The Colorado Sustainability Challenge (CSC) concluded on Oct. 12 with the top five finalist teams sharing their sustainability solutions, pitching to the audience and a panel of judges and receiving $21,000 in awards. During the two weeks leading up to the Finals, students, faculty and staff at seven Colorado Front Range colleges and universities vied for a chance to make their mark on Colorado’s growing innovation ecosystem.

The CSC Finals kicked off with remarks from Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, who shared three fronts for combatting climate change: the importance of sustainability, interdisciplinary teams and innovation. Weiser said that in challenging times, it’s important to take initiative.

“Think about what we can do in Colorado to meet the moment—how we operate sustainably, how we meet the challenges of climate change,” he said. “And as you work together on your teams…you will be preparing for more effective work and, whether or not the initial innovations you work on succeed, you’ll learn something.”

Uniting to solve problems

CSC is a two-week hackathon-style event designed for anyone passionate about solving problems, teaming up on an idea and having fun in the process of building a solution to impact sustainability.

Throughout the 336-hour challenge, teams collaborated, prototyped and pitched their ideas for a more sustainable future. In addition to CU Boulder, Affiliate schools included Colorado School of Mines, CSU College of Business, University of Denver, Front Range Community College, Regis University and the University of Colorado Denver.

CSC is hosted by CU Boulder’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative, Leeds School of Business and the Environmental Center. 

“The energy around this event is contagious,” said Stan Hickory, director of CU Boulder's Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative. “It’s not just a competition—it’s a celebration of what happens when bright minds unite to solve real problems.”

This year’s teams tackled everything from sustainable food production and renewable energy to transportation and preventing food waste. Hickory added, “It’s proof that innovation and sustainability go hand in hand—and that Colorado’s next generation is ready to lead.”

Creatively addressing sustainability

During their live pitches, the five finalist teams elaborated on their approaches for the judging panel, who followed up with a Q&A. Judges for the CSC Finals included Laura Hickernell, executive director of Colorado Cleantech, Michael MacHarg, senior advisor, anticipatory action accelerator for Mercy Corps Ventures, Chris Westfall, founder and chief partner officer of Banimo and Katie Woslager, program manager for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

BioOX took the top prize of $5,000 for a proprietary processing system that transforms raw biochar (a charcoal-like material produced from wood waste) into a dense, pelletized form for use by farmers. 

“We are developing processing equipment to make production cheaper as well as products easier to apply and more effective than current solutions,” said BioOX team member Jack Mulvaney. “Winning the Colorado Sustainability Challenge was an incredible payoff for the time and effort we’ve invested. It’s also meaningful validation of our vision and the impact we’re working to create.”

As the winning team, BioOX also received an invitation to participate in the Hult Prize competition, a year-long program that challenges students to build for-profit startups that tackle global issues and compete to win $1 milion in seed funding.

The four CSC runner-up teams each received $2,000 for their creative solutions: Amply, for merging residential power storage with real-time AI workloads; MyPack, for developing mycelium-based packing materials; Owen Parker, for developing an app that helps find unused church land for affordable housing; and Uplink Energy, for an innovative use of thermal cooling battery packs to reduce lost energy in modern buildings.

Additional prize categories included best use of technology ($2,000); two 1000 Gretas awards ($500 each) for comprehensive solutions that address a real, urgent sustainability or climate challenge; a $4,000 Bounty Prize sponsored by Abundant Ground, for work on an app for new development of underutilized land and buildings; and the $1,000 Audience Choice Award.

Statewide solutions

New this year, CSC evolved out of the CU Boulder Sustainability Hackathon. The competition is open to Colorado Front Range colleges and universities and runs for two weeks in duration. This hybrid event is open to participants from all academic disciplines—ranging from the Humanities to STEM—and offers workshops, mentoring, pitch sessions and the chance to work alongside industry experts.

“CSC showcases the power of cross-state collaboration,” said Lesley Robinson, associate director for the Institute for Entrepreneurship at Colorado State University. “Opportunities like CSC also redefine what zero-barrier entrepreneurship means at the student level—where every learner, no matter where they study, is empowered to engage, contribute and lead meaningful, sustainable change.”

CSC drew the attention of students who wouldn’t normally participate in a business pitch or plan competition, said Ken Sagendorf, director of The Innovation Center at Regis University. "CSC was a fantastic opportunity for our students, and when I got to personally work with them on their ideas, the passion they have for making their ‘ideals into real’ [exemplifies] the essence of what we do at a university," he said.

CSU student Kaydence Brown said that the process was helpful to their team in understanding the why behind their project. “Although our idea was not tech related, we focused primarily on the sustainability and longevity of a student organization here on our campus that supports entrepreneurial growth," Brown said. "This challenge pushed my group beyond the limits we once thought we had.”

Fellow CSU student Daniel Ortiz added, “The program provides great resources and constant feedback in every area. The mentoring encouraged me to network and connect with entrepreneurs around Fort Collins, and I ended up receiving several business cards from people willing to help and was motivated to find advisors and conduct real surveys on campus. Overall, it’s been an incredible learning experience.”

Next up: the New Venture Challenge

CSC is a springboard to the New Venture Challenge (NVC), a signature program of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative that is a launchpad for aspiring problem-solvers and creatives. NVC startup teams pitch for hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding and attend year-round events—such as CSC—while networking and collaborating with mentors to refine ideas. Registration for the 2026 New Venture Challenge opens on Nov. 18, and the NVC Finals are on April 22. Learn more about NVC.

Looking ahead

While CSC is an annual event, opportunities are available year-long to ignite innovation and creativity. Stay up to date on details, events and programs and learn more about supporting real-world impact and problem-solving by joining the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative mailing list.

2025 Colorado Sustainability Challenge Winning Teams

First Place ($5,000): BioOX

• Solution: A proprietary processing system that transforms raw biochar into a dense, pelletized form for use by farmers.
• Team Members: Jack Mulvaney (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Josh Shrewbridge (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Ted Elliott (Leeds School of Business), Michael Harris (Leeds School of Business) and Jonathan Dixon (Leeds School of Business)

Runner-up ($2,000): Amply

• Solution: A system that merges residential power storage with real-time AI workloads, creating a smarter, more profitable grid and turning houses into profitable micro–data centers.
• Team members: CU Boulder students Neil Vaidya, Liam Zirkle (Leeds School of Business), Sam Siegal (Leeds School of Business) and Walter Richard (Leeds School of Business)

Runner-up ($2,000): MyPack

• Solution: Packing materials made from mycelium (fungus roots and compost waste)
• Team members: Shodan D’Souza (University of Denver), Gabrielle Kellogg (University of Denver) and Jordan Rule (University of Denver)

Runner-up ($2,000): Owen Parker

• Solution: A centralized web app that automates the process of finding viable, unused church land that can be converted into affordable housing
• Team Member: Owen Parker (Leeds School of Business)

Runner-up ($2,000): Uplink Energy

• Solution: Using thermal cooling battery packs to reduce lost energy in modern buildings.
• Team Members: CU Boulder students Hayden Dondlinger (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Kai Groudan (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Duncan Laird (College of Engineering and Applied Science) and Gregory Reilly (College of Engineering and Applied Science)

Additional Awards

Abundant Ground Bounty Project ($4,000): Owen Parker

• Solution: A centralized web app that automates the process of finding viable, unused church land that can be converted into affordable housing.
• Team Member: Owen Parker (Leeds School of Business)
• About the project and sponsor: A Bounty Project is a clearly defined initiative with funding allocated by a particular sponsor. Abundant Ground is a congregational land initiative program through Mile High Ministries, that supports the vitality of local congregations by helping them imagine and implement mission-aligned new development of underutilized land and buildings.
   

1000 Gretas Prize ($500): CleanRoute

• Solution: An app that integrates real-time air, heat, traffic and shade data for cleaner commutes and a reduction in the carbon footprint.
• Team Member: Rishab Pally (College of Engineering and Applied Science)
• About the award sponsor: 1000 Gretas is a nonprofit supporting innovation focused on climate solutions, sustainability and green technology.

1000 Gretas Prize ($500): Uplink Energy

• Solution:  Using thermal cooling battery packs to reduce lost energy in modern buildings.
• Team Members: CU Boulder College of Engineering and Applied Science students Hayden Dondlinger (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Kai Groudan (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Duncan Laird (College of Engineering and Applied Science) and Gregory Reilly (College of Engineering and Applied Science)
• About the award sponsor: 1000 Gretas is a nonprofit supporting innovation focused on climate solutions, sustainability and green technology.

Audience Choice Award ($1,000): Uplink Energy

• Solution: Using thermal cooling battery packs to reduce lost energy in modern buildings.
• Team Members: Hayden Dondlinger (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Kai Groudan (College of Engineering and Applied Science), Duncan Laird (College of Engineering and Applied Science) and Gregory Reilly (College of Engineering and Applied Science)
• About the award: The audience chooses its favorite pitch from the CSC Finals.

Best Technology Award ($2,000): Circular Materials Marketplace

• Solution: Turning campus waste into opportunity — post, claim, and reuse surplus materials across CU Boulder.
• Team Member: Diyora Daminova (College of Engineering and Applied Science)
• About the award: The winner is selected for the best use of technology in their solution.