The inaugural edition of Research & Innovation Week, Oct. 15-19, is filled with events designed to strengthen community and collaboration across campus while demonstrating the broad impact of the work of CU Boulder’s faculty, researchers, postdocs, students and staff.
Additionally, several events aim to boost visibility to audiences beyond campus, such as the Boulder community, industry partners, the entrepreneurial ecosystem and more.
Hosted by the Research & Innovation Office, Research & Innovation Week features collaborations with groups including the United Government of Graduate Students, CU Boulder’s Grand Challenge, Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and more. Institutes, centers, schools and departments from every corner of campus are contributing to the programming, ensuring that there are engaging opportunities for everyone.
A full slate of opportunities to participate, learn and collaborate
Each day of the week is constructed around broad theme to inspire diverse contributors and participants to encourage cross-disciplinary exploration and collaboration. The daily themes are:
Major events during the weeklong celebration include:
- Celebrating Innovators Who Fuel Our Impact: Panel, Posters and Reception, Monday at the University Memorial Center from 4:30-7:30 p.m. More than 60 posters—including topics from art history to chemistry, political science to physics, and engineering to education—will be presented by undergrad and grad students, postdocs, staff and faculty from 4:30-5:30 and again from 6:30-7:30. From 5:30-6:30 a Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation Terri Fiez and a dynamic panel will share inspiring, entertaining examples of how CU Boulder’s one-of-a-kind positioning continues to fuel CU Boulder's future, driving impact through innovation.
- CU Climate and Health Research Summit, including a public talk at Fiske Planetarium on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. With CU Boulder's Grand Challenge Initiative the catalyst, CU Boulder and CU Anschutz are partnering to bring together researchers, public health practitioners, students and others around the critical intersection of climate and health. The public talk, by Dr. Jeff Shaman, Director of the Climate and Health Program, Columbia University, is entitled "Climate-Disease Connections: Associations, Processes and Incorporation in Infectious Disease Forecast".
- Cultivating the Next Generation of Engineering Discovery: Undergraduate Research Opportunities on Tuesday in the Engineering Center Lobby from 8 a.m. to noon. Staff and students will host an information booth with snacks and prizes to answer questions about their experiences with undergraduate research and share information about how to get involved in research.
- NEST Studio for the Arts Embryonic Exhibition on Wednesday, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the CASE building, W120. NEST’s inaugural exhibition, EMBYRONIC, presents preexisting, far-flung work, while also bringing local collaborators together anew: a chemist and a ceramicist; a wood sculptor and an ecologist; a hydrologist and a filmmaker.
- Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) Sidewalk Symposium on the Norlin Quad from 1-5 p.m. on Wednesday. Explore the pioneering work of undergraduate students while rethinking the traditional research poster in this radically unique event format developed in Boulder.
- Faculty Fellows TED-style Talks at The Dairy Theater at the Dairy Arts Center at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Nine Research & Innovation Office Faculty Fellows will give five-minute TED-style talks exploring the leading edge of disciplines across the spectrum, including engineering, theatre, geology, education, chemistry and more. This will be an informative, entertaining and inspiring evening.
- Research Blitz: Innovations in Security & Resilience, Thursday 2:30 to 4:30 at the Student Rec Center. CU Boulder researchers will share their security-related work via three-minute lightning-round presentations, followed by a reception. Topics range from remote sensing and Earth analytics to cybersecurity and human factors. Designed to help CU Boulder's research community identify opportunities for collaborations with fellow faculty and industry partners.
- Community Building Colorado-Style Conference, Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at SEEC. This conference, sponsored by CU Boulder’s Community Engagement, Design and Research Center (CEDaR), Colorado Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), and Downtown Colorado Inc (DCI) brings together leaders from neighborhoods, towns, cities and CU Boulder to build bridges between local governments, practitioners and researchers.
- ATLAS Research Showcase,3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Friday at the Roser ATLAS Center. Research and creative work exposition, including laboratory and studio tours, demos, poster presentations, and discussion with faculty members and graduate students. A great opportunity to connect with this growing community of creative technologists, inventors and artists, and to explore opportunities for collaboration.
Note: Some events request registration to assist with planning. Details on each can be found at the Research & Innovation Week website.
More opportunities for faculty, students and staff to participate
In addition to the full menu of structured in-person events, Research & Innovation Week also offers less structured opportunities to participate.