Get Involved: City of Boulder

Apply to be a teen volunteer and participate in one or both opportunities!

• Teen Picks Book Reviews: Write reviews on teen books you recommend. Those approved get featured on the library’s Reading Room webpage! Selected reviews from this page may also appear in the library’s e-newsletter or social media platforms.

           AND/OR

• Boulder Teen Advisory Board (BTAB) & Teen Chats Volunteer: Advise the library on teen programs, participate in fun online activities, and connect with other teens during weekly meetups via Zoom on Wednesdays from 4:30 – 5:30 pm.

See more information about both these opportunities in the Teen Library Volunteer application! 

• Teen Picks: One or more hours, earn up to 10 volunteer hours. Work at home and according to your schedule.

• Boulder Teen Advisory Board (BTAB) and Teen Chats: One-hour per week on Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:30 pm via Zoom.

The Boulder Public Library seeks a volunteer from the Boulder area with professional marketing/branding expertise to help develop a marketing plan for the library’s used bookstore, set to reopen in summer of 2021.  We are looking for a volunteer with professional experience in marketing, sales, or fundraising and familiarity with the community of Boulder. This volunteer role will ideally start in late June/early July.

Posted only until a number of volunteer applications have been received or until May 15. 

Estimated time: 3 to 5 hours per week for two months.

Flower bed champs adopt the flower bed(s) at a park site and work in this site from April to October.

To apply, fill out an application (on the right) for the task you would most like to do. Be sure to identify the location you prefer in your application.

You can click the text “View Flower Bed Champ Listing” (below) to learn more about the areas we are recruiting or click “Yikes! I don’t see my Park” to indicate your preferred location, if it doesn’t appear.

Flower Bed champs should expect to volunteer 1 hour or more per week from April to October.

Litter Champs adopt a site to pick up trash in our parks from April to October.

To apply, fill out an application (on the right) for the task you would most like to do. Be sure to identify the location you prefer in your application.

You can click the text “View Litter Champ Listing” (below) to learn more about the areas we are recruiting or click “Yikes! I don’t see my Park” to indicate your preferred location, if it doesn’t appear.

Litter Champs will help pick up trash for 1 hour or more per week from April to October.

Park Champs help monitor, weed, and pick up litter in a park you love. 

To apply, fill out an application (on the right) for the task you would most like to do. Be sure to identify the location you prefer in your application.

You can click the text “View Park Champ Listing” (below) to learn more about the areas we are recruiting or click “Yikes! I don’t see my Park” to indicate your preferred location, if it doesn’t appear.

Park Champs should expect to work 1 to 3 hours a week at the park throughout April to October.

Prairie Dog Monitors observe and record Prairie Dog numbers in a specified location North of the Boulder Reservoir for 3 hours during each monitoring shift. These counts have been kept for over 10 years and help inform projects and management of the Boulder Reservoir. Volunteer must have experience using binoculars. Wildlife monitoring experience is highly recommended. 

All new volunteers are required to attend all three counts in June for training and to ensure data consistency.

Shift dates and times

June 15-17 from 5:45 to 9:30 AM

July 13-15 from 6:00 to 9:30 AM

August 17-19 from 6:15 to 9:30 AM 

Natural Lands Outreach Volunteers welcome and educate the users along the North Shore of the Boulder Reservoir and Coot lake about: 1) Aquatic Nuisance Species, 2) area-specific rules (i.e., no swimming, no launching watercraft), and 3) wildlife closures to protect nesting bird species of concern. While staffing the table and patrolling, volunteers will collect data on visitor patterns, volume, and behavior. When volunteers observe rule violations, they will contact staff that can provide further education when appropriate. Please note, volunteers will not provide any type of enforcement, as this position will focus on monitoring and education only.  

To apply, fill out the "Natural Lands Outreach Volunteer Application" to the right! 

Volunteers are required to take 3 virtual trainings via CMIB and volunteer for a minimum of two 2 hour shifts per month. 

Have a green thumb and experience germinating seeds? We’re looking for gardeners to support self-isolating older adults to grow native plants from seed using a kit provided to the seniors by Small Gardens, Big Change. These seedlings will be collected in the fall and planted by the community to expand pollinator habitat. Not only will you help support the transformation of Boulder into a pollinator haven, you will provide a connection to older adults during this time of uncertainty. All volunteering is done remotely to keep folks safe. Want to help out, but don’t feel like you’re an expert gardener? Don’t worry - horticulturists from Colorado State University and the Butterfly Pavilion will provide guidance throughout the process. 

Learn more about the Small Gardens, Big Change program. This is a pilot program and your experience will help to shape the expansion of this program to provide the plant materials needed to create pollinator pathways throughout the city. 

Mentors will check in with their partners for approximately 30 minutes weekly.  Mentors can work with up to ten seniors, depending on their availability.  

Monthly visits to the adopted area (weekly for RTD stops) are required.

Your visit could include a visual inspection of the area up to maintenance on the area that includes any of the following (if applicable):

• Remove trash, leaves, and debris a minimum of once a month (week for RTD stops).
• Weed (mechanical or manual means only – no herbicide/pesticide application) a minimum of every two weeks during growing season (April – October).
• In the fall, pruning any ornamental grasses, pick up and dispose of leaves, and mulch existing mulched areas (city to provide mulch).
• Edge trim where landscaped areas meet hardscape areas; clearance trim anywhere landscaping is conflicting with pedestrian or vehicle traffic.
• Report any observable problems with the irrigation system (i.e., leaks, misdirected spray, etc.) or any hazards (such as needles) to Transportation Maintenance 303-441-3200.

The City of Boulder is committed to multi-modal transportation, including year-round access to bus transit. The city’s new Shovel-a-Stop Program is an effort to increase the number of bus stops cleared after each snow event. The current budget supports contractors hired by the city to clear approximately 40 high-ridership stops after snowfalls resulting in at least 2-inches of accumulation. This program aims to bolster that number with community volunteer support. Clearing bus stops helps prevent slips and falls and increases safety and accessibility for bus riders of all ages and abilities.

This program is a great opportunity for individuals, families, neighborhood groups or community organizations. 

For more information and to apply to volunteer for this program, please click here. 

The time commitment will depend on the amount of snow that falls this winter, tools participants have available and size of the bus stop adopted. Typically, the annual snow season lasts from October to May. Program participants should plan to clear their adopted bus stop after each snow event with 2-inches of accumulation or more, within 24 hours after snow stops falling (view the NOAA tracker)