Our community is the heart of what we do. We are representative of the greater field of global development, including nonprofit organizations both large and small, private enterprises, university departments, consultants, service providers, and individuals engaged with global development issues. We number close to 200 and we are engaged in work in over 100 countries, encompassing all sectors and approaches to development work.
Our community is comprised of our Tenants and our Members. Learn more about how they engage with us and how you can get involved.
Explore Our Community
Accion
Accion is a global nonprofit committed to creating a financial inclusive world, with a pioneering legacy in microfinance and fintech impact investing. Our mission is to give people the financial tools they need to improve their lives and build resilience when its more important than ever.
We take an integrated approach to financial inclusion, partnering with local institutions to transform financial markets. We do this through influencing, investing, and advising.
ADD International
The movement for disability equality is powered by the drive, vision and courage of disability activists; They have the passion to fight for change.
It’s their lives and their communities at stake. What they often need are the tools and resources to run effective organisations. That’s where ADD International comes in.
ADD International supports the global disability rights movement by supporting activists, building movements and influencing for change. They improve the way we work with organisations of people with disabilities by becoming a participatory-grant maker, to give more power and resources to disabled people working for change.
Adeline Paige
A recent Economics and Government graduate of Colby College with interest in international development and international trade, Adeline Paige has work and research experience in data analytics and economic development. Paige seeks to leverage her curiosity and collaboration skills to become an engaged member of the Posner community.
Africa Agenda
Africa Agenda is driven by the need to change the one-sided narrative of African News. We use the Africa Agenda website, journalistic tools, and events, including the Africa News Matters website, as platforms for critical engagement and news analysis about the African continent.
Africa Development Promise
Africa Development Promise builds on and strengthens the collective action of rural entrepreneurial women through agriculture in East Africa. We champion the cooperative approach because of its principles of democracy, inclusion, and solidarity – cooperatives empower members by promoting self-help and self-responsibility. When women can contribute their creativity, innovation, and hard work, prosperity and independence follow, lifting entire communities out of poverty.
Africa Network for Animal Welfare
Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW) is a Pan-African Organization based in Kenya that promotes humane treatment of all animals and the well being of communities living with them. ANAW-USA partners with ANAW, and others, promoting an all Africa agenda, sustained by communities for conservation, compassion, protection and responsible care of all animals.
Africa School Assistance Project
The Africa School Assistance Project (ASAP) believes that educating children, particularly girls, is fundamental to a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable future for Africa. ASAP is increasing access to education for children in poor, remote areas of Tanzania and is developing a Learning Improvement Initiative to enhance teaching quality and classroom learning. ASAP works in accordance with the UN Millennium Development Goals and our projects meet rigorous standards for sustainability cultural appropriateness. Additionally, ASAP leads groups of American volunteers to work on our school projects to create a cross-cultural understanding between Americans and Africans.
AidKonekt
AidKonekt is an online platform that makes it easy to build and monitor your USAID pipeline. AidKonekt provides a ticker of USAID forecast changes, suggests primes/partners for each opportunity, makes DEC research easy, includes a local compensation plan archive, and much more!
Alejandra Soto
Alejandra Soto is a bilingual, highly motivated international professional and project coordinator with +8 years of experience from NGOs, USAID, and the private sector. Her last years of experience include the support in the design, implementation, oversight, monitoring, and evaluation of crime and violence prevention projects focused on youth in Mexico, grants management, and the development of public-private partnerships. In addition, her knowledge and experience include international cooperation, public policy, higher education, democracy, good governance, rule of law, public administration, e-government, human rights, and women’s empowerment. Expert in managing and securing relationships with private sector companies and liaising and collaborating with multiple stakeholders in government, civil society, and academia, she is seeking a position in an international development organization that addresses current global challenges such as environmental, economic, social, sustainable peace, rule of law, gender equality, and the strengthening of governance to create better opportunities for marginalized populations, but especially for women and girls.
Alex Grossman
Alex is the Senior Communications Officer at Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights. Alex has experience managing communications in the social justice and philanthropic spaces. She has a background in indigenous rights, women’s rights, and environmental policy. Alex previously developed communications content and strategy for Global Greengrants Fund, The Center of Effective Global Action at U.C. Berkeley, and The Climate Reality Project. Alex has a M.A. in Latin American Studies from Boston University and a B.A. in International Relations and Anthropology from the University of Colorado at Boulder.
Alexander & Associates LLC
Alexander & Associates supports executives and senior teams in businesses, non-profit organizations, education, and government to enhance their influence and achieve success in leadership. They also work with emerging leaders. Their clients say they help them see new and broader perspectives that allow them to address real and underlying issues that block their success. Alexander & Associates’ focus areas include corporate responsibility and sustainability leadership, change leadership, adaptive leadership, and executive coaching. Partnering with their clients, they help them to thrive in a time of changing economic, social, and environmental realities. They work with leaders, teams, and entire organizations to provide confidential and effective strategies that address challenges without obvious solutions. As seasoned leaders themselves, Joan and Bart Alexander have a special commitment to support the development of future generations of change leaders.
Alison Suthers
Alison Suthers is a practicing attorney with experience in criminal law and procedure and an interest in immigration issues. Alison is also a Masters in Development Practice (MDP) 2024 candidate at Regis University. She is also a board member of FLuME Foundation (focused on education in India) and the Congo Relief Mission board member (focused on children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo).
American Pathways University: Technology, Business, Political Science School at UC Denver, School of Mines
The mission of American Pathways University is to provide an affordable, accessible, and authorized program of higher education, including general education in arts and sciences and specialized fields of study in vocational and academic majors that facilitate immediate and long-term changes in thinking, doing, and being as cornerstones for personal freedom, successful lives, vocational careers, financial self-reliance, and community leadership. These outcomes are served by a general education informed worldview that introduces students to the world of ideas and career oriented majors that prepare graduates for the world of work.
Amir Sadafi
Amir Sadafi’s most recent professional experience is in the field of international higher education, where his efforts were focused on supporting promising young scholars around the developing world. Delivering programming in over 65 countries, he has helped thousands of students by connecting them to funding opportunities to enable them to access educational opportunities in the US. Amir has extensive experience in international programing, working in the field of peacebuilding and grassroots social, environmental, and political advocacy in Senegal, Togo, Thailand, Syria, Palestine and the UK. Amir holds an MSc in Middle East Politics with a focus on gender and conflict from SOAS, University of London.
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international NGO based in London focused on human rights globally. In-depth research is conducted on human rights abuses to investigate and expose the facts to lobby governments, companies and other groups to follow and respect international law. The Evidence Lab is a group within Amnesty International that uses innovative techniques to corroborate witness testimonies using open source information including video verification, satellite imagery and other remote sensing analysis, geospatial analysis, and weapons identification.
Amoudath Mazu
Amoudath Mazu is passionate about gender equality as well as managing and monitoring projects especially for women, girls, youth and the most vulnerable. She has a background in Development Economics, professional skills development, project development, advocacy and creating sustainable employment for rural women and girls. She is also a World Bank Group Africa alumnus where she conducted research to address gender issues and proposed solutions to reduce the gender gap (particularly for the following three projects: SWEDD-Sahel Women’s Empowerment and Demographic Dividend Project; Nafa-Social Protection; Environment and Mining).
Andrea Altman
a Certified Project Manager with 10+ years of experience building and implementing long-term plans, strategies, and processes across organizations to magnify social impact, Andrea Altman cares about people and about putting good into the world. Altman thrives on supporting cross-functional teams that are working towards a common goal. When people feel valued they can do their best work, and that is when BIG change is truly possible.
Andrea Nelson Trice
Andrea earned her doctorate in Higher and Adult Education from The University of Michigan and worked for several years as a faculty member at Purdue University. Over the past two decades she has gained experience as an internal and external evaluator, nonprofit board member, consultant, and author. Her consulting and evaluation work with nonprofits and social enterprises has included a variety of clients: Northwestern University, Hope International, Resource Global, Compassion International, National Academy of Sciences, and National Science Foundation.
Andrea enjoys helping organizations gather actionable data and wrestle with their implications, as well as the challenge of measuring such abstract outcomes as hope, dignity, and spiritual growth. Andrea’s forthcoming book, Harnessing Power, examines the human complexities of establishing social enterprises in emerging markets. It is scheduled for release in Winter 2021. She is a Senior Fellow with the Sagamore Institute and an Affiliate Faculty Member of Regis University.
Angel Covers
Angel Covers is a global development organization strengthening healthcare and education in rural communities where children are vulnerable to malnutrition, trafficking, and disease to ensure that every child’s life is full of health and opportunity.
Angela Varnum
Angela Varnum is a large animal veterinarian, a licensed teacher, and develops programs in animal health and welfare for nonprofits, in higher education, and with diverse audiences. Varnum holds advanced degrees in global health and international development, is competent in the Spanish language, and has a specific interest in animal welfare. Varnum enjoys helping children to become stewards of animals and assisting adults to take ownership of animal care, and believes we are connected by animals’ worldwide importance to human livelihoods, lifestyles, and health.
Anna Stolk
Anna Stolk recently relocated to Denver and works remotely as a Program Manager at Chemonics International. Stolk would like to grow her network in the international development community in Denver.
Chemonics International Mission Statement: “Our mission is to promote meaningful change around the world to help people live healthier, more productive, and more independent lives.”
Anne Zeifman
Anne Zeifman is a seasoned veterinarian from New York, who is in the process of shifting her career focus from small animal practice to the advancement of the One Health integrated approach to global healthcare. She has a deep fund of medical knowledge and experience, excellent verbal and written communication skills, and is bilingual. She envisions working for an NGO, for a governmental agency or as an educator in this important field. She will bring her passion, many years of experience, and expertise in leadership and team building to help tackle the interrelated threats to human, animal, and environmental health.
Ashley Kochans
Ashley is a digital marketer that loves explaining complicated things in simple ways. As the founder of Kochans Consulting, she brings her experience in website optimization and marketing automation to mission-driven organizations. When she’s not maximizing organic traffic, she’s cooking organic meals, or practicing yoga.
Audrey Odogu
Akpevweoghene Audrey Odogu has over 10 years of working as a social development professional and with non-profits across Nigeria and Africa. Her work in the social development sector focuses on education, volunteer management, youth unemployment (TIVET) skilling and reskilling for employment, grantmaking, managing and building non-profit capacity.
Austin Snowbarger
Austin is the Manager of Learning and Partnerships at the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP). CDP is the only full-time resource dedicated to helping donors maximize their impact by making more intentional disaster-related giving decisions. In his role, Austin supports education and consulting activities with research, writing, events and NGO partner and consulting relationships. Austin’s background and interests are in disaster recovery, risk reduction, program management and organizational learning.
AYA Foundation
The AYA Foundation is Colorado’s Black-led community Foundation. It is a collaborative organization that is capable of securing a variety of resources; growing and redistributing those resources in a way that supports and benefits the Black ecosystem based on researched and tested methods to build economic empowerment.
Beyond our Borders
Philanthropy that empowers women and girls internationally. Beyond Our Borders is a group-advised fund held at The Women’s Foundation of Colorado. WFCO’s mission is to advance and accelerate economic opportunities for Colorado women and their families.
Beyond Our Borders recognizes the interconnectedness women in Colorado have to women around the world, and builds on this mission to advance and accelerate opportunities for women and girls around the world.
BLACXERA
B L A C X E R A (black-era) is a community and collegiate organization that is dedicated to the experiences and existences of Blacx (Black, Afro-Latinx, African, Caribbean, and Mixed) people who share African & Indigenous Ancestry. B L A C X E R A seeks to provide a place, a space, and a vibe to support the inner and external needs of our community and the community for collective and individual liberation.
Bridges to Prosperity
Bridges to Prosperity envisions a world where poverty caused by rural isolation no longer exists. Rural isolation is a root cause of poverty, and Bridges to Prosperity believes that connection is the foundation of opportunity. We work with local communities, partners and foundations, to build trail bridges that connect residents to education, health care, and economic opportunity. With a sophisticated data collection and evaluation program, we’re able to prove that the value and impact of our work are sustained long after the opening celebration.
Brooke Sparling
Congo Activists is a group of grassroots activists in the USA raising awareness about the conflict in D.R. Congo and working for justice and peace in DRC. The Hike for Congo is our annual fundraiser.
Bryan Rojas-Araúz/In Lak’ech Counseling, Education, & Consulting
Bryan Rojas-Araúz is a bilingual bicultural Licensed Psychologist and Afro-Latino immigrant of Costa Rican and Panamanian descent, and is is a scholar-activist, healer, and the co-founder of In Lak’ech Counseling, Education, & Consulting. Rojas-Araúz earned his doctorate in Counseling Psychology with a Specialization in Spanish Language Psychological Service. He is a faculty member in the International Disaster Psychology program at DU, and provides immigration evaluations, speaking engagements, wellness retreats, and consulting. His research includes Latinx Psychological Wellbeing, Immigrant Experiences, Access to Mental Health and Education, Critical Consciousness, and Cultural Sensitivity, Advocacy, & Social Justice.
CAI Global
CAI is a diverse, mission-driven non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of health care and social services delivered to vulnerable populations world-wide. Since 1979, we’ve tackled the toughest health and social issues that confront populations and communities most effected by health disparities. Working as trusted partners, our customized services build the capacity of health and human service organizations, improving lives in the communities we serve and fostering a more aware, healthy, compassionate & equitable world.
Casey Thomas
Casey is a strategic leader with over a decade of experience driving change within nonprofits and youth-serving programming. Casey is committed to continual improvement, organizational learning, and sustainable change management. She is an innovative and creative problem-solver, consistently pushing for evolution within organizations to overcome challenges and increase efficiency, effectiveness, and impact.
CATCH Global Foundation
CATCH Global Foundation is a Whole Child organization that launches kids around the world toward healthier lifestyles by linking schools and communities to the resources needed to create and sustain physical and mental health for future generations.
Causal Design
Causal Design is a social enterprise providing economic analysis, policy research, and M&E systems support. Our firm – with staff in Denver, Cambodia, Kenya, and Malawi – partners with international development clients to provide rigorous independent program evaluation, expand cultures of evidence within organizations, and join them in efforts to relieve human suffering and end poverty.
Children’s Future International
We believe that every child has the right to a life of dignity and opportunity. Children’s Future operates a Learning Center in rural Cambodia offering unique and comprehensive Education, Well-Being, and Community Outreach programs. We serve the poorest and most vulnerable children who face the risks and hardships of life in an underdeveloped and traumatized country. Our goal is to facilitate the fulfillment of their basic human rights and support them in becoming self-reliant, compassionate individuals who develop into professionals, role models and future community leaders.
Chinook Fund
Chinook Fund supports community organizations working on issues of racial, social and economic justice in the state of Colorado. Our funding supports the most strategic work unfolding at the local level to address globalization, poverty, war, racism and environmental destruction. A community foundation, Chinook Fund pools the resources of individuals and businesses to support the best of peer-reviewed grassroots organizations working for social change and to improve the quality of life for all Coloradans.
Chris Allan
Chris Allan is a consultant on international environmental and development programming, and has a Masters Degree in Social Change and Development from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, DC, and a Bachelors Degree in Biology and African Studies from Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
He has thirty years experience in community development and environmental protection and has worked with the Environmental Health Fund as International Programs Advisor, Global Greengrants Fund as both Program Director and Development Director, Lutheran Refugee Services as Employment Administrator, Catholic Relief Services in Africa and the US, and the US Peace Corps in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Allan has designed development and environmental programs, managed budgets from $200,000 to $20 million, raised funds from governments, foundations, and major donors, designed, managed and led evaluations of programs, designed and led training and organizational development workshops, built and managed global networks, and traveled and worked extensively on every continent except Antarctica.
Christina Jones
Christina Jones is an educational and curriculum consultant specializing in re-imagining and designing humanizing and joyful learning experiences for youth and adults, institutions, businesses, and organizations. Through her creative and innovative approach to curriculum design, she strives to engage both the brain and heart!
Claire Read
Dr. Claire Read is the founder and CEO of ProSocial Dynamics, LLC, a woman-owned small business providing consulting and coaching services in the areas of team systems, executive, and leader/leadership coaching. Claire works with the Prosocial Process for Team Self-Governance, a method for developing swift trust, psychological safety, and a deep commitment to the team’s shared purpose. Prosocial provides a framework for teams to self-charter and have agency over their own internal affairs.
Dr. Read’s mission is to create organizations and teams that foster a deeper human pattern of consciousness, developing a deep understanding that we live in a much wider ecological system than just ourselves, for which we bear responsibility. As a proponent of the Prosocial ARC (Awareness, Relationship, Culture) Path, she is committed to introducing Prosocial principles, a set of social principles that tend to decrease self-interested behavior and foster flexible behaviors. These behaviors enhance the good of the group and the system as a whole to serve as a vehicle for embracing human and planetary needs as our global organizing principles. The Prosocial Path is evolutionary in that it develops swift change in the way teams and groups relate to their environments and to the larger systems, moving from “what is good for me” to “what is good for the group as a whole,” a useful concept for the survival of the planet.
CLLARO: Colorado Latino Leadership Advocacy Research Organization
CLLARO’s mission is to empower Latinos through leadership development, advocacy, and policy research to strengthen Colorado. CLLARO’s vision for the future is a State of Colorado where Latinos achieve their fullest potential.More than one out of five Coloradans are Latino. Some Latino families have centuries-old roots in the southwestern United States. Spanish colonists grazed sheep in southern Colorado in the 1600s, long before the U.S. took the southwest from México by force in 1848. Other Latinos in Colorado are—like most Americans—either immigrants or descendants of immigrants. Today, Latinos play a vital and constructive role in the Colorado economy. Nevertheless, Latinos’ median annual household income is $23,550 below that of non-Hispanic whites. Twenty-eight percent of Latino children live in poverty. While Colorado’s high school four-year graduation rate in Colorado has increased to 79%, Latinos still lag behind at 71%. The percentage of Latinos lacking health insurance is over two-and-a-half times that of whites. The average size of Latino households is shrinking, causing greater time and economic pressures on Latinos trying to care for disabled and elderly family members. Colorado’s Latino elderly population is growing nearly twice as fast as other Coloradans over 65, and will more than triple between 2010 and 2030.
CNRG Accounting Advisory, LLC
CNRG Accounting Advisory, LLC. thrives on helping more nonprofits understand their financials and speak about money with confidence through education, consulting and outsourced accounting.
Coalition for Community Writing
The Coalition for Community Writing (CCW) is an organization of educators, scholars, writers, students, artists, and community change makers who believe in the transformative potential of coalition building through writing toward social change. CCW provides resources, consultation, and partnership to our members, as well as in-person and virtual gatherings, such as the biennial Conference on Community Writing. CCW supports community writing through research and publication in our affiliated journals, Community Literacy Journal and Reflections: Community-Engaged Writing and Rhetoric, and also encourages community-engaged teaching through consultation and mentorship, creative works and public arts, direct programming, and relationship building across communities. CCW is reimagining how writing is used as a tool for public awareness and expression, for dialogue across differences, and for community and coalition building.
Colorado Ceasefire
Colorado Ceasefire believes gun violence destroys the lives of too many Coloradans. Every day, it raises awareness about the dangers of gun violence within homes and communities, and works with Colorado lawmakers to implement and maintain common-sense gun safety reforms that keep families and children free from harm.
Because every Coloradan has the right to be safe where they work, live, learn, and play.
Colorado State University – Africa Center
The Africa Center at Colorado State University’s School of Global Environmental Sustainability advances innovative and interdisciplinary/transdisciplinary research that cross-cuts conventional disciplines in an attempt to tackle environmental and sustainability issues. Specifically, The Africa Center members address complex issues of biodiversity, ecosystems, wildlife, livestock, and human health well-being, and the interactions that occur between these issues across spatio-temporal scales. The Africa Center members are actively involved in research, education, and collaborative engagement between institutions in Africa and the United States to promote sustainable ecosystems and societies.
Colorado State University Public Policy and Administration
International organizations, government agencies, and nonprofits are actively seeking skilled professionals to lead teams and develop policies that improve people’s lives. Colorado State University’s Master of Public Policy and Administration (MPPA) prepares students for public sector or nonprofit leadership through an interdisciplinary curriculum that integrates research-based academic theory with real-world experience.
Colorado State University System – SPUR Campus
The Colorado State University System exists to support, enhance, and protect the unique missions of its constituent institutions and to encourage collaboration that benefits students and Colorado.
Colorado Youth Congress
The Colorado Youth Congress (CYC) works with young people across the state to transform people, communities, and broader systems. CYC grounds its work in the idea that by focusing on individual healing and community health, it is possible to create a society where justice, well-being, and sustainability are practiced.
Corus International
Corus International is an ensemble of world-class non-profits and for-profits working in concert to end extreme poverty once and for all. The Corus family of organizations includes global public health agency IMA World Health, international development organization Lutheran World Relief, U.K.-based technology for development company CGA Technologies, impact investing fund Ground Up Investing, and direct trade company Farmers Market Brands.
Counterpart International
For over 50 years, Counterpart International has forged partnerships with communities and local organizations to build inclusive, sustainable communities in which people thrive. Their current project portfolio is focused on education, food security and agricultural development, effective governance, institutional strengthening, and economic development.
DAI
DAI works on the frontlines of global development. Transforming ideas into action—action into impact. They are committed to shaping a more livable world. DAI’s mission is to make a lasting difference in the world by helping people improve their lives. They envision a world in which communities and societies become more prosperous, fairer and better governed, safer, healthier, and environmentally more sustainable. Since 1970, DAI has worked in more than 150 countries—delivering results across the spectrum of international development contexts, from stable societies and high-growth economies to challenging environments racked by political or military conflict.
Daring Girls Formerly “AfricAid”
Daring Girls partners locally to ensure that girls have the knowledge, tools, mentorship, and support to confidently design their own futures. Daring Girls mentors secondary school girls in Tanzania to complete their education, develop into confident leaders and transform their own lives and their communities. Through our two core mentoring programs we support girls who dare to do something different, who choose to prioritize their education and take control of their futures. Every week, these Scholars show up to learn together in a supportive environment from a successful, university educated woman mentor who exemplifies what they can become. The outcome is resilient, proactive, and socially responsible girls who are prepared to set and reach their goals, secure better jobs, raise healthier families and increase the standing of women in society.
David Walker
David Walker has more than 20 years of experience leading organizations in the public health and conservation sectors. He is currently Executive VP at the Population Media Center where he oversees all activity with a particular focus on strategic planning, including the successful implementation of programs and new program development. The Population Media Center’s goals are to equip people to live healthier and more prosperous lives and to stabilize the global population at a level at which people can live sustainably with the world’s renewable resources. David’s aim is to use entertainment education and mass media to promote social and cultural change by addressing the interconnected issues of the full rights of women and girls, the population, and the environment.
DaVita Bridge of Life
The mission of Bridge of Life is to strengthen healthcare globally through sustainable programs that prevent and treat chronic disease.
Deena Duwaik
Deena Duwaik is currently pursuing her MPA with hopes of becoming a private sector executive. She identifies as a Middle Eastern woman and has lived/ worked in countries around the world. She has a passion for women and refugees, in particular the policies that directly impact them, and currently works at an anti-hunger nonprofit which works to identify and resolve the root causes of food insecurity.
DEI Leadership Institute
The DEI Leadership Institute was established to develop and support activist leaders who have the skills, knowledge, and heart to be effective agents of change for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
The DEI Master Practitioner Certification Program is designed to enable and empower leaders to make significant change to the diversity, equity, and inclusion of the organizations that they lead. The program is an online, adviser supported, six-week, self-paced curriculum which includes: History & Background, Terminology, Best Practices, Measurement Tools, Approaches, and Project Work.
DenCoKID
DenCoKID builds their community’s awareness of dyslexia, provides a web of support for the families and educators of students with dyslexia, and advocates for improved learning outcomes for all Denver kids. They are a volunteer-run grassroots nonprofit working with and supporting Denver’s schools, families and educators.
DenCoKID is a partner of COKID, and aligns their work with that of the International Dyslexia Association.
Denver Department of Public Health and Environment
The Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) is Denver’s nationally accredited public health agency. We empower Denver’s communities to live better, longer by providing people with opportunities that support their well-being and by improving services that enrich our community.
Denver Urban Gardens
Denver Urban Gardens (DUG) provides the access, skills, and resources for people to grow healthy food in their community and regenerate urban green spaces. DUG envisions a sustainable urban future where people are deeply and directly connected to the earth, each other, and the food they eat.
Primarily serving in-need residents in Metro Denver, DUG provides neighborhoods, schools, and partner organizations the essential resources to create and sustain their own community gardens. In addition to supporting well over 100 gardens, DUG operates education, outreach, and support programs centered on gardening, healthy food access, and community leadership. DUG also operates DeLaney Community Farm, a community-supported agriculture project focused on local food security and education.
Desiree Acholla
Desiree Acholla has over fifteen years of social impact work, with more than 10 years in the international development sector. Global experiences in campaign advocacy, public health, financial inclusion, and education have granted her a nuanced perspective as a Social Impact Consultant. She has worked in education and development to reduce disparity in schooling access and learning outcomes in the Global South, specializing in public-private partnerships and education financing. Desiree also helps philanthropic foundations and public health organizations to center equity in grantmaking, partnership development, and addressing the social determinants of health. Currently, as Principal of her consulting firm, Inararibonye LLC, Desiree helps organizations develop a praxis of diversity, equity and inclusion, anti-racism, and/or decolonization that is relevant, reflective, and responsive to their focal areas and stakeholders. She is the founder of DecolonizeDevelopment.org, an online support resource for aid and humanitarian practitioners to think critically about the implications of decolonizing the sector. Desiree has a BA in Anthropology from the University of Montana and a Joint Master in Education Policies for Global Development from the University of Amsterdam, the University of Oslo, and the Autonomous University of Barcelona. She also holds certificates in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Work from the University of South Florida, Muma College of Business.
Development in Gardening (DIG)
DIG’s mission is to improve the nutrition and livelihoods of some of the world’s most uniquely vulnerable people by teaching them to plant restorative gardens that grow health, wealth, and a sense of belonging. Since 2006, DIG has been working in regenerative agriculture to achieve meaningful impact across nearly a dozen countries.
Dina Bleecker
Dina Bleecker became interested in joining the Posner Center in order to have access to thoughtful and engaging programming and events, as well as to have access to use of the space for philanthropy, education, and networking purposes for various small groups including the Denver Foundation’s Arts Affinity Group and Metro Denver’s Impact100 organization.
Diversity Travel
Diversity Travel are an award-winning travel organization, specializing in fully integrated travel services for the humanitarian, faith, and NGO sectors. Our non-profit travel experts can support with travel arrangements to familiar and more obscure areas of the globe, with access to exclusive and flexible humanitarian airfares.
Doug Vilsack
Doug currently serves as Assistant Director for Parks, Wildlife and Lands for Colorado Department of Natural Resources, assisting the Executive Director on wildlife, lands and recreation related issues and working with the Directors of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife and State Land Board to achieve their missions.
Prior to joining DNR, Doug was the founding Executive Director of the Posner Center for International Development. He also founded Elephant Energy, a social venture that distributed household solar products to over 100,000 people in Southern Africa and the Navajo Nation. Doug first traveled to Namibia to work for the World Wildlife Fund in 2005 and has returned on numerous occasions to continue his work with community-based conservation organizations.
Doug was a practicing natural resources attorney in Denver before his work at DNR and the Posner Center. He received his J.D. from University of Colorado Law School and his B.A. from Colorado College.
dZi Foundation
The dZi Foundation works in partnership with remote communities in Nepal to create lasting improvements in their quality of life by helping communities take control of their own future through the support of locally-initiated community development projects. dZi provides training and funds that allow communities to complete projects of their own choosing that increase education, health and income-generating opportunities. Their Deep Development program (DD) encompasses the majority of their work in Nepal. As one of the most innovative and efficient programs in the Himalayan region, DD encourages underserved communities to discover their own abilities and skills to create permanent solutions for better educational opportunities and facilities, basic health and hygiene, and income generation.
Educate!
Educate! prepares youth in Africa with the skills to succeed in today’s economy. We’ve created a 100-hour experience that delivers the most essential skills youth need to transition to work, combining training, mentorship, and practical experience starting a business. We deliver this experience to youth in 3 ways: directly in schools, integrated into education systems, and through bootcamps for out-of-school youth. All three delivery channels have been validated by several independent evaluations, which found outcomes on employment, gender equity, family planning and sexual and reproductive health, educational attainment, and climate change. To date, more than 200,000 youth have been meaningfully impacted by this model across Uganda, Rwanda, and Kenya, and along the way, Educate! has become the largest youth skills provider in East Africa.
Effect X LLC
Effective organizations require feedback and relevant information even more than money. Effect X addresses this information need by providing evaluation and capacity development consulting services to organizations around the world. Our academic background leverages the insights and rigor of leading evaluation theorists and our extensive background in professional philanthropy and marketing ensures practical usefulness. While we are excited about any new challenge, our work to date has focused on need assessments, program design, impact evaluation, faith-based programs and evaluating marketing and online communications.
Ekar Farm
Ekar Farm and Community Gardens is a communal urban farm, inspired by Jewish values. They work to build community, provide experiential and environmental education, and grow sustainably produced fruits and vegetables, expanding access to those in need.
El Hogar Ministries, Inc.
El Hogar Ministries, Inc. supports the mission of El Hogar Projects in Honduras. El Hogar provides a quality education and a safe and nurturing home to children living in vulnerable circumstances in Honduras. El Hogar’s goal is to break the cycle of poverty so that students can fulfill their potential as productive and independent Honduran citizens.
Elevation Community Land Trust
Elevation Community Land Trust partners with local communities to ensure families can access opportunity through permanently affordable homeownership. ECLT helps stabilize families through the use of the community land trust (CLT) model, a proven asset‐building tool for lower income communities and communities of color that are at risk of displacement.
Empowerment International
Empowerment International, (EI) a Colorado registered nonprofit 501(c)3, has been working in Nicaragua since 2004. EI offers community-based holistic educational programs to children and families in two extremely impoverished communities in Nicaragua. Most of the families live on less than $2/day and most adult members of the community have an average of a third-grade education and do not always understand the value of the long-term benefits of educating their children. The goals of EI’s program are to instill the value of education in the families and children and to remove the physical and emotional barriers that prevent regular attendance of school. This is done through daily home visits where parents are encouraged to send their kids to school and are mentored on how to enhance their children’s education. In addition, during these visits counseling and emotional support are provided to help them find solutions to barriers, physical or otherwise, that prevent children from attending school. EI provides material support as well such as mandatory school uniforms, shoes, supplies, tuition, and transportation for rural high school students. The program participants have access to tutoring, a computer center, a small library and research center, several enrichment activities, and professional counseling. Since 2009 EI has achieved a program (and school) retention rate of over 95% and the percentage of students that go on from primary school to secondary has been over 90% and rising.
Engineers Without Borders USA
EWB-USA’s vision is a world in which the communities we serve can sustainably meet their basic human needs. Our community-driven development model empowers developing communities while simultaneously transforming EWB-USA members into global engineers who are equipped with both the technical and cross-cultural expertise to implement sustainable engineering solutions. As a result of EWB-USA’s ongoing projects, children can cross sturdy bridges to attend school, local clinics have consistent supplies of electricity, and families can access clean water.
Entrepreneurs for Social Impact Experiential Education (ExEd)
Vision: Better life outcomes and a healthier global environment.
Mission: Solve challenging problems, implement feasible solutions.
Astute observation, context awareness, R&D, thoughtful design, customer validation, proof of concept, market testing, prototyping, team building, internal/external functionality, leadership skills and funding are emphasized. Pitch decks and pitches are developed, refined and presented repeatedly.
Structure may be: a non-profit, small or large business, benefit corp, institute, foundation, NGO or non-formal organization. Students meet with 100+ business/organization founder/leaders and potential funders during New Mexico and Colorado Entrepreneurial Tours.
Eric Temple
Eric Temple is a Colorado native and after a few years traveling the world he now works for The Citizens Foundation, USA, an independent 501(c)(3) that fundraises for The Citizens Foundation (TCF). TCF builds and operates schools for the most underserved communities in Pakistan. TCF operates 1,833 schools with 280,000 children in all provinces of Pakistan. In the country with the world’s second worst gender disparity, TCF classrooms have a 50:50 student gender ratio and only employs female teachers and principals. TCF is the largest private employer of women in the country.
Erin Dunlap
Erin Dunlap has 15 years of global health development experience in more than 30 countries, and is currently a Technical Advisor in the Office of HIV/AIDS at USAID. She advises USAID HQ and Mission staff on the use of expenditure, cost, and other PEPFAR indicator data for the US Government’s strategic planning and investments for global HIV/AIDS priorities. She was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nicaragua, and holds a BA from the University of Nebraska and MPP from George Mason University.
Esther Balami
Esther Balami is a lawyer with over nine years of experience in the humanitarian sector, working with displaced and vulnerable people in Nigeria. Currently, Balami’s work focuses on protection of the rights of displaced people in accordance with the law, seeking to ensure their access to basic services with a view of finding durable solutions to the displacement. Balami holds a master’s degree in International Development Law and Human Rights from the University of Warwick, United Kingdom, and a Law degree and is passionate about development and human rights, especially improving the rights of displaced and vulnerable individuals.
Far Away Friends
Far Away Friends is a locally-led and female founded nonprofit started by two young women with a big vision: to break cycles of generational poverty in rural Uganda forever. Working in partnership with local leaders to identify investments in schools and community resources that impact the lives of children, Far Away Friends is now operating their own model primary school and teacher training hub, while also equipping girls in “Sister Schools” across rural Amolatar District with Life Skills training and menstrual hygiene management tools with the goal of lowering teen pregnancies and drop-out rates by 50% in the next decade. A tenacious, grassroots-fueled organization, Far Away Friends’ programs and projects are improving access to quality education, building the capacity of teachers and schools, enhancing health care resources, and ensuring that children in rural communities have the tools they need to break cycles of generational poverty forever.