About Boulder

Boulder, Colorado U.S.A.

Nestled at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, Boulder is situated in a most beautiful setting along Colorado's Front Range.

The city is located about 40 miles north west of Denver and the nearest commercial airport is Denver International Airport (DIA). The climate is very pleasant with some 300 days per year that are sunny or partly sunny. The seasons pass from a warm summer with cobalt blue skies to crisp air and blazing aspens in the fall. Mild, clear winter days are followed by a cool, verdant spring.

Boulder is a small, sophisticated city of 120,000 residents where there is a strong sense of community. The heart of the city is the Pearl Street Mall which is one of the most successful pedestrian malls in the country. Close to the mall are the city office buildings, the main library, a teahouse from our sister city in Dushanbe,

Tajikistan, and a variety of shops and restaurants. Running through the center of the city from the plains in the east to the mountains in the west, is a pedestrian path along Boulder Creek. From April to November there is a Saturday Farmer's Market featuring local products and organic foods. The market also functions on Wednesday during the summer.

Home to the University of Colorado and a host of national scientific centers. Boulder is the hub for research and development in a number of advanced technology disciplines. The prestigious National Center for Atmospheric Research(NCAR) is located in Boulder as are a number of government laboratories; the National

Institute of Standards and Technology, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration being the major ones.

Many of the larger commercial employers in the area are computer based such as IBM and a number of disk manufacturers and software companies. A significant number of others, such as Valleylabs, are in the biotechnology area.

The city government is headed by an elected council, who appoint the city manager. With some 80 boards and committees, the citizens have plenty opportunity to volunteer their opinions between elections.

Over 30 years ago the residents voted to tax themselves to buy open space around the City to ensure that their town would not find itself surrounded by land developed by adjacent cities. The open space purchases have helped protect the mountain backdrop, as well as some of the agricultural activities close to town. Boulderites are proud of its well developed system of bike paths and emphasis on alternative transportation.

Boulder has an active cultural life with many theaters, films, concerts and cultural programs. During the summer there is a resident professional orchestra and a Shakespeare Festival. During the remainder of the year there are performances by the Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra and many performances at the Music School at the University of Colorado. In recent years there has been a nationally advertised film festival. There is an active Chautauqua which is over a hundred years old and one of the few surviving cultural centers that formed the Chautauqua movement.

While we (the Boulder Council for International Visitors) can generate a great variety of programs for international visitors, some of our most successful have been the following themes: sustainable energy, food security, environmental preservation, sustainable development, global warming, recycling, development of non-government organizations, city management, democracy in action, theater and the arts and conflict resolution. However we never cease to be amazed at the resources available in, or close to, Boulder, and welcome any challenging new themes.