tasty no-till garden tour and workshop at Esoterra Culinary Garden. Participants will experience the workings of a no-till market garden growing food for 25 area restaurants on under 2 acres of permanent in-ground garden beds. Mark will teach and demonstrate soil improving techniques, and the workshop will cover materials and cultural practices, as well as growing strategies for food abundance. This workshop will emphasize the ecological and nutritional benefits of no-till soil management from backyard garden to community farm scale.
Register for the free, in-person workshop hosted by Esoterra Culinary Garden and the Cool Boulder team.
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It's easy to think of the compost bin as a way to get rid of waste, but proper composting is a key local action that takes care of our soil and our climate. Clean compost helps build healthy soils that hold carbon and grow the food we eat. Contaminated compost ends up in the landfill where it emits greenhouse gasses. This costs local businesses money and prevents important nutrients from returning to the soil.
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Rules about what we can put in our compost bins have changed, why? Local compost collections have been highly contaminated with non-compostable plastics, glass, and other harmful materials that make it unusable. See the press release from our local compost manufacturer, A1 Organics, for more information.
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Our daily actions matter! The first climate action we can take is to sort mindfully. Understand the guidelines and spread the word so we can ensure our bins are the soil-makers they can be, not just part of another load headed to the landfill.
We can compost on our own too! There are many ways to compost at home - from outdoor piles to worm farms. See these great resources from Eco-Cycle and the city of Boulder (below) for detailed information on the changes to local pick-up rules (be sure to check with your hauler too!) and tons of resources for your own composting efforts. We are building our resources on the Cool Boulder blog as well!
Compost Guideline FAQs
Eco-Cycle Compost 101
City of Boulder: Compost Rules have Changed and Resources
Be a trendsetter: use reusables! Carry utensils in your pocket, purse, backpack, fannypack, or briefcase. Place reusable bags in your backpack or vehicle or leave them by the door so they are easy to remember. Carry a container for your leftovers when you go out to eat. These may seem like small actions, but every container we save is one less item in the landfill or accidentally placed in the compost.
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+ Learn more: Coming soon! Free Eco-Cycle Webinar
FREE Eco-Cycle webinar on the future of compost in Boulder County and beyond—for our climate and soils.
Date and time TBD.
Join Eco-Cycle for an Earth Month webinar to discuss the way forward for compost, including possibilities around infrastructure, policy, and its role as a natural climate solution. Learn what you can do to help! This webinar is for Eco-Cycle volunteer Eco-Leaders and anyone in the community interested in digging in on this subject (pun intended). Visit Eco-Cycle's website for webinar dates and registration.
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Do you know about regenerative farming?
There are a lot of different methods in this type of farming, but a key part is building and taking care of soil. By improving soil health, these farmers are creating systems that hold carbon and water in the soil while growing nutrient-rich food. These systems also increase biodiversity!
Interested in supporting local regenerative farmers? Cool Boulder is partnering with Zero Foodprint (ZFP), a nonprofit organization working with local food economies to restore the climate. ZFP works with food and beverage businesses to contribute 1% of sales to change how food is grown to restore the climate.
Learn more about the great local businesses partnering with ZFP and the local farmers who have received financial support in this article and on the ZFP website.
Above image courtesy of Emma K. Morris
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+ Action: Apply for the Pollinator Advocate Program on April 7th!
The Pollinator Advocates (PA) Program is a free training sponsored by the city of Boulder and developed by local community experts. It is designed to enhance your knowledge of how to create natural biodiverse habitat that provides for our pollinators and songbirds. All while benefiting our climate!
You will build community with your peers while being supported by last year's PA team and course instructors. The multi-season training (with some vacation built in along the way), is a combination of in-person/virtual lectures and on-the-ground training. You will take hikes and build camaraderie while learning from one another.
The program is designed to train dedicated individuals with the skills to improve and maintain already created habitat spaces in Central Boulder, joining the volunteers who support our pollinator habitat spaces. Your class will have the joy of learning by doing as you create a new habitat space to add to Boulder's burgeoning habitat garden pathway. As a bonus, you will be rewarded with a full flat of native plants of your choosing from Harlequin's Gardens.
The free course will begin the week of May 28. A full course description with the class schedule and teacher profiles will hit the Cool Boulder website on April 7th, 2023. Keep your eyes open and let the excitement build. All levels of gardening experience are welcome. We hope you will apply for this unique training opportunity!
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+ Action: Become a Restoration Master!
Cool Boulder partner, The Butterfly Pavillion, and the Urban Prairies Project are recruiting passionate people to support their local natural spaces through restoration of habitat, community outreach and hands-on science! Restoration Master Volunteers participate in com-prehensive, experiential trainings in ecological restoration and environ-mental education, and support ongoing stewardship in the communities they care about. UPP is for and by everyone—no experience required.
Part 1: Principles and Techniques of Open Space Restoration - March 26th
Part 2: Native Ecosystems, Plants and Wildlife - April 2nd
Part 3: Interpretation and Crew Leadership - April 9th
To learn more and get involved contact Ashley White at awhite@butterflies.org or 970.590.3828
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+ Action: Highlighted March and April Events
Cool Boulder has so many awesome partners, it can be hard to get everyone in the spotlight. Here we want to highlight events and activities that align with our monthly themes. Click here to see our highlighted events including many tree plantings and tree-related April events!
Don't forget to check out the calendar too. There are so many great ways to get involved!
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Got mulch? We do! and it's free
Mulch is one of the easiest and best things you can for your trees and garden! Mulch conserves the soil’s moisture, helps inhibit weeds, and improves soil structure and nutrient availability. Apply organic mulch (like wood chips, bark or evergreen needles) two to four inches deep within landscaped areas and in the dripline of trees. Always leave a one-inch space between the mulch and tree trunk.
Free mulch is available at the City of Boulder Operations/Forestry lot. Access is off of Pearl Parkway. Look for a sign posted at 5400 Pearl Parkway, near Sunbelt rentals return. No gate or restricted hours.
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+ Interested in volunteering? Keep your eyes on our calendar!
We are building a calendar to help the Cool Boulder community connect to the incredible work happening around the area. Cool Boulder has over 30 amazing partnering organizations. They all have their own events and programs. Check out the calendar and our partners websites! You might just find the perfect group to volunteer with this year.
The calendar will continue to grow, so please check back in over the year!
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You may also see Cool Boulder news coming from the Climate Initiatives department of the City of Boulder or from any one of our partner organizations. There are now over 30 organizations that have formally partnered with the Cool Boulder campaign, and we welcome new partners all the time—email info@coolboulder.org to begin the conversation.
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