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The SPIKE Center for Sustainability Education at ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder has selected 13 faculty members as its inaugural SPIKE Faculty Fellows, launching a new initiative designed to strengthen and expand sustainability education across campus.

The SPIKE Faculty Fellows will play a central role in advancing sustainability-focused teaching and praxis at ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder. Together, they will build a cross-campus network of faculty committed to integrating sustainability into curriculum and applied learning, while providing critical faculty perspective to broader university initiatives connected to sustainability education.

During the program’s first six months—starting in January 2026—the fellows will focus on two primary objectives: developing and delivering an annual Sustainability Across the Curriculum training for ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder faculty, beginning each May, and offering faculty voice and input into campuswide visions and initiatives that intersect with sustainability education.

In spring 2026, fellows on academic-year appointments will concentrate on teaching strategies responsive to the current moment, as well as foundational sustainability content. The theme for the spring 2026 cohort will be environmental and climate justice.Ìý

Advancing transformational learning

In coordination with administrators, staff, students and faculty colleagues across ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder, the inaugural class of SPIKE Faculty Fellows will work toward a range of outcomes that benefit both the Buckley Center and the campus community. These include:

• Co-creating and coordinating a campuswide agenda for transformational learning related to sustainability (distinct from formal curriculum development, which will be supported through a separate ambassadors program)
• Informing and illuminating best practices in sustainability education to guide campuswide efforts and reinforce ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder’s role as an international leader
• Sharing experiences and challenges encountered in sustainability education and praxis
• Advocating for innovative initiatives that energize and support pathways toward more sustainable futures
• Cultivating networks of faculty support across campus, including serving as liaisons to centers and institutes
• Collectively preparing and delivering a faculty training on sustainability education
• Identifying, assessing and curating sustainability education materials for teaching and learning

Through these efforts, the SPIKE Faculty Fellows program aims to deepen collaboration, elevate faculty leadership and embed sustainability more fully into the educational experience at ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder.

Spring 2026 SPIKE Faculty Fellows

The inaugural cohort of faculty fellows includes:

• Thomas Andrews, Professor, History and Social Science
• Karen Bailey, Assistant Professor, Environmental Studies and Natural Science
• Dave Ciplet, Associate Professor, Environmental Studies and Natural Science
• Azza Kamal, Associate Teaching Professor, Environmental Design and Communication
• Gregor Macgregor, Assistant Teaching Professor, Environmental Studies and Natural Science
• Cresten Mansfeldt, Assistant Professor, College of Engineering and Applied Science
• James C. Rattling Leaf, Sr., Geography, Natural Science and CIRES
• Esther Rolf, Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering
• Jonathan Skinner-Thompson, Associate Professor, Colorado Law
• Seema Sohi, Associate Professor, Ethnic Studies and Social Science
• Katharine N. Suding, Distinguished Professor, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Natural Science
• Meghan Van Portfliet, Assistant Teaching Professor, Leeds School of Business
• Steven Vanderheiden, Professor, Political Science and Social Science
• Emily Yeh, Professor, Geography and Natural Science

Together, these faculty leaders represent a wide range of disciplines and perspectives, underscoring the SPIKE Center’s commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration and inclusive approaches to sustainability education at ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder.