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From the President

John TayerIt 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 Conference: Staying the Course, Advancing Equity in Uncertain Times was held on November 18, 2025.

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:

Staying the Course, Advancing Equity in Uncertain Times

 

The Chamber DEI Signature Event was held on November 18, 2025, at the Omni Interlocken Hotel in Broomfield. The daylong event featured a keynote presentation by Alida Miranda-Wolff, an Amazon best-selling nonfiction author and Principal at sr4 Partners; a lunchtime keynote presentation by Marcus Canady of Canady Leadership Group; presentations, workshops, and networking opportunities.

To learn more, click the link below to review the presentations from our incredible presenters. The Chamber thanks the generous sponsors who made this event possible.

Workshop Presentations

Interested in sponsoring an event?

We have several opportunities to get your business out front.

DE&I News

Black History Month: Honoring William Whitsell, the First African American Coloradan Male

By matt.wiggins@boulderchamber.com | February 13, 2024

Black History Month: Honoring William Whitsell, the First African American Coloradan Male In honor of Black History Month, the Boulder Chamber is pleased to acknowledge William Whitsell, the first African American male born in Colorado, according to the Denver Public Library.  William’s parents were likely freed slaves who journeyed to Colorado in search of jobs…

Tayer: Black History Month: Are You Ready?

By courtney.warford | February 1, 2024

Originally posted by BizWest, February 1, 2024. With the dawn of Feb. 1, we welcome the annual celebration of Black History Month. I know I will enjoy honoring the occasion with a special event at the University of Colorado Center for African and African American Studies. “Get ready,” the recent RSVP confirmation notice states, “[T]o…