Metro DNA & The Nature Conservancy
Building a Regional Vision for People + Nature in Metro Denver
Dana Cuelho and Chris Hawkins
Executive Summary
Founded in 2015 and formally incorporated in 2018, the Metro Denver Nature Alliance is a coalition seeking to align nature-based efforts to ensure more equitable access to nature and to promote healthy people, communities, and natural places. Recently recognized as an Outdoor Regional Partnership by Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW), Metro DNA is the only organization of its kind serving the seven-county Metro Denver region. Nearly 6,000 square miles large, this region is home to approximately 2.8 million Coloradans and a rich diversity of more-than human life. As a coalition, Metro DNA has brought together dozens of non-profit, government, research, and private partners; co-hosted community events, educational workshops, and stakeholder convenings; established Equity Principles + Commitments that guide our work and engagement with partners; and made significant progress towards a co-created Regional Vision for People + Nature. The plan is that this vision will be adopted by governmental, private, public, and nonprofit sector actors and built out into a network of strategic actions, programs, and policies supporting a thriving region.
The MENV project team will research and conduct interviews with similar organizations and efforts across the country, work closely with the teams implementing the two priority Metro DNA projects (Regional Conservation Assessment and Regional Equity Assessment), and help Metro DNA develop a strategy for merging our equity and ecology work streams into a Regional Vision for People + Nature.