As we close out 2025, we are taking the final weeks of the year to reflect upon all we have accomplished together with our partner agencies and communities, and what we look forward to in 2026. Check out the recap in December’s Resiliency Conversation.
The CRO was Out and About in 2025!
Colorado Resiliency Framework Update Engagement
The CRO brought together over 600 Coloradans - including State agencies, local governments, NGO partners, and more, to update the Colorado Resiliency Framework (CRF). The CRF outlines how State agencies will collaborate over the next five years to build economic, social, and environmental resilience.
Stay tuned for another chance to engage in February 2026 when the draft opens for public comments!
Did you know? The Resilience Planning in Local Government Survey, conducted as part of this engagement, found that resilience is becoming more mainstream in Colorado - with over 90% of governments incorporating resilience thinking into their work and over 70% reporting there is political will for resilience work!
24 Conferences, Webinars, and Public Events
Engaging over 1,900 participants across Colorado and the country, some highlights include:
- CRO staff brought our work to national audiences such as the American Planning Association (APA) National Planning Conference (view webinar recording), the Natural Hazards Workshop, RE+ Microgrids, ResCon, and Mountain Towns 2030.
- Events for Colorado youth including the Colorado Youth Climate Summit, the Neighborhood Resilience Corps Summer Climate Adaptation Academy, and the Weld County Youth Environmental Leadership Summit.
Need Support? We Got You.
18 formal technical assistance events engaging 1,300 participants. This included the following highlights:
- CRO and the Division of Fire Prevention and Control launched and continues to host the Colorado Wildfire Resilience Code (CWRC) Implementation Peer Exchange in order to support local implementation of the newly adopted Code!
- The six Peer Exchange webinars supported over 600 participants!
- CRO partnered closely with the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) and partners across the North Front Range for the development and release of the Resilience Hub Toolkit!
- CRO continues to support jurisdictions in advancing goals developed through the Climate Resilient Communities Accelerator, including building a network of resilience hubs.
- Additional technical assistance events were tailored to the Metro Mayor's Caucus Sustainability & Resiliency Committee Meeting; Grand County for a Community-Informed Critical Infrastructure and Facility Prioritization Process; and more.
Taking Climate Action
- In 2025, CRO launched the Guidance for Local Climate Adaptation Tool to provide municipalities, counties, and special districts with over 25 implementable actions across five sectors - meeting jurisdictions where they are and sharing key resources for implementation. See our March 2025 Resiliency Conversation for more details.
- CRO’s Microgrids for Community Resilience (MCR) Program funded an additional four microgrid projects in 2025 - bringing the total projects supported by the grant program up to 28 projects and over $15M.
- 10 projects funded by grants from 2023 and 2024 were completed!
- See the 2025 Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) MCR Report, which summarizes how grants are associated with social and climate vulnerabilities. The report also spotlights two entities that focused their efforts towards addressing the most vulnerable populations.
- Outcomes from the MCR Program have been published, elevating microgrids and resilience hubs as resiliency solutions.
- Two significant publications include a Larimer County Case Study and the Domestic Preparedness Journal article, “Powering Through Crisis: Microgrids and Emergency Response.”
- CRO partnered with the Colorado Energy Office to release the Colorado Microgrid Roadmap, which outlines opportunities to improve power grid resilience in Colorado through innovative microgrid solutions.
- CRO supported the Climate Resilience Challenge by providing guidance in project development and evaluation. The impact of this fund continued in 2025 with over $4.8 million from the Energy and Mineral Impact Assistance Fund (EIAF) set-aside, awarded to four municipalities: Golden, Grand County, Wray, and Winter Park.
- Although the Climate Resilience Challenge set-aside will not be funded in the next round, these types of projects are encouraged to apply through the regular EIAF grant cycles.
- CRO is also involved with 28 climate-impact-focused working groups and boards including the Natural Disaster Mitigation Enterprise, the Regional Air Quality Council, the Wildfire Resiliency Code Board, and the Western Water Assessment External Advisory Board.
Rural Resiliency is Our Jam!
- CRO conducted Camp Resilience in Salida for local governments in the south central region. Camp Resilience is a summer camp-themed workshop that supports rural Colorado communities in integrating resilience into projects and planning.
- Our Rural Economic Development Initiative Grant Program (REDI), which funded 13 projects totalling $780,000 in rural Colorado in 2025, builds resilience in many different ways - from planning to infrastructure to entrepreneurship to capacity-building projects.
- Applications open again on January 7, 2026!
- CRO also supported an Innovation workshop in Montrose to spur innovation in the way rural communities approach their work.
CRO Rocks Resilient Recovery
- CRO supported five Integrating Access and Functional Needs Into Emergency Management courses by co-instructing the recovery section of the course. These trainings support Colorado’s emergency managers in ensuring their work best supports these key populations.
- CRO, along with DOLA Regional Managers, supported recovery symposiums across five of Colorado’s All-Hazards Regions.
Partnerships are Key
Strengthening resilience does not happen in a silo and requires collaboration across community sectors and across agencies. This year, the CRO continued to coordinate interagency resilience efforts and provide technical assistance to support state agencies in integrating resilience. Some highlights include:
- CRO was highlighted by the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials for demonstrating strong leadership in collaborative resilience planning across State agencies and other partners.
- CRO launched the Colorado Resilience Community of Practice. This virtual forum on LinkedIn enables resilience professionals from across the State to share best practices, discuss solutions to challenges, explore various topics, and more!
- CRO also continued the Future-Ready State Agencies program, which provides different opportunities for agencies to receive technical assistance to strengthen their resilience.
- CRO engaged four unique State agencies to support their resilience goals, including reviewing plans, brainstorming how to weave resilience into competitive grant programs, and providing guidance on building capacity for resilience.