This story originated from Sol del Valle and has been translated for our English readers. On December 10, 2024, the Buddy Program wrapped up the year with one of its annual activities, EcoFlight. EcoFlight is a nonprofit founded in 2002 by pilot Bruce Gordon. They tackle a myriad of environmental concerns by hosting charter flights […]
Environment
Posted inLocal Government
Gray wolf reintroduction continues despite resistance
Things are happening fast in Colorado’s reintroduced wolf world. In just the first two weeks of 2025, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) announced a conflict management plan and denied a petition to delay further wolf reintroduction. The agency is now moving ahead with bringing Canadian wolves into the state for the second round of reintroduction […]
Posted inEnvironment
AVLT, Eagle County and Pitkin County partner on open space acquisition
On Jan. 3, Aspen Valley Land Trust (AVLT), Eagle County and Pitkin County announced a massive joint acquisition project, wherein the three parties plan to pull together $27.7 million to conserve a property measuring more than 4,000 acres in Missouri Heights. The property, Three Meadows Ranch, is currently the largest contiguous property in the Roaring […]
Posted inNonprofits
Carbondale-Congo connection brings rainwater collection to flood-ravaged African region
Mark Weinhold recalls a moment while standing at the edge of a large ravine carved by massive flooding along the Congo River in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, surveying the creeping erosion that was threatening nearby homes.“This older man walks out of his house and sees us. And, when you see people who are not Congolese […]
Posted inEnvironment
Naturalist Nights set to begin Jan. 8
On Jan. 8 and 9, the highly anticipated Naturalist Nights, an annual winter speaker series spotlighting critical environmental topics pertinent to the Roaring Fork Valley, commences. In a collaborative effort between Wilderness Workshop, Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) and Roaring Fork Audubon, the series will feature five experts who will discuss pressing conversations such […]
Posted inLocal Government
Ranchers to CPW: Pause wolf relocation
“This is a tough crowd,” exclaimed Travis Black, the Northwest regional manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), as he fielded questions at a meeting in New Castle Tuesday night. He spoke to over 300 mostly livestock growers and outfitters about wolf reintroduction, one of the most contentious topics in Western Colorado these days. And, […]
Posted inEnvironment
CORE community honors Randy Udall
On Wednesday, Dec. 11, Hooch Craft Cocktail Bar in downtown Aspen was filled with conversation a few hours earlier than usual. While the establishment opens at 5pm daily, this was a slightly different group than is typical après ski crowd. NGO employees, current and emeritus government officials and community members from across the Roaring Fork […]
Posted inEnvironment
Carbondale-based Flora Materials developing algae-based sustainable building materials
Natalie York fell in love with the Colorado Rockies when she moved to Denver in 2013. She had just finished a degree in architecture in Southern California, and was delighted by the interface she saw between work and lifestyle in the mountains. In 2019, York moved into the Roaring Fork Valley to work on the […]
Posted inNonprofits
Toklat restored and open again
Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) announced in late November that its wilderness retreat facility in the Castle Creek Valley, the Catto Center at Toklat, was reopening to the public after a major renovation of the historic structure. In a conversation with The Sopris Sun, ACES CEO Chris Lane said that the nearly three-year project, […]
Posted inEnvironment
Forest Service approves Daniel’s Hill parking area
“The Lead King Loop has been a very popular recreation area for a long time,” said Jennifer Schuller, deputy district ranger for the National Forest Service Aspen-Sopris Ranger District. And mitigating that impact has been a challenge.In 2021, the Forest Service, Town of Marble and Gunnison County approached Western Colorado University Center for Public Lands […]