Past Public and Stakeholder Engagement

Helpful Resources and Documents:

• Wolf Stakeholder Advisory Group Final Recommendations
• Wolf Technical Working Group's Final Recommendations
• Summer 2021 Wolf Public Engagement Report

Following the passing of Proposition 114—now state statute 33-2-105.8— Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) convened multiple advisory groups and engaged with members of the public around the state to help develop the final Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan.

Advisory Groups

CPW convened a Technical Working Group (TWG) and a Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG) to serve as advisory bodies to the agency as the Commission and CPW staff developed the final plan to restore and manage gray wolves in Colorado. The TWG contributed expertise towards the development of conservation objectives, management strategies, and damage prevention and compensation planning. The SAG provided a range of viewpoints from diverse geographic areas of the state and proposed considerations for the plans developed by the TWG.

To support openness and transparency, all meetings of the SAG were open to in-person observation. Public comment opportunities were also offered at SAG meetings.

Tribal Consultations

In addition to the Stakeholder Advisory Group and Technical Working Group, CPW and Keystone Policy Center engaged in ongoing Tribal consultations with the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, the two Tribes with sovereign lands within Colorado’s borders. Engagement of additional Tribes and Indigenous populations currently and/or historically present in Colorado also occurred through focus groups and updates to relevant audiences.

Summer 2021 Public Engagement

Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Keystone Policy Center engaged more than 3,400 participants through 47 meetings and an online comment form in the summer of 2021. The meetings included 16 in-person public open houses throughout the state, 17 in-person Western Colorado geographic focus groups, 10 virtual interest-based focus groups, two in-person Tribal consultations, and two virtual town halls. Read the full Summer 2021 Public Engagement Report for more information.

Winter 2023 Public Engagement

Opportunities for public engagement, including online and in-person public comment, were hosted from December 9, 2022 - February 22, 2023. Comments submitted in this time were directly shared with the Parks and Wildlife Commission to inform their decision-making process on the draft plan. Brief memos outlining the volume and nature of written comments received were provided to the Commission, along with the comments themselves. The Keystone Policy Center prepared a brief report for the Parks and Wildlife Commission on high-level themes and trends of the comments.

Submitting Public Comments

To submit comments to the Parks and Wildlife Commission, please follow the posted guidelines on the CPW Commission webpage or send your comments in an email to dnr_cpwcommission@state.co.us.

The Stakeholder Advisory Group, Technical Working Group, Tribal consultations, and public engagement were facilitated with third party facilitation support by Keystone Policy Center. To learn more about Keystone, visit their website.