Mission

The vision of the GoWild Northeast Metro Coalition (NEMC) is that every young person - wherever they live and regardless of resources - has abundant opportunities to connect and engage with the outdoors in ways that are inspirational, transformational, and meaningful to them and will cultivate a new generation of stewards of nature.
 

Vision for the next five years

Generation Wild Northeast Metro Coalition, capitalizing on its assets and strengths, developed a vision expressing the desired future state for community voice, programs/pathways, partnerships and the coalition itself.

History

IN 2015, GREAT OUTDOORS COLORADO (GOCO) ANNOUNCED A NEW PROGRAM TO GET YOUTH OUTDOORS.

A coalition of nonprofit and government partners called GoWild Northeast Metro Coalition (NEMC), submitted INSPIRE planning and implementation grants and were one of six coalitions awarded the grant by GOCO. The coalition has worked together to get more youth outdoors for the last six years.

"The overwhelming response reflects the chorus of concern we heard across the state about today's youth and a growing disconnect with the outdoors and nature," said Lise Aangeenbrug, GOCO executive director. "We are funding and empowering local communities to design models that work in their neighborhoods.”

“We know from numerous studies that time outside can lead to reduced stress, increased academic performance, and improved mental and physical health. Every child deserves the chance to connect with the outdoors and nature."

The GoWild NEMC partners who worked together in 2016 are the same partners working together today.

"GOCO's Generation Wild “Inspire Initiative” invests in places, programs, and pathways to get Colorado kids and their families outside. The innovative Inspire framework is being looked at as a national model in connecting youth with the outdoors, and the participating communities' approaches to addressing barriers to the outdoors will serve as examples to other rural, urban, suburban, or mountain locales across the country."

AFTER A YEAR OF PLANNING, THE PARTNERS OF THE COALITION SUBMITTED AN IMPLEMENTATION GRANT TO GOCO IN THE FALL OF 2016.

Generation Wild (formerly GoWild) Northeast Metro Coalition was one of six coalitions to receive a $2.7M grant in December 2016.

Generation Wild Northeast Metro Coalition (NEMC) partners, Commerce City, Aurora, Denver, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife, Bluff Lake Nature Center, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver, ELK – Environmental Learning for Kids, Groundwork Denver, Mile High Youth Corps, Sand Creek Regional Greenway Partnership, and The Urban Farm, have achieved amazing success working together and sharing resources to reach more youth.

Generation Wild Northeast Metro Coalition serves Commerce City, northwest Aurora, and Denver's Montbello and Northeast Park Hill neighborhoods. GOCO funding provides backyard to backcountry outdoor experiences for youth. Backyard means places as amazing as the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, Barr Lake State Park, or Sand Creek Park. Backcountry outdoor experiences for youth include camping, hiking, and skiing all across Colorado. The coalition works to connect youth with the great outdoors statewide while creating safe, close-to-home outdoor places for kids.

Generation Wild Northeast Metro Coalition invests in programs such as horseback riding, archery, and nature hikes offered by all the partners and creates career pathways through Mile High Youth Corps, ELK, TUF, SCRGP and Groundwork Denver.

The coalition is multi-jurisdictional, including federal, state, and local governments and included seven nonprofits, making Generation Wild (formerly GoWild) NEMC one of the largest and the most varied and diverse of all the Generation Wild projects.

Commerce City Parks, Recreation and Golf became the host of the project and drafted the contract with GOCO and the cooperative agreement between all the partners. A Manager was hired in July 2017 and the Friends of the Front Range Wildlife Refuges (ffrwr.org) became the fiscal sponsor of the project and the employer of the manager.

In the winter of 2019, the Generation Wild NEMC embarked upon a strategic planning effort. Following partner agreement on the strategic plan in early 2020, coalition partners achieved consensus on a new grant request to Great Outdoors Colorado in July 2020. The grant proposal was funded by GOCO in December 2020. We look forward to continuing the great program and pathway opportunities provided by this amazing coalition.