Boulder, Colorado, has a long and prestigious history of interdisciplinary research. The University of Colorado is home to the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science. As a world leader in Environmental Sciences CIRES is committed to identifying and pursuing innovative research in Earth System Science and fostering public awareness of these processes to ensure a sustainable future environment. CIRES is dedicated to fundamental and interdisciplinary research targeted at all aspects of Earth System Science and to communicating these findings to the global scientific community, to decision-makers, and to the public. CIRES is home to five centers, which include the Center for Limnology, Center for Science and Technology Policy Research, Center for the Study of Earth from Space, Climate Diagnostics Center, and National Snow and Ice Data Center.

University and NCAR scientists enjoy close collaboration on research topics in atmospheric chemistry, climate, cloud physics and storms, weather hazards to aviation, and interactions between the sun and earth. In all of these areas, scientists are looking closely at the role of humans in both creating climate change and responding to severe weather occurrences. NCAR laboratories include the Computational and Information Systems Laboratory, Earth Observing Laboratory, Earth and Sun Systems Laboratory, Research Applications Laboratory, and Societal-Environmental Research & Education Laboratory.