Letter from Metro Denver EDC President, Raymond H. Gonzales on the Colorado—Wyoming Climate Resilience Engine winning inaugural NSF Regional Innovation Engines award
Dear Investors, Partners and Friends,
I am thrilled to reach out today with some long-awaited and incredible news, this morning the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) announced that the Colorado-Wyoming Climate Resilience Engine (CO-WY Engine) is an inaugural NSF Regional Innovation Engine (NSF Engines) awardee. The CO-WY Engine will initially receive up to $15 million for the next two years, totaling up to $160 million over ten years.
The first-ever NSF Regional Innovation Engines competition aimed to secure America's long-term competitiveness in crucial technology fields. Out of 188 initial submissions, the CO-WY Engine was chosen as one of the 10 NSF Engines following a rigorous selection process.
Led by Innosphere Ventures, the CO-WY Climate Resilience Engine seeks to position the region as a frontrunner in developing and commercializing climate-resilient and sustainable technologies. These innovations are anticipated to play a vital role in assisting communities nationwide in monitoring, mitigating and adapting to climate-related challenges, including wildfire management, water resource management, agricultural technology, extreme weather mitigation and earth sensing.
As a partner and sub-grantee of the Engine, Metro Denver EDC will support the establishment of a Climate Tech ecosystem in Colorado, including global recruitment of companies in the Climate Tech industry into the region, implementation of the TalentCO program to support the talent needs of the emerging Climate Tech industry and support of the Engine’s overall workforce and talent strategy.
Securing this prestigious NSF award underscores Colorado's commitment to climate resiliency, workforce development and innovation. It's truly an honor to have been part of the effort to secure this grant, and we are excited about the opportunities it presents for creating thousands of new jobs in climate technology and driving economic growth in our region.
President and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, J. J. Ament, said of this significant achievement, “I want to thank the entire Denver Metro Chamber and Metro Denver EDC team for their collaboration to win this important investment for Colorado and Wyoming. I especially want to thank Raymond Gonzales for his leadership through this process and all of the partners who are committed to the important work ahead."
With the support of our dedicated team and partners, we are poised to lead the charge in advancing climate-resilient technologies and fostering a thriving workforce in Colorado and beyond. Please read the full press release from Innosphere Ventures here.
I want to take a moment to thank you, our investors and partners, for your continued support of all the work we do here at the Metro Denver EDC. This is a historic win for our organization and our state and we can’t wait to continue to keep you updated on it.
Sincerely,
Raymond H. Gonzales
President of Metro Denver EDC
Executive Vice President of Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce