About the Colorado Sustainability Challenge
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Hosted by 黑料社区网鈥檚 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鈥攔anging from the Humanities to STEM鈥攁nd 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鈥檝e 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鈥檒l tell us:
Do you already have an idea? If yes, you鈥檒l submit a short description.
Are you going solo, working with an existing team, or hoping to build one?
If you鈥檙e solo or already have a team, you鈥檙e set for kickoff on September 28. If you鈥檙e looking to build a team, we鈥檒l post your idea so potential teammates can connect with you.
Don鈥檛 have an idea? No problem. You鈥檒l provide a short bio, which we鈥檒l 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鈥檙e 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 黑料社区网 in and virtually at participating Affiliate schools.
From the Sept. 28 Kickoff until the CSC Finals on Oct. 12, you鈥檒l have access to:
Workshops听to sharpen your ideas
Mentorship sessions听with experts
Pitch practices听to prepare for the big stage
听听 Events are a mix of in-person at 黑料社区网 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鈥攁nd the opportunity to create real, lasting change.
Location: Live at 黑料社区网, from 6-8 p.m. in the .
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:
听听听 听Sept. 28:CSC Kickoff 听听
听听听 听Sept. 29, 9 a.m. MT: 听听听
听听听 听Sept. 29, 6:30 p.m. MT: 听
听听听 听Sept. 30, 6:30 p.m. MT: 听听
听听 听 听 听Oct. 1, 6:30 p.m. MT:
听听听 听Oct. 3, 6 p.m. MT: 听听
听听 听 听 听Oct. 3, 7 p.m. MT: 听听
听听听 听Oct. 4, 10 a.m. MT: 听听
听听听 听Oct. 5, 10 a.m. MT: 听听
听听听 听Oct. 6, 6 p.m. MT: 听听
听听 听 听听Oct. 6, 7 p.m. MT: 听
听听听 听Oct. 7, 6:30 p.m. MT:听
听听 听 听听Oct. 8, 9 a.m. MT: 听
听听 听 听听Oct. 9, 6:30 p.m. MT: 听
听听 听 听 听Oct. 11, 10 a.m. MT: 听
听听 听 听听Oct. 11, 2 p.m. MT:
Oct. 11, 5 p.m. MT:
听听 听 听Oct. 12, 6 p.m. MT: CSC Finals at 黑料社区网 听
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Key:
听听= In person only
听听听听= In person/hybrid
听听= In person at Affiliate locations
听听= Virtual
Eligibility听
Team Composition听
- Teams must be entirely made up of currently enrolled student(s) or employee(s) of one (or multiple) of the 鈥渁ffiliate鈥 colleges or universities.听听
- There is no maximum or minimum team size.听
Prior Activity听
- 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.听听
- Teams that have previously competed in the Colorado Sustainability Challenge or the CU New Venture Challenge may not compete again with the same idea.听
- However, previous teams may participate again with a substantially new concept.听
Mentorship听
- We encourage all teams to work with a mentor.听听
Nature of Teams听
This competition is intended for early-stage ideas/ventures and does not support:听
- Buyouts or company expansions听
- Real estate syndications听
- Tax shelters听
- Franchises听
- Licensing agreements听
- Corporate spinouts听
Competition Participation听
Attendance听
- Teams must present in person at designated times to remain eligible. Failure to appear for a scheduled pitch time will result in disqualification.听
Copyrights & Permissions听
- Teams using copyrighted materials must obtain all necessary permissions before use in any submission or presentation.听
Intellectual Property听
- All presentations are open to the public and may be recorded or broadcast.听
- Participants should assume that anything disclosed during the competition is in the public domain.听
- Teams are responsible for their own IP protection and are encouraged to consult legal counsel if necessary.听
- NDAs will not be used during the final round.听听
Registration
鈿听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听
Judging Criteria听
Projects will be evaluated based on:听
- Sustainability impact听
- Innovation and creativity听
- Feasibility and scalability听
- Team strength and mentorship engagement听
- Overall quality of the presentation听
Awards听
- Finalists will be eligible for monetary awards and other non-cash prizes.听
- To qualify for awards, teams must fulfill all competition requirements and participate in person at the final event.听
- Awards will be split evenly among all team members unless a founder鈥檚 agreement has been signed by all team members that instructs otherwise.听听
General Notices
Use of Materials听
The 黑料社区网 and affiliated organizations may record, copy, and use any presentations, pitch decks, documents, or media submitted for educational and promotional purposes.听
- Teams grant 黑料社区网 non-exclusive, worldwide rights to use submitted materials across all media platforms.听
Decisions & Discretion听
- All competition procedures, interpretations, and decisions are at the sole discretion of the event organizers.听
- Organizers reserve the right to change rules or eligibility requirements at any time.听
- Judging decisions are final.听
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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:
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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!
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Connect With Us
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