The Inclusiveness Project sought to financially support community organizations in training and recruiting more diverse staff—staff who reflected their own community, but who might not have been previously qualified. The project emerged in response to community feedback on the need for organizations to diversify their staff, committees, and boards. The foundation staff searched for how other nonprofits in the philanthropy sector were supporting diversity policies within their organizations, but didn’t find any formal frameworks and policies to ensure their diversity practices were sustainable. Unable to find adequate tools, the staff decided to make them themselves.
The Inclusiveness Project encouraged many Denver organizations—both grassroots and well-established nonprofits—to join the pursuit of becoming more equitable establishments within their community. Most of this effort took place before Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) work was mainstream—before 2020, the response to George Floyd’s murder at the hands of police, and the Black Lives Matter movement. In 2011, the project also received the National Council on Foundations’ Critical Impact Award.
