Research & Innovation Week
The eighth annual Research & Innovation Week is designed to elevate awareness across campus, build a sense of shared community, create opportunities for collaboration and recognize exceptional leadership and outcomes. Join us as we:
Highlight and shape tomorrow's leaders
Showcase some of our most compelling innovations
Demonstrate CU Boulder's positive impact on humanity
2026 Schedule of Events
Thursday—Friday, October 8–9
Sustainability Research Summit
9 a.m.—5 p.m. University Memorial Center Open to CU Boulder researchers, staff, students and external partners; registration is required
Join CU Boulder's Sustainability Research Initiative for a two‑day event highlighting the diversity and depth of our campus' sustainability research. The summit will bring together researchers from different disciplines and academic departments to share their work, learn together, catalyze new collaborations, and connect with our broader community.
Sessions will explore:
- How we build, power, and grow things
- How we build community and work with partners ethically
- How we think creatively
- How we keep people safe
- How we overcome sociopolitical obstacles
Monday, October 12
Indigenous Peoples' Day: Moderated Keynote and Luncheon
11 a.m.–1 p.m. Glenn Miller Ballroom, University Memorial Center
Open to CU Boulder faculty, staff, students, and the public
CU Boulder students, staff, faculty and members of the Boulder community are invited to participate in a community celebration and observance of Indigenous Peoples Day. Further details will be provided in the coming weeks.
Tuesday, October 13
State of the Research and Innovation Enterprise
11–11:45 a.m., lunch to follow Sustainability, Energy and Environment Community (SEEC) Building, Room C120
Free and open to the public; registration required
As a Tier 1 public research university, CU Boulder has a thriving ecosystem of research, scholarship and creative work. In this hour-long talk, Massimo Ruzzene, senior vice chancellor for research and innovation and dean of the institutes, will share significant metrics, trends, insights and aspirations from the university’s research and innovation enterprise. He’ll also provide a closer look at some of CU Boulder’s unique offerings and accomplishments from the past year.
Attendees are invited to stay after the event for lunch, from 12–1 p.m.
Graduate Student Dialogue on Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship
1–3 p.m. Center for Teaching and Learning, CASE E390
Open to CU Boulder faculty, staff and students
Join us for presentations by graduate students in roundtable format, dialogue about community-engaged scholarship opportunities, refreshments and good company. Graduate students interested in community-engaged scholarship and whose research, creative work and teaching engages with communities please join us! Interested faculty, staff and undergraduate students are also welcome to attend.
Each session will include:
- The opportunity to learn about the Community Engaged Research Toolkit and Graduate Student Community-Engaged Scholarship Ecosystem Mapping
- Roundtable presentations and discussion
Please register by October 5. Scheduled presenters for each session will be posted by Sept. 20.
Biomedical Engineering Showcase
2–4 p.m. Engineering Center Lobby
Open to CU Boulder faculty, staff and students
Details to come.
Wednesday, October 14
Bison Restoration
10 a.m.–12 p.m. Aspen Rooms, University Memorial Center
Open to CU Boulder faculty, staff and students
Details to come.
Core Facilities Open House and Front Range Industry and Postdoc Symposium
10 a.m.–3:30 p.m. Sustainability, Energy and Environment Community (SEEC) Building, Room C120
Open to CU Boulder researchers, students, and external partners
CU Boulder's Core Facilities are partnering with the Postdoctoral Association of Colorado (PAC) and the Postdoctoral and Early-Career Association of Researchers (PEAR) at NIST for the Core Facilities Open House and Front Range Industry and Postdoc Symposium (FRIPS) joint event. This all-day event is an amazing opportunity for researchers at all levels—as well as local industry—to discover the resources and capabilities available to advance your scientific research and career. Open to all undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral, staff, faculty and local industry investigators, we hope you will join us for this significant event.
Research to Impact: Funding and Industry Partnership Strategies
2:30–4:30 p.m. Sustainability, Energy and Environment Community (SEEC) Building, Room S228
Open to CU Boulder faculty, researchers and staff
Research funding requires a diversified approach. Join Venture Partners at CU Boulder, Industry Research Partnerships, and the Center for Translation Research to explore practical strategies to expand beyond traditional funding sources and position research for greater impact. Faculty and research teams will gain actionable funding insights, while industry participants can discover emerging innovations, explore collaboration opportunities and provide valuable feedback to help researchers communicate the potential of their work.
Thursday, October 15
Research Administrators Breakfast
9–11 a.m. Williams Village
Invite-only
Sponsored by the Research & Innovation Office and the Office of Contracts and Grants, the Research Administrators' Breakfast is an invite-only event held every year during Research & Innovation Week.
Friday, October 16
ATLAS Research Open Labs
3–5 p.m. Roser ATLAS Center
Open to CU Boulder faculty, staff, students and the public
The 8th annual ATLAS Institute Research Open Labs is your time to get a first-hand view of the radically creative engineering and design projects our lab teams are engaged in. Get to know our lab directors, mingle with researchers and try out advanced technologies across many disciplines.
Interested in the Creative Technology & Design PhD program? This is a great way to get a sense for life in the lab and interact with our community.
Questions?
Please contact Chris Yankee: chris.yankee@colorado.edu.