Courageous Colorado was founded with a big idea: to bring our state together in building a more bold and courageous politics.

Early conversations with leaders across various political backgrounds revealed a shared concern – the need for more courage in our political landscape. Leaders across political difference expressed the need for courage to disagree with friends, courage to reach across the aisle, and courage to engage in difficult conversations for the common good. There is desire for big change and a need for courage to get it done.

In response to this call, we launched a 20-site listening tour across Colorado partnering with CiviCO, Veterans for All Voters, The League of Women Voters, and many other groups. We visited communities from all corners of the state to hear directly from residents about the challenges they face in engaging with politics. This tour provided invaluable insights into the disconnect between elected officials and the people they serve, while also revealing the widespread desire for more authentic, courageous leadership. It also revealed our emerging priority list that helps guide our work. It was followed by a summit in Leadville of dozens of organizations and leaders working across sectors to build structural shifts in our politics.

Officially launched in the summer of 2025, Courageous Colorado has since focused on building partnerships with local communities to support courageous representation at the grassroots level. By empowering leaders to navigate the complex, polarized political environment with bravery and integrity, we are working to reshape the political culture in Colorado, one community at a time.

This fall and winter we will be very busy building out all that we’ve heard we need to create. This includes launching our Courageous Champions initiative to bring leaders together from across sectors, getting back out to communities with our 20+ community Activation Tour, bringing advocacy groups back together for shared learning and action, and generating new infrastructure to accelerate change. Sign up for our email here to stay connected on our exciting journey!

Learn more about our Vision and Values here