New Era Colorado Foundation Action Fund is a left-of-center abortion-advocacy and “youth voters” organizing group founded in 2006 in Boulder, Colorado. It is the advocacy counterpart for New Era Colorado Foundation, which encourages voter turnout among Democratic-leaning constituencies in Colorado. ¹

New Era Colorado Action Fund campaigns to implement the Foundation’s policy agenda, also known as the “Youth Agenda,” which, among other things, seeks to stop “white supremacy” by advocating for a total abolition of the modern American criminal justice system. ²

Voter Mobilization Initiatives

New Era Colorado launched a voter guide to increase voter participation amongst Democratic-leaning constituencies in Colorado. ³ On January 11, 2024, New Era Colorado Action Fund launched “two new political entities”: Young People for All People Independent Expenditure Committee and the New Era Colorado AF Small Donor Committee. ⁴

Both the Young People for All People Independent Expenditure Committee and the New Era Colorado AF Small Donor Committee “prioritize candidates and Youth Agenda Champions who identify as young, Black, brown, Indigenous, and/or people of color.” ⁵

Young People For All People Independent Expenditure Committee

New Era Colorado launched Young People for All People Independent Expenditure Committee goal is “organizing and mobilizing young voters in key state and local races to elect Youth Agenda Champions.” ⁶

 New Era Colorado AF Small Donor Committee

New Era Colorado launched the New Era Colorado AF Small Donor Committee to funnel small-dollar contributions to Youth Agenda Champions in both primaries and general elections. ⁷

Youth Agenda

New Era Colorado wrote a manifesto entitled the “Youth Agenda,” which was last updated in December 2022. ⁸ In the manifesto, New Era Colorado states that the crises young people face are “rooted directly in white supremacy.” ⁹ New Era Colorado based its Youth Agenda upon their “listening tour” in 2021. ¹⁰ In its 2022 Youth Agenda Platform, it stated, “During the strategic process to create the platform, we prioritized the responses of young people who identify as Black, Indigenous, a person of color, queer and/or trans to inform our stances.” ¹¹

The Youth Agenda Platform’s major theme was ending supposed “racial injustice.” ¹² Specifically, the Youth Agenda states, “A racial justice lens also means that we take an abolitionist stance. This political vision aims to eliminate imprisonment, policing, and surveillance to create lasting alternatives to punishment and imprisonment.” ¹³

Partnerships

As of February 2024, New Era Colorado Action Fund Youth Agenda’s partnerships include: All Above All Action Fund (AAAF), Young Invincibles, ONE Colorado, Colorado Fiscal Institute, Colorado People’s Alliance, Conservation Colorado, Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR), and Mi Familia Vota (Colorado Chapter). ¹⁴

Organizational Donors

In 2022, New Era Colorado Action Fund received $180,000 from New Era Colorado Foundation, $108,000 from Alliance for Youth Organizing, ¹⁵ and $100,000 from Women Donors Network Action. ¹⁶

Key Staff

As of February 2024, New Era Colorado Action Fund’s executive director was Nicole Hensel. ¹⁷ Hensel previously worked as deputy vice president of research and evaluation at the Future Project. ¹⁸ She is a co-founder of RE-EnvisionED, a left-of-center education advocacy group that promotes left-of-center content to create a new generation of trained activists. ¹⁹ RE-EnvisionED also provides lesson plans to teachers. ²⁰

Natasha Berwick works as the organization’s political director. Berwick leads New Era Colorado’s “legislative session program, issue campaigns, and c4 electoral targeting.” ²¹ She was previously a Graduate Climate Action Intern for City and County of Denver District 9. ²²

1. About Us. New Era Colorado. (2023, October 9). https://neweracolorado.org/about-us/.
2. New Era Colorado. (2022, December). New Era Youth Agenda Policy Platform – New Era Colorado. https://neweracolorado.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/New-Era-Youth-Agenda-Policy-Platform.pdf
3. New Era Colorado Action Fund. (n.d.). Shaping the Future. New Era Colorado Voter Guide. https://neweracoloradoaction.org/
4. Navarrette, C. (2024, January 11). Youth Power in Action: New Era Colorado, the state’s most effective youth organizing nonprofit, launches independent expenditure and small donor initiatives. New Era Colorado Action Fund Press Release. https://neweracoloradoaction.org/youth-power-in-action-new-era-colorado-the-states-most-effective-youth-organizing-nonprofit-launches-independent-expenditure-and-small-donor-initiatives/.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. New Era Colorado. (2022, December). New Era Youth Agenda Policy Platform – New Era Colorado. https://neweracolorado.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/New-Era-Youth-Agenda-Policy-Platform.pdf
9. Ibid. p.1.
10. New Era Colorado. (2021, October). The Youth Agenda:  Young Coloradans’ Hopes, Dreams, and Vision for the Future. Youth Agenda Listening Tour 2021. https://neweracolorado.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/WRITTEN-REPORT-The-Youth-Agenda-Young-Coloradans-Hopes-Dreams-and-Vision-for-the-Future.pdf
11. New Era Colorado. (2022, December). New Era Youth Agenda Policy Platform – New Era Colorado. Op.cit. p.2.
12. Ibid.
13. Ibid.
14. Youth Agenda. New Era Colorado. (2023b, July 18). https://neweracolorado.org/youthagenda/.
15. Ibid.
16.  Cause IQ. (n.d.). New Era Colorado Action Fund. New Era Colorado Action Fund | Boulder, CO | Cause IQ. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/new-era-colorado-action-fund,205392556/.
17. Staff + board. New Era Colorado. (2024, February 1). https://neweracolorado.org/staff-board/
18. Nicole Hensel – Executive director – New Era Colorado | linkedin. (n.d.). https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-hensel-868001104
19. School Visioning Process. REENVISIONED. (n.d.). https://www.reenvisioned.org/school-revisioning
20. Google Drive. (n.d.). All Project Materials. The REENVISIONED Project Materials. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1rvGxpSOHDXVm8DPf3znqbMQM_woxBD9m.
21. Staff + board. New Era Colorado. (2024, February 1). https://neweracolorado.org/staff-board/
22. Natasha Berwick – political director – New Era Colorado – linkedin. (n.d.-a). https://www.linkedin.com/in/natashaeberwick41391.