Prompts are starting points - little sparks to help you notice something, remember a feeling, or reimagine what could be. They’re not rules or checklists, just invitations to help you decide where to point your camera or what to say into your phone. Use them for photos, audio clips, or both. Let them lead you somewhere unexpected!

🌿 Climate Action
What does a climate-resilient Boulder feel like?

Prompts:

• Take a photo of a place preparing for, or impacted by, heat or drought. What’s the first thing you notice?

• Record the sound of resilience: shading, watering, cooling, recovering.

• Photograph a quiet act of care for the environment. What future is it pointing toward?

• Show something already working: native plants, rainwater systems, shared bikes. Say why it matters.

• Play: Take a picture of a tree in your neighborhood. Imagine it writing a letter to the city - what would it ask for to survive the next 20 summers?

• Possible Sequence:

  1. Start by reflecting on a space shaped by climate -what it’s doing well, and what it’s missing?

  2. Photograph that space in a way that shows its readiness (or lack thereof) for a hotter, drier Boulder.

  3. Record a sound from that place that speaks to resilience or signals the need for more care.
     

🌽 Food Systems
What does food look like to you - your community, kitchen, & street?

Prompts:

• Take a photo of a shared meal or pantry. What - and who - is present, and what’s not?

• Record the layered sounds of food being prepared in your neighborhood.

• Photograph where food begins: a garden bed, a delivery truck, a recipe. Describe the labor behind it.

• Take a still of a discarded plate or overstocked shelf. What does it say about hunger and plenty?

• Play: Photograph a fruit, vegetable, or other local food item. If it could speak, what story would it tell about how it got here?

• Possible Sequence:

  1. Take a moment to reflect on how a meal or ingredient connects to your community - consider memory, ritual, or care.

  2. Photograph something grown, cooked, or shared today that carries that connection.

  3. Record a sound or a short note about what ties this food to a neighbor, a story, or a local rhythm.

     
     

🏡 Housing Choice and Opportunity
How do we make Boulder a place where everyone can live, stay, and return?

Prompts:

• Photograph a porch, stoop, or entryway. What kind of welcome lives there?

• Record the sound of daily life on your block - footsteps, greetings, movement.

• Take a picture of a space that holds more than one kind of home. What’s its story?

• Share a photo of a small comfort: laundry drying, lights on at dusk, someone returning home.

• Play: Photograph a “for rent” sign. If it could speak honestly, what would it say about the home, hope, or who it’s really for?

• Possible Sequence:

  1. Reflect on a place where housing feels out of reach and imagine what would make it more welcoming, more possible.

  2. Photograph the space with that future in mind: what could shift, soften, or open?

  3. Record the sound of that place at a quiet time, and let it speak to what’s missing or what might be invited in.
     
     

🦑🏾🧒🏼 Multicultural, Multigenerational Community
What would it mean to design for all Boulderites?

Prompts:

• Photograph a moment where different generations cross paths. What’s exchanged?

• Record a multilingual space - even if just a sign, a song, or a greeting.

• Take a photo of a tradition being passed along. What do you hope continues?

• Capture a space where you feel the presence of both ancestors and future generations. Say why.

• Play: Snap a photo of a shared space like a park, playground, plaza, or even porch. What would make this space sing, for someone who’s 9 or 90?

• Possible Sequence:

  1. Reflect on a moment where cultures or generations come together and what works, and why does that matter?

  2. Photograph that overlap in action: a shared space, gesture, or tradition that bridges difference.

  3. Record what gives that moment its warmth or meaning - and what it shows about building a more connected Boulder.
     
     

🛡️ Safety
What does safety sound like when it’s about more than enforcement?

Prompts:

• Photograph a place that makes you feel safe. Say what makes it so.

• Record a sound that says: “You’re okay here.”

• Take a picture of design that invites trust - lighting, visibility, accessibility.

• Show a moment of mutual care: a hand held, a seat offered, a name remembered.

• Play: Capture an empty bench. What would it confess about absence, allure, or being overlooked?

• Possible Sequence:

  1. Reflect on a public or outdoor space in Boulder where you feel safe and secure - what makes that possible, and who else might feel the same?

  2. Photograph the space in a way that captures its sense of safety, comfort, or quiet care.

  3. Record the sounds that contribute to that feeling - tell us what they reveal about how safety is built into public life?

  
  

🚲 Travel Options
How do we build Boulder so everyone can move with freedom and dignity?

Prompts:

• Photograph a moment of shared movement—strollers, bikes, chairs, feet.

• Record the sound of a commute: its rhythm, its speed, its wait.

• Take a picture of a place designed for motion. What works, and what doesn’t?

• Share a photo of someone moving freely. Say what makes that possible.

• Play: Photograph traffic congestion (or rush-hour traffic). What quiet wisdom does this scene offer to the city planners watching from above?

• Possible Sequence:

  1. Reflect on how your daily movement through Boulder shapes your time, mood, or sense of belonging. What works, and what could work better?

  2. Photograph a moment from that journey that reveals ease, frustration, or possibility.

  3. Record the sounds that define your commute. What do they say about how the city moves, and who it moves for?
     

🚨🚨Click here to download a PDF with these prompts — plus even more to explore🚨🚨