INSTAAR is an interdisciplinary scientific research institute dedicated to understanding change in Earth systems.
Researchers across many departments and programs come together in one unit to study the challenging environmental issues that confront our world.
Our mission
We conduct interdisciplinary research and education on the past, present, and future of Earth systems in service of a just and thriving future.
Our vision
INSTAAR’s future is one where our research intersects with justice, and our voices are united with those of the communities we serve to understand and protect the Earth systems of which we are all a part.
As the University's oldest institute, the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) has a long history of responding to pressing environmental issues. With deep roots in Quaternary history, polar regions, and alpine environments, today we embrace a broad global perspective on our planet’s past, present and future, with a focus on bellwethers of environmental and social change. Our field sites are located across all seven continents, the world ocean, and the atmosphere, and include terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems from the tropics to the poles.
INSTAAR has an international reputation for leadership in far-reaching projects, environmental monitoring, precision data sets, integrative modeling, and long-term relationships with place and people. INSTAAR research is deeply embedded in places where we have often worked for years or decades. We strive to be trustworthy partners who have reciprocal relationships with local communities. We bring these research-based strengths to our exceptional graduate education and mentorship, and to involving undergraduates in the research process.
Students become researchers the moment they join INSTAAR. Graduate students conduct research in biological, chemical, and physical processes operating in continental and ocean environments. For students with interests in Earth and environmental science, INSTAAR provides unique opportunities for integrative training, research experience in the field and lab, and access to a wide variety of analytical and computational facilities beyond those of their home academic departments. Faculty, staff, and students help each other develop science expertise, gain entrepreneurial skills, and foster a welcoming culture and community.
INSTAAR is committed to building an inclusive, actively antiracist institute where people of all identities are welcome, safe, and supported, especially those from groups underrepresented in science and academia.
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INSTAAR has worked closely with multiple CU Boulder science organizations for a number years, sometimes sharing resources and personnel.
INSTAAR has a long-term relationship with three federal laboratories in Boulder, including sharing of resources and personnel.
National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)
Several hundred publications have included coauthors from both INSTAAR and NCAR in the past decade. We also share two employees whose pay is through both institutions. Research activities range from climate and hydrological modeling to atmospheric and terrestrial biogeochemistry.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
INSTAAR works closely with NOAA’s Global Monitoring Lab, providing critical isotopic constraints on the sources and sinks of major greenhouse gases and related carbon–climate feedback processes—constraints which are not otherwise available from observations of trace gas concentration alone.
Until early 2021, the joint USGS/INSTAAR Center for Earth Science, Water, and Technology (CWEST) fostered collaborative research proposals between CU and USGS, particularly to facilitate graduate student training in USGS labs. While CWEST is officially closed, aspects of CWEST programming, such as the Aiken Fellowship for graduate students, continue to be managed by INSTAAR.
Our researchers collaborate with hundreds of colleagues at many universities, government labs, and other science organizations and communities around the world. These peer-based collaborations are essential for the success of our research.
For example, 53% of INSTAAR's ~200 publications in 2023 included international coauthors.
Cooperative Institute for Research In Environmental Sciences
National Snow and Ice Data Center
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute