City of Boulder Youth Action Plan

The City of Boulder has a decades-long history of supporting and empowering young people. Now, the UNICEF Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) is providing Boulder with a unique opportunity to more strategically uplift youth voices on city issues and deepen impacts on community issues that youth have prioritized. With a UNICEF framework rooted in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, over the last 30 years CFCI has been adopted in over 3,500 municipalities in over 40 countries.

On August 12, 2020, International Youth Day, UNICEF USA launched the initiative in the US. In 2023, Boulder joined the first cohort of 7 U.S. cities to undergo the ambitious, multi-year process of earning CFCI recognition. The city’s Youth Action Plan represents a milestone on the journey toward this recognition but is intended to serve as a touchstone for future decisions, partnerships and investments in programs that will – alongside the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan and Citywide Strategic Plans – benefit youth and guide the city for many years to come.

Boulder’s Child Friendly Cities Initiative is dedicated to creating a city where the rights of every child are respected, protected and fulfilled. By prioritizing equity and using a child’s rights framework, we ensure that all children—regardless of age, gender, race, disability, sexual orientation, immigration or housing status, or family income level—are empowered to shape the environment they live in. Through collaborative and innovative approaches, we aim to promote well-being and active participation for Boulder’s youngest residents.

Our vision for Boulder is a community where every child and youth feel valued, supported and respected. In this inclusive city, young people have opportunities to lead, share their voices, and thrive, supported by systems that prioritize their health, education, play and leisure, culture, and safety.

Since May 2023 more than 1,400 residents, 17 city departments and 48 community partners have participated in Boulder’s CFCI work. Community participants included children and teens, as well as parents/elders/caregivers, advocates and service providers. A more complete overview of the city’s formal structure is included in the State of the Child Report.

Boulder’s CFCI effort in general, and this Youth Action Plan in particular, would not have been possible without the leadership of Boulder youth. Determined to ensure a youth-led process, the city tapped the expertise and energy of the Youth Opportunities Advisory Board (YOAB). YOAB is a diverse group of high school students appointed by the city manager, to share their perspectives about issues affecting young people and to cultivate and use their leadership skills to create meaningful engagement opportunities for their peers. YOAB members helped design each step of the process and participated fully in gathering and evaluating data, prioritizing needs, developing and vetting possible solutions, and creating this plan. They were intentional about inviting and involving other young people, with a particular focus on communities that have been historically excluded from government, creating and facilitating a Boulder CFCI Youth Council whose members received a stipend for offering their time and experiences to shape the plan.

Creating a Youth Action Plan that represents youth voices and priorities, required a comprehensive analysis of Boulder’s youth population and the social and economic conditions that affect children and youth. While many Boulder residents are economically thriving, affordability remains a top concern; economic inequality causes hardship to a growing number of community members who struggle to afford housing, food, childcare and other household expenses. Institutional racism and other forms of discrimination remain undeniable challenges throughout the Boulder community.

As of 2024, the total population of Boulder County was 328,560. Roughly 20%, or 65,712 residents, were children aged 0 – 18. Among the information compiled in the Boulder State of the Child Report, are these key data:

• Within the Boulder community, over 20% of the population lives in poverty and a quarter of households in Boulder County struggle to meet basic needs without public assistance.
• For families with young children, the economic pressures are exacerbated by a lack of affordable childcare. According to the Early Childhood Council of Boulder County, the annual, unsubsidized cost of childcare for one infant is at least $24,000.
• In Colorado, 14% of children under 5 live in families that must quit or change jobs due to childcare challenges. In the Boulder Valley School District, 1 in 5 children rely on free or reduced-price lunch.

These trends underline the urgent need for greater investment in childcare, public assistance programs, and other services to support low-income families and ensure equal opportunities for all youth, regardless of their background. More information, data and analysis can be found in the State of the Child Report for Boulder.

What Do Children and Young People Say?

Initial Feedback during Situational Analysis

As detailed fully in the State of the Child Report, youth leaders and adult partners created a meaningful, inclusive and logical engagement process, which started in 2023 and continued throughout 2024. It included collection and assessment of both qualitative and quantitative data, and five focus areas were explored.

The following is a snapshot of what was heard:

What is going well?

• Access to nutritious food
• More reliable internet
• Feeling safe at home (for most children and youth)
• Great parks and playgrounds
• Less vaping

What needs improvement?

• Safety in Public: Concerns about verbal and physical harassment, and safety issues due to drug use and unpredictable behavior by unhoused individuals in public spaces like parks, bus stops, and pathways. Discrimination and a sense of being unwelcome, particularly for historically marginalized groups, were also significant issues.
• Mental Health: Bullying, stress, sadness, too much screen time, and not enough time in nature. Many youth reported feeling unsafe from bullying at school and online, especially based on their identity (race, LGBTQ, disability). High stress levels and feelings of sadness, particularly among LGBTQ and multiracial youth, were also prevalent.
• Equitable Play and Leisure: Lack of accessible after-school activities for Latinx youth, and outdoor spaces for children with disabilities. Many youth from marginalized communities and low-income families struggle to access recreational activities due to cost and the lack of culturally inclusive spaces.
• Youth Voice/Participation: Some youth are engaging in civic activities, but many feel disconnected due to a lack of knowledge, accessible opportunities, or feelings of unsafe power dynamics around age, race, and identity. While YOAB and Growing Up Boulder provide avenues for influence, more youth wish for expanded opportunities to share their opinions and influence school and city decisions.
• Child Poverty: Despite Boulder’s reputation as a wealthy community, a significant portion of the population experiences poverty. According to the city Housing & Human Services data, the 2023 Boulder County Community Wellbeing Dashboard and other sources, many families struggle with the high cost of living, with a large percentage of children facing financial hardship.

After collecting and analyzing data from the Situation Analysis, YOAB students and staff from the City of Boulder, Growing Up Boulder, and Mayamotion Healing held workshops where youth and their adult allies narrowed priorities for the Youth Action Plan. These areas were further narrowed by the CFCI Youth Council, resulting in these priorities:

Priority 1: Address and Reduce Bullying

Bullying emerged as a top concern for youth throughout engagement, and it shows up in many ways. Notably youth expressed concern about youth-to-youth bullying in and outside of school, and on social media; and the failure of adults, especially in schools, to step-in when they see or hear about bullying.

Priority 2: Improve Safety and Belonging

Young people in Boulder have safety concerns in public spaces due to unsocial and sometimes dangerous behaviors, frequently by community members who are unhoused. Additionally, youth have expressed safety concerns related to racism and discrimination, as well as a lack of culturally inclusive spaces.

Priority 3: Share Opinions with the City

Young people are eager to play an active role in driving change within their communities. They seek not only the opportunity to affect meaningful change but also to have a valued and respected voice in decision-making processes.

In 2026, YOAB members worked to refine activities recommended by the Youth Council, focusing on feasibility and sustainability. This refinement process included conducting research and interviews with experts for each priority area. YOAB met with program staff with the University of Colorado Boulder’s Institute of Behavioral Science, Boulder Valley School District and City of Denver about successful tactics to reduce bullying; with staff from the City of Boulder and other regional agencies about youth engagement and input; and with partners in the Boulder Police Department and a wide range of nonprofit partners about community safety and inclusion. After reviewing and adjusting the recommended activities, YOAB received a training session about how to use “logic models” for strategic planning, to visually connect activities to the community impacts we seek. Utilizing the refined recommended activities, YOAB members, city staff and Growing Up Boulder created logic models with focused, measurable outcomes, ensuring a comprehensive roadmap for implementation of the Youth Action Plan. In spring 2026, city staff and Growing Up Boulder shared the recommended activities and draft logic models with nonprofit partners to review and provide feedback.

Priority 1: Address and Reduce Bullying

• Problem: Bullying is common among young people, both in person and online, and adults frequently fail to support youth who are experiencing this harmful behavior.
• Causes: The most common reason bullying occurs is that all identities are not treated equally in Boulder. Young people shared throughout the phases of engagement that differences in race/ethnicity, LGBTQ+ identity, religion and physical appearance are key factors in whether someone is bullied. Technology has expanded the spaces where this bullying occurs. Youth can now experience discrimination and harassment online often outside the view of any adult. Boulder youth reported that even when an adult is present, the adult frequently fails to recognize their responsibility to assist and simply “let it slide.” Cultural norms and Boulder’s demographics (prominently white) create an acceptance for this type of behavior.
• Objective: Every child should feel safe and free from bullying, both in-person and online.
• Vision: In Boulder, young people experience a sense of security at home and school, protected from bullying in-person and online.
• Target Group/Audience: Youth (ages 5-18) and adults in roles that support youth

To advance this vision, youth recommended the following action items:

• Facilitate dialogue with community partners around youth vision for revamped and youth-centered programming that addresses bullying.
• Create a group of youth partners to assess current anti-bullying trainings and collect youth impact/experience examples to inform updated trainings, with a goal of ensuring that the trainings feel real and relevant.
• Design, promote or adopt training modules for youth, for adults, and cellphone/social media users. This could include how adults can intervene when bullying occurs (i.e., upstander training), how to recognize and prevent online bullying.
• Train and pay youth facilitators to lead sessions.
• Implement additional programming that can help prevent and reduce bullying.

Priority 1 Logic Model

Priority 2: Improve Safety and Belonging

• Problem: In Boulder, youth feel unsafe in public places, largely due to the behaviors of other community members, specifically, those who are unhoused and/or using drugs. Young people of color share that racism and discrimination are additional significant concerns.
• Causes: Boulder, like many cities across America, is experiencing ongoing challenges with homelessness. The behaviors of some unhoused individuals include physical and verbal harassment, and criminal activity including sale and use of drugs, display of guns, fighting within the unhoused community, and reports of sexual assault. Similar to bullying, racism and discrimination make it more likely that young people of color, women, people with LGBTQ+ identities or disabilities face a greater risk.
• Objective: Every child and young person feels safe in our community and empowered to be their true selves.
• Vision: Young people are aware of the safe outdoor play areas in the community and know where they feel most comfortable.
• Target Group/Audience: Youth (ages 10-18 years), community organizations that provide social service support and policy makers.

Additionally, youth recommended that the city and partner agencies continue to address root causes of unsafe or exclusive environments, by:

• Addressing the needs of Boulder’s unhoused populations
• Forming and supporting a youth council focused on anti-discrimination and belonging
• Ensuring that public parks are wheelchair-friendly and accessible for people with physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities

Priority 2 Logic Model

Priority 3: Share Opinions with the City

• Problem: In Boulder, youth ranging from elementary to high school are seeking effective ways to make a meaningful difference in the community and advance priorities that are important to them. Many young people are unaware of existing opportunities. Those who have tried to leverage current systems have encountered barriers to participation and share a general skepticism that their voices are being heard.
• Causes: Youth in Boulder often feel that they lack the opportunity to make meaningful, impactful change in their community. Many young people desire strengthened youth participation mechanisms within city government, especially around the issues that matter most to them, believing that doing so would help address their needs and concerns.
• Objective: Every child and young person should have the opportunity to voice their opinions and contribute to the decisions made by the city government.
• Vision: Youth in Boulder are aware of where to find government support and are participating in a range of opportunities to actively contribute to improving our community.
• Target Group/Audience: Youth (ages 13-18 years)

Youth recommended the following action items for the city and partner agencies:

• Determine how youth can most effectively engage with city boards and commissions on topics and issues important to youth, and how to enable youth leadership and collaboration.
• Continue to hold ‘Chats with Council’ events, which connect Boulder youth and city council members through panels and group discussions.
• Plan and coordinate an annual youth leadership workshop and explore holding YOAB listening sessions in elementary and middle schools.
• Work with the city’s Volunteer Cooperative, the Boulder Library District and nonprofit child-friendly organizations to identify civic engagement and leadership opportunities, catalogue them by age ranges, and publicize.

Priority 3 Logic Model

Implementation

Implementing the Youth Action Plan requires city staffing, a structure for Plan advisement and oversight, and funding for programs and services to advance Priority Area outcomes.

The city’s Youth Opportunities Program (YOP), structured within the Housing and Human Services Department (HHS), will continue to provide staff coordination and management for CFCI and Youth Action Plan implementation. This includes YOAB operations, activities and programming costs; coordination with city departments; participation in other citywide youth-centered initiatives; and collaboration with internal (city) and external (community) partner agencies and institutions. The CFCI Advisory Team, with representatives from city staff and Growing Up Boulder – and potentially additional nonprofit representatives – provides strategic and operational guidance and oversight.

Strategic plans don’t always come with additional resources. But fortunately, the city determined in 2023 that its share of proceeds from the Denver Broncos franchise sale, would be used toward the CFCI process and Youth Action Plan implementation.

To date, the city has expended funds for:

• Consultant services from Growing Up Boulder and Mayamotion Healing, and engagement with UNICEF USA;
• Outreach activities and workshops with community agencies serving children and youth, for input and feedback at each CFCI process milestone; and
• Workshops and other processes in which YOAB, the CFCI Youth Council, and youth throughout the Boulder community engaged to scope, discuss and make recommendations on Youth Action Plan priority areas.

Beginning in 2026, Broncos funds will be used to support the YOP, which includes all YOAB operation, activities and community programming costs. The city expects to fund YOP with these funds through 2029.

The city also anticipates allocating funding for Parks & Recreation programs and projects that align with the Safety and Belonging Priority Area, primarily benefitting youth who identify as Latino, Black and other non-white populations, and serve youth with disabilities; and toward the cost of renovations to 1-2 city parks for improved play equipment that engages children with special needs, and/or enhanced teen gathering spaces.

For Plan outcomes that are not likely to be achieved through city programs, the city will issue Requests for Proposals in 2026-28, to fund programming that addresses and reduces bullying. Funds could also be made available for community-based programs addressing other Priority Areas.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Evaluation of the Youth Action Plan is both a requirement for Boulder’s CFCI recognition and a necessary component of a youth-centered strategy; to ensure activities and investments are resulting in tangible community-level benefits for youth, enable adjustments, if necessary, in order to achieve those outcomes, and celebrate accomplishments.

In alignment with each Priority Area logic model, city staff will monitor and evaluate this Plan by:

• Collecting and measuring output data such as those listed in the logic models, to note changes over time in the number of youth participating in activities and initiatives, and the type of engagement with partner agencies and institutions. This includes collecting reporting data from agencies receiving grants for Priority Area programming.
• Tracking progress toward short- and long-term outcomes through methods including:
  • Pre- and post-surveys of youth and adults participating in activities,
  • Reports from nonprofit partners that receive grant funds for community programs,
  • Surveys or interviews with city staff leaders and elected officials, and
  • Conversation with partner agencies about observed changes.
• Gathering testimonies and stories from youth engaging in YOAB and who participate in activities.

Staff will publish output and outcome highlights annually, as part of the HHS Annual Report and on the YOP website by communicating to youth, community partners and institutions through the following, but not limited to townhalls, websites and community outreach/engagement events. In addition, an independent evaluator contracted by UNICEF USA will assess progress on Youth Action Plan implementation

By winter 2027, the city and Growing Up Boulder anticipate the delivery of the one-year evaluation to be collated by an independent third party. Upon meeting global minimum criteria, Boulder will receive a recommendation which will lead to the city’s recognition as a UNICEF Child Friendly City.