From the President
It starts with values, punctuated by the Boulder Chamber’s economic vitality mission.
The Boulder community has a legacy challenge, rooted in history and present-day circumstances - a low representation of BIPOC residents. This same deficiency is reflected in the diversity of our business owners and their workforce. As we all recognize the richness of an environment that enjoys the benefits of cultural and economic diversity, this is an issue that touches our soul. In a day and age when businesses have come to recognize the critical importance of diverse perspectives to building a sustainable business, the difficulty recruiting diverse workforce talent also is an economic concern.
It is out of respect for both these core values and economic interests that the Boulder Chamber began its journey in the diversity, equity and inclusion space. It began with outreach to better understand the barriers to achieving our goals of a more diverse business community, including constraints that our own organization perpetrated. We then began to take action to remove the barriers. It began with internal steps forward that have evolved into the highest level strategic goals for our organization and encompass numerous DE&I programs, as outlined below.
We invite you to learn more about our actions and, always, to test us against our core “Inclusion” value: “Supporting opportunities that foster belonging and connection.” Your thoughts on how we can help build a more diverse, equitable and inclusive community are always welcome.
Programs
Goals
New CRM
Collects Chamber Members basic demographic data to track participation and improve programming.
New Signature Event
Leading Change: Harnessing the Power of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Business was held on November 20, 2024
Internal DEI Training
The staff undergoes regular professional development, reinforcing DE&I values held by the Chamber.
Expand Business Partnerships
Hold quarterly meetings to expand engagement and outreach within the business community.
Solidfy Partner Relations
Build connections with other chambers and affinity organizations; the NAACP Boulder County, the Latino Chamber of Commerce, and the Black Colorado Chamber of Commerce.
Safe, Respectful Engagement
Include community agreements across public engagements, including, signature events.
Resources
Signature Event
Leading Change:
Harnessing the Power of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Business
The Chamber DEI Signature Event was held on November 20, 2024, in Boulder at the University of Atmospheric Research. The daylong event featured a keynote presentation by Dr. Reiland Rabaka, Professor of African, African American, and Caribbean Studies in the Department of Ethnic Studies and the Founder and Director of the Center for African & African American Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder.
The daylong conference featured presentations, workshops, and networking opportunities. To learn more, click on the link below to review presentations provided by our incredible presenters. The Chamber thanks the generous sponsors who made this inaugural event possible.
Workshop Presentations
DE&I News
Boulder Together Second Quarter Recap
Our community faces a turning point, and so does the Boulder Together program. A healthy community evolves over time, as do the challenges it faces. COVID and many other local and global factors wrought changes in our society, economy, and business operations that weren’t on anyone’s radar just a few years ago. While we still…
Boulder Together First Quarter Recap
As spring ends and summer is in full swing in Boulder, the Boulder Chamber team is diligently working on projects to advance Boulder Together’s mobility, housing, and workforce development goals. With impressive progress, the team has secured policy wins in housing, worked to pilot short-term micro-mobility solutions, and plans to expand our workforce in two…