Public Impact Research at CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï

Public Impact Research (PIR) at the °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï is research, innovation and creative work that advances scholarship serving the public good to transform lives and strengthen communities.Ìý


Public Impact Research encompasses the full range of scholarship and recognizes many paths to achieve such impact. CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï's ambition is to expand the reach and durability of that impact. This means research that identifies and meets societal needs with direct impact on human lives. PIR is defined by an intentional orientation toward tangible public benefit rather than a particular discipline, methodology or type of scholarly output.

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Questions?Ìý

Please reach out to Tanya Ennis, Director of Research Impact and Engagement:ÌýÌýÌýtanya.ennis@colorado.edu.Ìý

Massimo Ruzzene

ÌýÌýResearch has the greatest impact when the knowledge and discoveries we create reach beyond the university and make a meaningful difference in people’s lives and communities.

—Massimo Ruzzene, Senior Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation, Dean of the Institutes

Pathways to Public Impact Research

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Community and Civic Engagement

From communicating research to communities to co-creating research to address problems or create changeÌý

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Policy and System Change

From informing policymakers of research findings to forming collaborations with partners to achieve durable policy or system changes ÌýÌý

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Public Understanding

Supporting how people understand, interpret, imagine or engage with an issue (humanities)Ìý

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Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Turning knowledge into technologies, products, services and ventures that serve societal needsÌý

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Reach and Adoption at Scale

Expanding the reach and widespread adoption of public solutions across communities, systems, markets and other channelsÌý

Success Stories

Latest News

Public Impact Research Recognition

Center for Advancing Research Impact in Society (ARIS) Awards

Director, Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence
2026 ARIS Awardee

Samuel Ramsey

Assistant Professor, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
2026 ARIS Awardee

Alexandra (Alex) Rose

Broader Impacts Manager, CU Science Discovery
2025 ARIS Awardee

Stacey Forsyth

Director, Build a Better Book, CU Science Discovery
2025 ARIS Awardee

Engaged Scholarship Consortium Award

Jota Samper

Associate Professor, Environmental Design
2024 Excellence in Faculty Community Engagement Award

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Colorado Governor’s Awards for High-Impact Research

2022 Governor's Award for High-Impact Research for Pathfinding Partnerships

  • Colleen Reid (Associate Professor, Geography; Fellow, Institute of Behavioral Science) and team

2019 Governor's Award for High-Impact Research

  • Greg Rieker (Professor, Mechanical Engineering) and team

Broader Impacts Network (BIN)

CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï’s central campus source connecting the research and creative works community with the partners, tools, and resources needed to successfully develop and implement socially significant broader impacts.Ìý

More Broader Impacts Resources

Ralphie statue on top of CASE Building at CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï

Other Resources

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Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship (PACES)

Public Impact Research is intentionally designed to achieve real-world benefits at scale. Community-engaged research is one powerful method for achieving successful PIR.

Campus Compact is a national coalition of colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education building democracy through civic engagement and community development.

CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï builds relationships with communities across Colorado, the nation and the world. Our campus tracks this work using our Public Outreach and Community-Engaged Scholarship Database.

Local Government and Community Engagement

The Local Government and Community Engagement team strengthens relationships with local government entities, community organizations and business partners to advance economic vitality, civic engagement and sustainability.Ìý

Venture Partners at CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï

The Venture Partners team supports university researchers, inventors and creators in translating their groundbreaking discoveries into new solutions, businesses and partnerships that address the world's greatest challenges.

Sustainability Research Initiative (SRI)

The SRI harnesses the collective expertise of CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï's diverse academic community to address pressing sustainability issues in Colorado and across the nation with relevant expertise and a strong innovation pipeline.Ìý

Research and expertise across CUÌý°Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï.

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Our 12Ìýresearch institutes conduct more than half of
the sponsored research at CUÌý°Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï.

More than 75 research centers span the campus,
covering a broad range of topics.

ÌýÌýResearch ComputingÌý

A carefully integrated cyberinfrastructure supports CUÌý°Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï research.

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