Butterfly Pavilion & Insect Center

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Impact Statement

A SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT FOR US ALL

A sustainable environment is one that maintains balance between all its varied and numerous components. The arguable question today is: Is the environment being diminished and degraded by the practices of its human occupants? Can we as proprietors or more appropriately as stewards, be more sustainable in our approach to the environment?
From the perspective of the Butterfly Pavilion, the answer is YES.

For the first time in decades, mass interest in our global environment has emerged, as terms like greenhouse gas, global warming and carbon footprint have become part of the “hot topic” mainstream.

As a driving force in the awareness efforts on deforestation or the global warming issue, as well as countless other environmental concerns, the Butterfly Pavilion provides the most valuable resources Colorado has to perpetuate environmental change: Education.

We understand that with the increased interest in the environment comes an increased level of both “good” and “bad” information about various environmental topics. As a leader in the field of environmental education, the Butterfly Pavilion’s approach has always been to first identify areas of interest or concern. Then, by utilizing our scientific capacity as well as our expertise in interpretation, we create tools or opportunities to engage our community in dialog that provides the easiest and most effective methods to address issues rationally, without fear or bias. For example, the very basis of our Butterfly Conservatory’s existence revolves around a simple and practical method of preventing deforestation by supporting butterfly farming as a sustainable agricultural practice globally.

We have had the unique pleasure of serving hundreds of thousands of visitors for over
12 years. In each of our exhibit areas, we have knowledgeable, dedicated zookeepers and passionate, well-informed volunteers to help address your concerns, field questions on environmental issues and to help alleviate incorrect information, so that each of us are able to make sound, informed choices. Ultimately, these choices will positively alter our children’s future forever.

Sustainability is not a dream. It’s a vision. Like all visions, it is a step-by-step process. It takes a combination of everyday people like you and I educating ourselves on how we can do a lot of little things to make a very big difference. At the same time, fostering relationships with businesses and legislature to further the goal of global sustainability.
Again, we believe the first step in conserving our precious environment is education. Join us, and be a part of the solution!

Needs Statement

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Background Statement

The Butterfly Pavilion and Insect Center is a natural science educational facility that accommodates an average of 46,000 school children annually. The Pavilion’s primary thrust is the study of invertebrates and the environment. Our curriculum is standards based and parallels that of the State’s Education requirements. Our approach towards education is unique and distinguishes the Pavilion in the market place. The educational methodology is predicated upon a full immersion experiential technique that permits the school children to visit the animals close-up and hands-on. Our visitors and members (3,300) take away an appreciation for the fragility of our environment.


On average the Pavilion is host to 250,000 visitors annually and is rated as ninth by the Denver Business Journal as one of the most visited attractions in the Denver Metro area.
The Rocky mountain butterfly Consortium d.b.a. The Butterfly Pavilion and Insect Center is the first not for profit free standing insect zoo in the united States.
·Wings of the Tropics conservatory houses over 1,500 butterflies, representing over 50 different tropical species
·In the Crawl-a-See-Em, visitors can get “up-close and personal” with arthropods native to Colorado, as well as exotic species from around the world.

·The Water’s Edge is home to marine invertebrates representative of species from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

·A chrysalis viewing area allows visitors to witness the magic of metamorphosis, as adult butterflies emerge from their gem-like chrysalides.

Executive Director Statement

The Pavilion is magical, mystical, and enthralling. It is a curious alchemy of beauty, science, and diversity. The natural sciences and environmental conservation education is the unpinnings of the Butterfly Pavilion. All age groups benefit from our experiential full immersion education program, especially school children who number 46,000 annually. This is accomplished through structured education, visits to our invertebrate zoo, and our lauded 8,000 sq. foot tropical rain forest where over 1,500 butterflies freely interact with students. Our curriculum is based on the Colorado Department of Education standards. We collaborate with school districts, pre-schools, universities, and colleges. Our educational credential is substantiated through certification by the Colorado School of Mines that allows us to provide continuing education for teachers. Since our inception in 1995, we have provide standards based education to over 330,000 school children and have hosted 3,000,000 visitors. The Denver Newspaper Agency rated the Pavilion 4th and the Denver Business Journal rated the Pavilion 9th in hosting the largest number of visitors in the Denver Metro Area. The diversity of our environment is contingent upon the health of all invertebrate species. Our fossil fuel crisis will pale in comparison to the loss of pollinators. The humble honey bee pollinates 30% of the food crops in the United States. The number of honey bees is dimensioning at an extraordinary pace. Not only are humans totally reliant on the health and well being of invertebrates, but great mammals such as the 300,000 lb. blue whale that can exceed 100 feet in length is reliant upon a crustation ¾ of and inch in length.

Board Chair/President Statement

The Board of Directors, through governance and oversight, sets the course for the Butterfly Pavilion and the staff competently acts as the rudder that maintains this course. The Board has an absolute commitment and belief of the vision and mission of the Butterfly Pavilion. The Butterfly Pavilion was the first stand-alone butterfly house/insect zoo in the nation, and acts as a reference project for other butterfly houses. Although there is great beauty to behold in viewing exotic butterflies, the Board fully apprehends the fact that without invertebrates, the human species would suffer and fall into non-existence, hence the mission of the Butterfly Pavilion satisfies the aesthetic and curious musings, but most importantly and pragmatically, underscores the need to maintain environmental diversity through understanding and preservation of the invertebrate world.
There is a deep collaboration between the Board and staff as evidence by mutual hands- on approach to the establishment of our strategic plan. The strategic plan addresses goals having a three year horizon or less. The goals identified seek to improve the position of the pavilion for both our internal and external customer, to augment our educational capacity and expertise, to deepen collaborations, and to be an even more significant participant in the provision of natural science education. Our new capital project is improving our entry way to better welcome vistors (children & adults) to explore the wonders of the invert world. The Board continually renews and invigorates itself through the selection and recruitment of talented community members that contribute to staying in the course. The recruitment of individuals that can contribute professional, materially, and through the generous gift of time is an internal challenge for the Board. We are meeting this challenge by developing greater rigor for the recruitment for Board candidates. Through the amendment of our By-laws and the development of strictures that will be incorporated into a Board protocol. The seated Board has a buy in to this process and are committed to its success. The Board, through its CEO, maintains a dedicated committed a competent staff. To a person, the staff is possessed of an absolute passion towards mission accomplishment.

We brought two of our grandsons to the Butterfly Pavilion recently, and we had such a great time. The boys loved the rainforest, the butterflies flying everywhere, the grumpy-looking turtle, the amazing flowers. They also had a good time checking out the arthropod section and patting the sea creatures. Our youngest grandson will never forget holding Rosie, the tarantula. Thanks for making this experience possible.

Jo Sorensen, Fort Collins