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The easiest thing to do, when faced with the opportunity to create a new college 10 years ago, would have been to do nothing—to leave our established programs on their own, rather than spending tremendous energy creating a culture that encouraged boundary-breaking teaching, collaboration, creativity and research.��

But this college has never done the easy thing when it had the chance to do the right thing. And designing a college that so closely mirrors the professional world—where problems are solved by critical thinkers who bring different perspectives to emerging challenges—has created significant advantages for our graduates. I’m excited when young alumni tell me how their education equipped them for early-career success.��

The next important step for our college is ensuring a CMDI education prepares our graduates not just for success, but for impact—especially in areas that matter most.��

One of those areas is sustainability. And when I say “sustainability,” I don’t only mean what’s good for the environment—it’s also about access to trustworthy journalism, robust communication technology, affordable housing and more.��

CU students have a history of leadership in environmental sustainability—including the nation’s first student-led recycling program (1976) and the first purchase of renewable energy credits (2000). Just this year, our campus leadership identified “achieving global leadership in sustainability impact” as one of our four institutional priorities. I’m confident CMDI will play an integral part in challenging our community, our nation and our world to pursue actions that create impact.��

In a world made increasingly immediate by touch screens, always-on services and instant delivery, it’s easy to not ask ourselves how the choices we make impact sustainability. At CMDI we ask the tough questions because we believe they’re the right ones. It’s how we got where we are—and it’s how we’ll continue to create impact long into the future. I can’t wait to see where we go from here!��

Lori Bergen, PhD��
Founding Dean��
College of Communication, Media, Design and Information