Colorado and Wyoming are famed for their wide open spaces and incredible landscapes.

They’re also very, very dry.

Changes in rainfall and snowpack are already impacting agriculture, tourism, and the frequency and intensity of wildfires in the western United States. The wicked problem of climate resiliency isn’t one for the future, it’s making itself known in real-time.

Today, we’re headed west to meet our next NSF Engine, the ASCEND Engine in Colorado and Wyoming, in short, the CO-WY Engine, where I’ll be talking to CEO Mike Freeman about the region’s unique resources and how they’re building a community-based commitment to climate resiliency.

Mike Freeman has dedicated the past 15 years to building up the science and technology innovation ecosystems in Colorado and surrounding areas. He brings several decades in public sector leadership, management consulting, non-profit management, and venture capital to his role at the CP-WY Engine.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• How developing environmental technologies underpins community resilience and economic opportunity
• Why climate resilience is about more than just the weather
• How the CO-WY Engine is building collaborative partnerships with a particularly diverse set of regional stakeholders
• Why Mike sees differences among partners as ultimately beneficial to the project
• Measuring the success of the program, from more traditional economic terms to devising a framework to capture a community’s climate resiliency

Learn more about Mike Freeman:

• The ASCEND Engine in Colorado and Wyoming
• Innosphere Ventures
• Connect on LinkedIn

Learn more about Anika Horn:

• Social Venturers
• Sign up for Impact Curator
• Instagram: @socialventurers

Resources:

• The Rainforest: The Secret to Building the Next Silicon Valley, Victor Hwang, Greg Horowitt
• Brookings
• Heartland Forward
• Milken Institute