About the Colorado Sustainability Challenge
Hosted by CU Boulder’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative, the Colorado Sustainability Challenge (CSC) is a collaborative forum for anyone passionate about solving problems, teaming up on an idea and having fun in the process of building a solution to impact sustainability. Participants come from all academic disciplines—ranging from the Humanities to STEM—and have a shot at winning a share of thousands of dollars!
The Colorado Sustainability Challenge (CSC) is your chance to turn bold ideas into real-world impact. Whether you have a solution you’ve been developing or simply want to join a team and contribute your skills, CSC is for you.
How Does It Work?
Register TODAY!
When you register, you’ll tell us:
Do you already have an idea? If yes, you’ll submit a short description.
Are you going solo, working with an existing team, or hoping to build one?
If you’re solo or already have a team, you’re set for kickoff on September 28. If you’re looking to build a team, we’ll post your idea so potential teammates can connect with you.
Don’t have an idea? No problem. You’ll provide a short bio, which we’ll share with teams searching for collaborators.
Join us for the CSC Kickoff Event on Sunday, Sept. 28, 6-8 p.m.
Meet other participants, refine your team and officially get started!
If you’re still looking for teammates, the second half of the kickoff is dedicated to helping teams and individuals connect.
Our goal: make sure every participant is engaged and on a team by the end of kickoff.
Location: Live at CU Boulder in University Memorial Center (UMC), Glen Miller Ballroom and virtually at participating Affiliate schools.
From the Sept. 28 Kickoff until the CSC Finals on Oct. 12, you’ll have access to:
Workshops to sharpen your ideas
Mentorship sessions with experts
Pitch practices to prepare for the big stage
Events are a mix of in-person at CU Boulder and participating Affiliate schools, hybrid or virtual. Please check the schedule for specifics.
Selected teams will pitch their solutions for the chance to win thousands of dollars in prize funding—and the opportunity to create real, lasting change.
Location: Live at CU Boulder, from 6-8 p.m. in the University Memorial Center (UMC), Glen Miller Ballroom.
CSC is open to students, faculty and staff at all Colorado Front Range colleges and universities.
Additional CSC Information
- 2025 Dates & Deadlines
- Eligibility
- Competition Participation
- Registration
- Awards and Judging
- General Notices
- Resources
2025 Dates & Deadlines
Aug. 1:CSC Registration Opens
Sept. 28:CSC Kickoff
Sept. 29, 9 a.m. MT: Vision/Mission Workshop
Sept. 29, 6:30 p.m. MT:MVP Workshop
Sept. 30, 6:30 p.m. MT: Sustainability Challenges Workshop
Oct. 1, 6:30 p.m. MT:Mentor Mingle/Jam Session
Oct. 3, 6 p.m. MT:Go to Market Workshop
Oct. 3, 7 p.m. MT:Mentor Jam Session
Oct. 4, 10 a.m. MT: Sustainable Business Workshop
Oct. 5, 10 a.m. MT:Milestones Workshop
Oct. 6, 6 p.m. MT:Funding Workshop
Oct. 6, 7 p.m. MT:Mentor Jam Session 2
Oct. 7, 6:30 p.m. MT:Pitch Prep
Oct. 8, 9 a.m. MT: Local, in-person Pitch Practices
Oct. 9, 6:30 p.m. MT:Mentor Jam Session 3
Oct. 11, 10 a.m. MT:Local, in-person Pitch Practices
Oct. 11, 2 p.m. MT: Virtual Pitch Practices
Oct. 11, 5 p.m. MT:Video and Deck Submissions Due
Oct. 12, 6 p.m. MT: CSC Finals at CU Boulder
Key:
= In person only
= In person/hybrid
= In person at Affiliate locations
= Virtual
Eligibility
Team Composition
- Teams must be entirely made up of currently enrolled student(s) or employee(s) of one (or multiple) of the “affiliate” colleges or universities.
- There is no maximum or minimum team size.
Prior Activity
- Team members may have worked on the idea or technology in past academic years or before attending their respective school but not for more than one (1) year as of September 28, 2025.
- Teams that have previously competed in the Colorado Sustainability Challenge or the CU New Venture Challenge may not compete again with the same idea.
- However, previous teams may participate again with a substantially new concept.
Mentorship
- We encourage all teams to work with a mentor.
Nature of Teams
This competition is intended for early-stage ideas/ventures and does not support:
- Buyouts or company expansions
- Real estate syndications
- Tax shelters
- Franchises
- Licensing agreements
- Corporate spinouts
Competition Participation
Attendance
- Teams must present in person at designated times to remain eligible. Failure to appear for a scheduled pitch time will result in disqualification.
Copyrights & Permissions
- Teams using copyrighted materials must obtain all necessary permissions before use in any submission or presentation.
Intellectual Property
- All presentations are open to the public and may be recorded or broadcast.
- Participants should assume that anything disclosed during the competition is in the public domain.
- Teams are responsible for their own IP protection and are encouraged to consult legal counsel if necessary.
- NDAs will not be used during the final round.
Registration
⚠ Registration for the 2025 competition is open.
CSC uses the Startup Tree platform to manage applications. To enter, each of your team members must create a user profile on the platform. Then, your main point of contact will create the venture profile on the platform and invite all team members to the venture profile.
There is no cost to apply or to compete.
Awards & Judging
Judging Criteria
Projects will be evaluated based on:
- Sustainability impact
- Innovation and creativity
- Feasibility and scalability
- Team strength and mentorship engagement
- Overall quality of the presentation
Awards
- Finalists will be eligible for monetary awards and other non-cash prizes.
- To qualify for awards, teams must fulfill all competition requirements and participate in person at the final event.
- Awards will be split evenly among all team members unless a founder’s agreement has been signed by all team members that instructs otherwise.
General Notices
Use of Materials
The University of Colorado Boulder and affiliated organizations may record, copy, and use any presentations, pitch decks, documents, or media submitted for educational and promotional purposes.
- Teams grant CU Boulder non-exclusive, worldwide rights to use submitted materials across all media platforms.
Decisions & Discretion
- All competition procedures, interpretations, and decisions are at the sole discretion of the event organizers.
- Organizers reserve the right to change rules or eligibility requirements at any time.
- Judging decisions are final.
CSC Resources will be coming soon!
Learn More about CSC
The Colorado Sustainability Challenge (formerly the Sustainability Hackathon) is an annual event open to students, faculty and staff with a creative solution to a sustainability problem. Learn more:
Read about past winners
Five teams were awarded prizes at the 2024 Sustainability Hackathon.
2023 Sustainability Hackathon winner FoodWise won $100,000 in the 2024 New Venture Challenge!
Stay up to date
Stay up-to-date on the Colorado Sustainability Challenge details!