Program Overview

The Colorado Tourism Office and DarkSky Colorado seek to partner with tourism destinations across the state that are interested in advancing strategies that help achieve International Dark Sky Place (IDSP) certification and enhance Colorado’s visitor experience.

The program provides up to 15 hours of on-demand technical assistance on a first come first served rolling basis from September 2025 to June 2026. Additionally, a series of free webinars are available online and scheduled quarterly Successful participation will increase Colorado’s competitive edge as a destination and provide a wealth of benefits for Colorado communities.

Program objectives include:

Increased collaboration between state and local tourism leaders.
Reduced energy consumption and economic impact from cost savings and increased property value.
Increased local and regional quality of life through enhanced health and well-being, cultural heritage, and sense of place.
Increased awareness of the value of visible night skies and their benefit to local wildlife and ecology.
Increased number of IDSP certifications in Colorado.

Destinations are eligible for up to 15 hours of on-demand technical assistance from DarkSky Colorado. Example technical assistance support includes:

Structure a successful application for IDSP Certification.
Foster alignment between local stakeholders and buy-in for IDSP certification.
Understand the requirements and successful language related to local ordinances and land use codes to reduce light pollution and energy consumption.
Host stargazing or other community dark sky awareness events.
Increase outreach and education regarding the benefits of dark sky certification that improve quality of life.
Develop, enhance, and promote visitor experiences related to stargazing.
Support local partner organizations that provide long-term sustainability of dark sky programming.

In addition to on-demand technical assistance hours, a series of free webinars will be hosted from August 2025 to May 2026 via Zoom. To register for each of the webinars, please click on the links below.

September 10, 2025: Certification Resources and Toolkits
November 5, 2025: Building a Stakeholder Steering Committee
January 7, 2026: How to Use a Light Meter for Recording Color Temperature and Brightness
March 4, 2026: Best Practices for Drafting a Lighting Management Plan

The following webinar recordings are available for all partners by clicking on the links below:

Eligibility

Up to 15 hours of on-demand technical assistance is available to Colorado registered non-profit organizations, federally recognized tribes, or local city, county, state, or federal governmental organizations on a first come first serve rolling basis.

Program eligibility is limited to locations that have submitted a request to join the DarkSky Internationals designation pipeline. If you have not already done so, you can open a file on the Dark Sky website. Note that there is a $250 application fee to open a file.