Community

GREEBs meeting at the Mountain Research Station

The Guild of Rocky Mountain Ecologists and Evolutionary Biologists meet September 26th to 28th, 2025. Please register before September 15th.

Info & registration

Learn more about us:

Meet an INSTAAR >
Art+Science showcase >

We’re all about the science, but at the end of the day it’s the process of getting there that defines us. Peek into INSTAAR culture: the day-to-day work in labs, offices, or the field; get-togethers over coffee or lunch; and interactions with our many concentric communities.

Community norms and agreements

INSTAARs collectively created our shared set of values, along with actions and behaviors that help us adhere to them:

ÌýÌýRespect

  • Treating everyone as valuable and worthy regardless of their role or position in the hierarchy.
  • Acknowledging and repairing our inevitable mistakes through kindness and a growth mindset.
  • Valuing individual differences, needs, backgrounds (i.e., cultural, identity, lived), abilities, situations, etc., in decision-making processes.

ÌýÌýCommunication

  • Setting clear expectations.
  • Proactively establishing goals, deadlines, and the reason for decisions.
  • Inquiring about others’ capacity, constraints, and competing demands when needs arise.
  • Establishing expectations around communication, response times, and accessibility outside of regular work hours.
  • Being aware and responsive to how our language, tone, style, and demeanor impacts others whether communication is face-to-face, phone, virtual, or electronic.
  • Approaching with curiosity, inquiry, active listening, and perspective taking when conflicts, miscommunications, and misunderstandings occur.
  • Giving and receiving feedback constructively.

ÌýÌýCommunity

  • Creating visible moments of appreciation and celebrating the work and contributions of everyone in INSTAAR.
  • Trusting that everyone is making time to engage with the INSTAAR community.
  • Mentoring others and ensuring there is capacity for supporting others in INSTAAR.
  • Being aware of our responsibilities, following processes, and providing resources to support the well-being and success of everyone in INSTAAR.
    Ìý

Culture and inclusion

We’re committed to being an inclusive, antiracist institute where all INSTAARs are welcome, safe, and can thrive, including those who identify with groups underrepresented in science and academia. We know that while we've taken some steps along that path, we still have a distance to go.

How can we see where we are, and where we're falling down? One helpful marker is the Campus Culture Survey, administered by the Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance (OIEC). The Culture Survey measures how people at CU Boulder are experiencing their work environment and community.

We can see from the survey data that most, but not all, people are having positive experiences at CU Boulder; and that more people are having positive experiences within the research institutes than at CU Boulder overall. We also see, however, that more people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals,Ìýand graduate students experience problematic behaviors and have less of a sense of belonging than people in other groups. Clearly we have work to do as individuals and an institute to create a better environment for everyone. The survey results suggest some concrete ways to make our community more connected and inclusive, and we’ve been working on those over the past few years. For some of the steps we're taking,ÌýseeÌýDiversity.

People spotlights

More people spotlights

Community news

More community news

Updates

INSTAAR social media

See our latest activities and chat with us.

Community events

INSTAAR mentoring

NewSTAAR - Peer mentoring for all new INSTAARs

All people new to INSTAAR are invited into NewSTAAR peer mentoring, where they are paired with a current INSTAAR who can help them get to know people and the institute and find resources.

GAAP - Graduate Application Assistance Program

This program is for those considering applying for graduate school. GAAP participants are paired with current students who help them navigate the application process.

INSTAAR Insights newsletter

Become part of our community and get a peek into our research & creative work, 3-4 times a year.

Did you experience or witness problematic behavior?

INSTAAR’s primary responsibility is to create and maintain a safe and inclusive work environment for all. What can you do if you experience or witness problematic behavior such as microaggressions or instances of harassment?Ìý

Explore ways to report, get support, and help