Colorado's Economic Development Alignment Vision CO|Align has Launched!
Welcome to Colorado's Economic Development alignment initiative, Colorado Align (CO|Align), where collaboration and communication are at the heart of our vision and victory statements. Statewide economic development organizations aim to foster a cohesive framework that connects Economic Development Districts (EDDs), governmental and non-governmental agencies, and other economic development stakeholders to propel Colorado's economic growth forward.
Our vision is to establish and promote a robust framework that aims to:
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Enhance Communication and Collaboration: Facilitate better coordination of economic development strategies and actions across Colorado by connecting Economic Development Districts (EDDs), governments, non-governmental agencies, and other stakeholders.
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Foster Strategic Partnerships: Build strong, collaborative relationships among EDDs, governmental agencies, NGOs, and key workforce development stakeholders. These partnerships are vital for resource sharing, innovation, and collective problem-solving, addressing complex economic challenges and capitalizing on new opportunities.
- Influence Statewide Priorities: Develop a framework that establishes a continuous feedback loop between local economic development and statewide policymaking. This allows local insights to shape statewide priorities and ensures that statewide initiatives effectively support sustainable, inclusive growth at the community level.
Join us as we embark on this journey to unify Colorado's economic development strategies. Together, we can create a future where collaboration knows no bounds, and prosperity reaches every corner of our state. Together, we can turn vision into victory.
CO|Align Q&A Session
Still have questions? Watch our recent CO|Align Q&A Session
Sign CO|Align's MOU
The History of the CO|Align Initiative
How It Started
Colorado has a distinct opportunity to boost its economic competitiveness through better communication, collaboration, and alignment of economic development strategies. Our goal is to reduce redundancies and build capacity among communities across the state. However, the COVID-19 pandemic exposed gaps in communication and inefficiencies when mobilizing programs, policies, and funding to different parts of the state. Communities without organized economic development programs missed out on unique opportunities, while those with robust programs thrived.
To address these challenges, economic development peers across the state have discussed the need for coordination between state, regional, and local programs. This coordination can help create programs and policies that "rise the tide that lifts all boats" and offer Colorado's greatest opportunity.
As the State of Colorado initiates its inaugural statewide Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS), the development of an alignment strategy became imperative - aiming to establish clear guidelines for the mindful coordination of state and local goals, priorities, and policies. We recognize the inherent diversity in capacity and economic development among local communities. Therefore, advocating for tactics that are sensitive to the unique needs and challenges of each locality will significantly enhance the impact of the CEDS implementation. To ensure this sensitivity and maximize the CEDS's effectiveness, information sharing between local and state levels is critical. This framework will establish a strong and consistent connection between local economic development efforts and statewide policymaking, allowing local insights to directly shape statewide priorities and ensure that statewide initiatives effectively support sustainable, inclusive growth at the community level. Through concerted efforts from government officials to ensure alignment with local realities, the CEDS can effectively foster economic growth and prosperity across the State of Colorado.
What is an Economic Development District (EDD)?
EDDs Economic Development Districts (EDDs) are multi-jurisdictional entities often spanning multiple counties and sometimes crossing state lines, drive regionally owned, locally based economic development planning. By engaging public, private, and non-profit sectors, EDDs create a strategic blueprint—the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS)—that fosters meaningful conversations among local stakeholders (individuals, organizations, local governments, and private industry) about their region's economic direction.
As the primary recipients of Economic Development Administration (EDA) partnership-planning grants, EDDs play a crucial role in regional economic development. Colorado's recent alignment of 14 regions with DOLA’s regional map, combined with the completion of all regional CEDS prior to the statewide CEDS, positions the state as a national leader, ensuring local priorities directly inform the state strategy and creating a significant economic competitive advantage.
Our Action Plan
Our Victory Statement:
Ideally, the regional CEDS advises the state CEDS to better align strategies and inform program development. A shared framework would facilitate a continuous feedback loop between local and state levels, enabling local insights to inform statewide priorities and ensuring that statewide initiatives effectively support sustainable, inclusive growth at the community level. This community-driven framework would establish ongoing two-way communication and awareness across both workforce and economic development players. This framework would serve as a critical touchpoint for legislation affecting local economic development and create a model for other states to emulate.
Our Action Plan:
We have established three working committees charged with:
- Developing an internal and external communication strategy including network mapping to leverage existing relationships.
- Identify resources needed to amplify and sustain these efforts for now and well into the future.
- Develop an MOU between economic development organizations to identify and leverage strengths, create efficiencies, and increase collaboration
The CORE and HOME Teams have accomplished a lot in this past year, as noted in our timeline of events and tasks achieved. We have committed to an ambitious timeline of activities, moving forward, that will help us achieve our short- and long-term goals including:
- We already established a meeting cadence between the Core/Home Teams to carry out the objectives and activities set forth by the Home Team.
- The celebration of the work that has been done so far by announcing phase 2 of this initiative.
- Enhance our new brand CO|Align.
- Secure Visible Network Labs to identify all the players in the economic development ecosystem in Colorado.
- Build consensus among top state cabinet leadership.
- Secure funding for one FTE to help drive the objectives and activities of the initiatives.
What does this mean to you?
- Local Needs Incorporated: Your local priorities are embedded in the regional CEDS, ensuring a community-driven approach to regional economic development planning, which establishes a key input mechanism for informing statewide priorities.
- Alignment of Priorities: The regional CEDS will inform the state CEDS through a community-driven feedback process, ensuring that state programs, policies, and incentives are effectively aligned with local needs and priorities, creating a continuous feedback loop between local and state levels.
- Equitable Funding: State and federal funding will be more equitably distributed across the state, directly reflecting community priorities identified through the CEDS process. This community-driven approach ensures resources are allocated where they will have the greatest local impact.
- Collaboration for Greater Impact: Regional collaboration, fostered through community-based partnerships, will help secure larger funding opportunities, enhancing the impact of economic development efforts and avoiding competition for the same resources, maximizing resource efficiency and impact.
- Strategic Partnerships: Fosters community-driven collaboration across municipalities, counties, and regions to address complex challenges and build robust economic development initiatives aligned with local needs and priorities.
Why should you sign the MOU?
- Support Statewide Alignment: Demonstrate solidarity in supporting a unified statewide economic strategy—a crucial advantage for Colorado’s economic competitiveness. This ensures local insights are central to statewide planning.
- Build a Sustainable Framework: Help create a lasting, framework that withstands government transitions and ensures continued success by embedding local priorities and establishing a continuous feedback loop.
- Peer-Led Initiative: This initiative is driven by the collective input of Economic and Workforce peers across the state, ensuring that it reflects the diverse needs and perspectives of Colorado's communities.
- Support Equitable Funding: Signing the MOU shows your commitment to ensuring local capacity-building and fair distribution of economic development resources across Colorado, based on community-identified priorities.
Resources
Supporters of the CO|Align Initiative





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Adams County Workforce and Business Center
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Arapahoe Douglas Works!
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Baca County Economic Development Commission
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Becker Workforce & Economic Development LLC, DBA BeckerWEDLLC
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Boulder Chamber
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Boulder Small Business Development Center
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City of Brush!
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City of Burlington
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City of Craig
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City of La Junta
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City of Loveland
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Colorado APEX Accelerator
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Colorado Association of Regional Organizations
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Colorado Community College System
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Colorado Department of Labor and Employment
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Colorado Department of Local Affairs
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Colorado Enterprise Fund
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Colorado Mountain College
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Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade
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Colorado Office of Information & Technology
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Colorado River Valley Economic Development Partnership
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Colorado Rural Workforce Consortium
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Colorado Technology Association
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Dakin Capital LLC
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Denver Economic Development & Opportunity
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Downtown Colorado, Inc.
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East Central Council of Governments
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Economic Catalysts LLC
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Economic Development Council of Colorado
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Elevate Quantum
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Employment Services of Weld County
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Energize Colorado
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Entrepreneurship for All
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First Flatiron Consulting
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Grand Junction Economic Partnership
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GROWL Agency
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Gunnison Country Chamber of Commerce
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Jane Crothers
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La Plata Economic Development Alliance
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Larimer County Economic & Workforce Development
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Logan County Economic Development Corp.
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Longmont Economic Development Partnership
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Main Street Steamboat Springs
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Manufacturer's Edge
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Montrose Economic Development Corp.
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Morgan Community College
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Northwest Colorado Council of Governments Economic Development District
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Northwest Loan Fund
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One Delta County
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Otero College
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Otero County
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Pagosa Springs Community Development Corp.
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Pikes Peak Workforce Center
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Prairie Development Corp.
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Prairie Rose Development Corp.
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Region 9 Economic Development District of Southwest Colorado
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Region 10 League for Economic Assistance and Planning
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Rockies Venture Club
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Rocky Mountain Partnership Cradle to Career
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Rocky Mountain Workforce Development Association (RMWDA)
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Rural Opportunity Office, OEDIT
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Routt County Economic Development Partnership
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Routt County Government
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Southeast Colorado Enterprise Development, Inc.
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Southern Colorado Economic Development District
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Summit County Chamber of Commerce
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Summit Economic Partnership
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Upstate Colorado Economic Development
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Vail Valley Partnership
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Visit Boulder, the Convention and Visitors Bureau
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Western Colorado Business Development Corp. dba. Business Incubator Center
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Western Grid Solar, Inc
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Wheat Ridge Economic Development