Nature is our best ally in preparing for change.

We’re already living with more climate extremes: heat, flooding, drought, wind, and wildfire. As we look to the future, the condition of Boulder’s wildlife and landscapes will determine how we live under these circumstances. They’re our greatest assets and allies: Forests provide shade and cooling; riparian zones absorb floodwater; carbon-rich soils absorb rain and sustain healthy, biodiverse landscapes that deliver life-protecting services.

The city’s Nature-based Climate Solutions team builds Boulder’s capacity for a climate-resilient future by working across three action areas:

What We’re Doing for the Boulder Community

Force of Nature

The living world around us is our key tool for facing the world ahead of us: it has remarkable intelligence developed over millions of years of living through difficulty and change. When we partner with Boulder’s living creatures — from trees, shrubs, and forbs and grasses to hummingbirds, pollinators, and microbes — we become more climate resilient, because we have more access to critical resources like fresh air, clean water, healthy food, and cooler places.

Community Sense

It takes careful observation to learn how to be a good partner to Boulder’s living world. We all have a role to play in being stewards of the natural place where we live. Our teams gather data to empower Boulder community members to contribute to the health and regeneration of our ecosystems and communities.

Home Front

Every Boulder community member contributes to our shared ecosystem. Each of us has the opportunity and capacity to shape the future of the living world around us — from something as small as a container garden outside an apartment building to something as large as a farm integrating regenerative agriculture practices.