Agenda-At-A-Glance

The agenda-at-a-glance below gives an overview of the Summit schedule. For full session and schedule information, please visit the detailed agenda page.If you have any questions about parking, lunch, etc, please view our FAQ page.

If you would like to view a more in depth agenda, please visit the detailed agenda pages for October 8and October 9.

Day 1: October 8, 2026

Check In

  8:00AM - 9:00AM 

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

Note: Coffee, tea and snacks will be in Aspen room 289 throughout the day

Opening Remarks from SRI Executive Director Jane Zelikova

  9:00AM - 9:05AM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

Projects in Place: Local Partnerships for Community-Engaged Research within Boulder County

Session Organizer: Natalie Ooi

Speakers: Meghan McCarroll, Susan Spaulding, Erin Fried, Chloe Arduino, Riley Hammond

  Participative Panel Discussion 

  9:05AM - 10:15AM 

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

 

Morning Concurrent Sessions

Sustainability in Supply Chain Management

Session Organizer: Sebastian Villa, Assistant professor in the Division of Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Operations at Leeds and faculty affiliate at the Renée Crown Wellness Institute. 

Speakers: Sebastian Villa,  Gloria Urrea, León Valdes

  Traditional Research Presentation, Interactive Workshop

  10:20AM- 11:50AM

  UMC Room 247

 

Community-engaged science and sustainability research: Building partnerships for Community Impact

Session Organizer: Amy K. Dunbar-Wallis, Program Manager for Sustainability Initiatives in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Sustainability. 

Speakers: David Eric Meens, Jennifer Fluri, Isaac Rivera, Liz Corrado, Daniel Knight, Benét Duncan, Katie Clifford 

  Participative Panel Discussion,Interactive Workshop,Lightning Talks / TED-style talks

  10:20AM - 11:50 AM

  Aspen Rooms 285-287(combined)

 

Translational Sustainability Science: Advancing Research into Environmental Solutions

Session Organizer: Nayani Ilangakoon, Research Scientist at Earth Lab, University of Colorado Boulder. 

Speakers: Dr. Virginia Iglesias, Dr. Cibele Amaral, Dr. Katherine Siegel, Dr. Michael McGehee

  Participative Panel Discussion

  10:20AM - 11:50AM

  UMC Room 386

Lunch and Poster Session

  12:00PM - 1:00PM

  Lunch will be split between UMC room 235 and the South Terrace tent

  The Poster session and tabling will be in UMC 235

Note: If you are planning on presenting at the poster session, please submit your proposal.

Concurrent Afternoon Sessions

Why Sustainable Solutions Stall: Social, Psychological, Political Barriers to Sustainability

Session Organizer: Leaf Van Boven, Professor in Psychology

Speakers: Amanda Carrico, Sara Meerow, Fabian Neuner, Phil Fernbach

  Traditional Research Presentation

  1:10PM-2:20PM

  UMC Room 235

 

 

Dogs, Dredges and Dorms: How CU South coalesces with campus sustainability plans
Session Organizer: Clare Gallagher, 5th year PhD candidate in ENVS.
 
 
  Participative Panel Discussion followed by Brief Social Gathering  
 

  1:10PM-2:20PM

  UMC Room 247

 
Climate resilience and affordable housing

Session Organizer: William Shutkin, Faculty Director and Teaching Professor in the Masters of the Environment (MENV) program, Urban Resilience and Sustainability specialization. 

Speakers: William Shutkin,  Kaila Hood, Tim Beal

  Interactive Workshop,Case Study

  1:10PM - 2:10PM

  Aspen Rooms 285-287 (combined)

 

 

Actionable Science: Connecting Sustainability Research with People and Decisions

Session Organizer: Benét Duncan is the Managing Director and co-lead PI of Western Water Assessment, CIRES.

Speakers: Ben Livneh, Heather Yocum, Jennifer Balch or Chelsea Nagy, Virginia Iglesias, Laura Dee

  Participative Panel Discussion

  1:10PM- 2:30PM

  UMC 382-384

Translational Sustainability Science: Advancing Research into Environmental Solutions Presentation

Session Organizer: Nayani Ilangakoon, Research Scientist at Earth Lab, University of Colorado Boulder. 

Speakers: Lise St. Denis, Min Gon Chung, Kyle Manley, Tyler McIntosh

  Presentation

  2:30PM - 3:45PM

  UMC room 247

Living Materials, Living Buildings

Session Organizer: Caitlin Charlet, Associate Teaching Professor, Environmental Design

Speakers: Wil V. Srubar, Joy Edwin-Ezeh, Samuel J. Armistead, Marina Vance

  Traditional Research Presentation, Participative Panel Discussion, Case Study

  2:30PM - 3:30PM

  Aspen Rooms 285-287 (combined)

Actionable science networking

Session Organizer: Heather Yocum

  Companion session to Benét Duncan's, Networking Opportunity 

  2:40PM- 3:40PM

  UMC 382-384

Nothing is too small to be wondered about: musings on soil microbes and a healthy planet

Session Organizer: Relena Ribbons

Speakers: Relena Ribbons, Andrew Blakney, and Cliff Bueno de Mesquita

  Research Presentations

  3:00PM - 3:45PM

  UMC Room 235

Key Note Speaker

Cassandra Brooks

  4:00PM - 5:00PM

  Fiske Planetarium

Session title: Protecting Antarctic Waters: The Ross Sea and Beyond

  Note: Spots are limited and a separate registration is required

*Optional Post Keynote Event: Solar Charges for Ukraine!

Sunflower Seeds Ukrainian Humanitarian a non-profit group, in collaboration with the CU SPIKE Center for Sustainability will be teaching students how to convert solar panels into USBC chargers for Ukrainian civilians. All panels will also need to be decorated! 

Please bring warm clothing (SOCKS!) for the clothing drive!

  5:30PM

  Koelbel 352

Learn more

Light blue, dark blue, yellow, brown and black promotional flyer for the Solar Charges for Ukraine Event

Day 2: Friday, October 9, 2026

Check In

  8:00AM-9:00AM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

Opening Remarks from the CU Vice Chancellor for Sustainability

Andrew Mayock

  9:00AM - 9:05AM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

 

Chancellor Justin Shwartz

  9:05AM - 9:20 AM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

Keynote Speaker

Chris Winter

Session title: The Colorado River at a Crossroads – Crisis, Conflict, and the Challenge of Sustainability 

   9:20AM- 10:20AM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom 

Morning Concurrent Sessions

When Silence Isn't Safe: Building Cultures Where People Can Speak Up

Session Organizer:Meghan Van Portfliet

Session Speakers: Carly Simmons, Cassidy Thompson and Andrew Salvador

  Case Studies 

  10:30AM - 11:30AM

  Aspen Room 289

Nature Based Solutions

Session Organizer: Laura Dee is an Associate Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. 

Speakers: Laura Dee, Advyth Ramachandran, Cibele Amaral, Miles Moore,Elizabeth Francis, Tim Broderick, Deedee Croissant,Brent Kencairn, Diana Lane 

  Case Studies 

  10:30AM - 12:00PM

  UMC Room 235

Building capacity for decision-relevant wildfire science: a roadless area case study

Session Organizer: Virginia Iglesias 

Speakers: Lise St. Denis, Tayler McIntosh, Kyle Manley, Ginikanda Ilangakoon, and Nate Hofford

  Stakeholder-engaged interactive workshop with lightning talks, structured feedback, and facilitated discussion

  10:30AM - 12:00PM

  UMC Room 247

Materials and Energy Systems

Session Organizer: Wilson Smith, Professor, Chemical and Biological Engineering University of Colorado Boulder and Cody Ritt, Assistant Professor Chemical and Biological Engineering University of Colorado Boulder

Speakers:Maria Vabson, Muhy Eddin Za'ter, Carson Bruns, Mirela Alistar

  Symposium

  10:30AM - 12:00PM

  Aspen Rooms 285- 287

Lunch

  12:00PM - 1:00PM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

Afternoon Concurrent Sessions

A critical lens on “sustainable AI”

Session Organizer: Jed Brown, Associate Professor of Computer Science

Speakers: Jed Brown, Esther Rolf, Cassie Buhler, Emily Yeh, Katherine Siegel

  Participative Panel

  1:10PM - 2:20PM
  UMC Room 235

Heat, Shade, and Sun safety in Colorado Communities

Session Organizer: Sara Meerow, Associate Professor, Geography.

Speakers: Sara Meerow, Sara Tabatabaie, Olga Wilhelmi, Azadeh Bolhari, Shawhin Roudbari, Khai Nguyen

  Interactive Workshop, Lightning Talks/ TED-style talks

  1:10PM - 2:40PM

  UMC Room 247

 

Boulder Climate Ventures panel with local sustainability startup companies

Session Organizer: Michael McGehee, James and Catherine Patten Chair in the College of Engineering and Applied Science and Renewable & Sustainable Energy Institute Fellow. 

Speakers: Michael McGehee, Chunmei Ban, Wil Srubar and Greg Rieker

  Participative Panel Discussion

  1:10PM - 2:40PM

   Aspen Rooms 285-287

 

 

Student Voices on Experiential Sustainability Education

Session Organizer: Beth Osnes, Professor of Theatre and Environmental Studies at the University of Colorado. 

Speakers: Samuel Cartwright, Sindhu Nepolean,Rhiannon Danborn, Katheryn Sullivan, Joseph Ikerodah, Sam Spotts,Sydney Bihm

  Participative Panel Discussion 

  1:10PM - 2:10 PM

  Aspen Room 289

 


 

Climate and Health Research across CU: Boulder and Anschutz

Session Organizer: Kris Karnauskas,  Associate Professor in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and CIRES Fellow,  University of Colorado Boulder.

Speakers: Max Elling, Ellen Considine, Colleen Reid, Elizabeth Carlton, Miranda Dally, Thomas Jaenisch

  Traditional Research Presentation, Participative Panel Discussion

  1:10PM- 2:40PM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom

 

Results-Based Financing for Just and Resilient Communities

Session Organizer: Laura MacDonald, Managing Director, Mortenson Center in Global Engineering & Resilience

Speakers: Fatma Koroglu, Zhen Li, John Ecklu, Laura MacDonald, Denis Muthike

  Center Overview, case studies and traditional research presentations 

  1:10PM - 2:10PM

  UMC room 386

Strategies for Partnering with Industry

Session Organizer: Kelly Fleming, Assistant Director, Industry Research Partnerships for Advanced Energy and Sustainability

Speakers: Kelly Fleming, Danielle France and Bri-Matthias Hodge

  Interactive Workshop

  2:20PM - 3:20PM

  UMC Room 382-384

 

 

 

 

Time Literacy on a Dammed Planet

Session Organizer: Kieran Murphy, Associate Professor, Department of French and Italian. 

  Traditional Research Presentation, Participative Panel Discussion,Interactive Workshop, Case Study

  2:20 PM - 3:30 PM

  Aspen Room 289

 

Climate Adaptation Science: advancing sustainability at the nexus of the climate, ecological, and social sciences

Session Organizer: Heather Yocum is a Research Scientist at CIRES and the Lead Social Scientist at the North Central Climate Adaptation Science Center

Speakers: Tyler McIntosh, Elizabeth Woolner, Em Wright, Kelsey Warren, Ulyana Horodyskyj Pena 

  Case Studies 

  2:30 PM - 3:30PM

  UMC Room 235

Environmental Cinema

Session Organizer: Erin Espelie, Associate Professor, Cinema and the Moving Image Arts Department. 

Speakers: Erin Espelie,  Manzitto-Tripp, Dr. Brad Gallagher, Hillary Rosner, Jacob Watts, Seth Raynor

  Interactive Workshop,Meetup / Social Gathering

  2:50PM - 3:50PM

  B2 in the ATLAS Building

Third Assessment of Natural Hazards in the United States

Session Organizer: Lori Peek

Speakers: Lori Peek, Abbie Liel, Shideh Dashti

  Participative Panel Discussion

  2:50PM - 3:50PM

  Aspen Rooms 285-287

Closing Remarks from Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation and Dean of the Institutes Massimo Ruzzene

   3:50PM - 4:00PM

  Glenn Miller Ballroom