Colorado Young Leaders (CYL) has been the most impactful organization in my life. It’s redefined volunteerism and service for me as a place in which I could be a leader and through which I could develop myself and my leadership abilities rather than simply...
Through CYL, I learned what an incredible impact youth can have when they come together to problem-solve and think creatively. Through organizing White Out the Stigma (our Global Youth Service Day project focusing on reducing the stigma of youth mental health), I...
What it means to be a servant leader. How a CYL alum continued a life of service and found her passion beyond high school. I am currently at Colorado State University in Fort Collins studying Social Work and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Biology. Something I learned...
Political settings have always seemed, to me, like competitive and distrusting places where everyone fights over who has better views or strategies. As we moved towards an unprecedented election cycle, I recognized the suppression of minority votes through political...
Legacy. The word holds a lot of power and is one of CYL’s core values. For CYLers it empowers young people to think of the impact they are leaving behind after high school. It means creating something sustainable and long-lasting. It means letting go of the fixed...
Recently, I watched a short documentary about Important Places. It starts, “may you always remember the path that leads back, back to the Important Places.” For Colorado Young Leaders, that Important Place starts at the Kite Lake Trailhead, in the shadow of four...
CYL was awarded a grant on behalf of the VF Foundation to support the Youth Exploring Stewardship (YES) Coalition. We’re proud to work with 17 other great organizations as we collaborate to provide more outdoor experiences for youth of all ages across the Front...
Those who knew Lauren Guthrie reflected on her leadership style as “Kindly Bold.” If you look up “Kindly Bold” in the dictionary, it is not there. Seemingly impossible to define in a few, concise words, it is a leadership style that has to be lived out. A leadership...
What if we truly listened to our young people? How would our world change? On November 2nd, over 60 youth gathered at the History Colorado Center to take part in the 4th annual Colorado Young Leaders (CYL) Base Camp, a youth-led leadership conference created by CYL’s...
We’re taking time to reminisce about some of our favorite programs over the past year. This story comes to you from Sophia, CYL ’19, while on a trip in partnership with CYL’s program partner World Denver from August 2019. This opportunity led Sophia...
