We're Official!

Its official, we're official!  On June 14, 2012,  we submitted our Articles of Incorporation to the State of Colorado, and as of Monday, June 18, 2012, we were an organization in "good standing" with the State of Colorado.  We also have a Federal ID Number, and this allows us to now begin to pull together our application to become a 501 (c) 3 Organization!  We'll keep you posted on our progress and look forward to sharing with you all more details as we have them on joining the Coalition!

What is in a name?

A name is that by which something or someone is referred in its simplest form and in grander schemes it defines who or what we are.  The name of our organization is the Continental Divide Trail Coalition. But what does this mean or how does this define us?

The first part of our name is Continental Divide Trail, and the last part of our name is Coalition.  

If the first part of our name reflects the unique identifier that sets us apart from everyone else, then it is the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail that defines us.  As simple as it may seem,  its about the Trail.  This is our guiding principle. The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDNST) is paramount above all else, and what is best for the Trail, is best for the CDTC, and everyone who is touched by the Trail.

The second part of our name is Coalition, and this could be said to reflect what tribe we belong to.   But what does this mean?  If a coalition is an organized alliance of people or groups who have come together for the purpose of accomplishing a goal that is common to all parties involved, while still maintaining their own separate identity, then we are an association of people and groups that have come together for the benefit of the Continental Divide Trail.

But why the name Coalition?

Coalitions are described in two ways. They may be loose associations in which members work for a short time to achieve a specific goal, and then disband or, as in the case of the CDTC,  they may be organizations in themselves, with governing bodies, particular community responsibilities, funding structures, and permanence. And coalitions exist to create and/or support efforts to reach a particular set of goals.

In our case we are building a movement of people to come together, to form a community, to benefit the CDNST.  This means to help organize the “sweat equity” required to build it and keep it maintained, to create the awareness and concern to ensure that its corridor is protected in a way that allows us all to have meaningful experiences on it, and to increase the awareness of the Trail itself to ensure that everyone has the right information about how to use it, how to access it, and that information is reliable! But we are also building an inclusive community that reaches out to traditional and not so traditional partners. 

Coalitions often contain these elements:

1.     The desire to influence or develop public policy, usually around a specific issue

2.     Changing people's behavior

3.     Building a healthy community

CDTC agrees completely with these three elements and as we further build upon our vision we hope 

you will help us strengthen these elements!

Coalitions are formed to do the following:

1.     To address an urgent situation

2.     To empower elements of the community - or the community as a whole - to take control of its future

3.     To actually obtain or provide services

4.     To bring about more effective and efficient delivery of programs and eliminate any unnecessary duplication of effort

5.     To design, obtain funding for, and run the needed programs and services surrounding their common goal

6.     Gather all the players concerned about the issue together to achieve a more cohesive and comprehensive impact

7.     To fill in the gaps where resources are needed

8.     To increase communication among groups and break down stereotypes

9.     To revitalize the sagging energies of members of groups who are trying to do too much alone.

10. To plan and launch community-wide initiatives on a variety of issues.

We think the above list reflects our goals pretty well, in fact here are our specific goals as outlined above:

1.     CDTC's primary goal is to ensure the CDNST is connected, protected and promoted today and for future generations. 

2.     CDTC is building the organization for the many voices who care about the Trail to help shape and engage in its stewardship.

3.     Through CDTC's efforts and responding to the needs of our members, we want to be the clearinghouse of all information regarding the Trail, volunteer opportunities, trail information, and trail protection efforts.

4.     Through CDTC's efforts we hope to gather all those concerned about the CDNST together so we maximize and leverage our partnerships in ways that allow for greater reach and success for not only stewardship efforts, but for getting people excited about and out using the CDNST! 

5.     CDTC is working to raise the funds necessary to support not only our efforts, but those of our partners, so we can continue to build a strong, sustainable future as the lead national private partner for the CDNST.

6.     By following the steps of sister Trail organizations like the Pacific Crest Trail Association (PCTA) and Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC), CDTC is working to establish and nurture a cooperative management system, where we will bring individuals together in order to have the necessary resources to accomplish together what we cannot alone.

7.     Where partners don’t exist, CDTC is working to facilitate their creation or discovery, by reaching outside our traditional recreational communities, and searching within communities such as municipalities and local governments, that have never been tapped before.

8.     CDTC is working to bring together groups and individuals from many sectors of the community so we can create strong alliances and that by working together toward common goals we can help people break down barriers and preconceptions, and learn to trust one another.

9.     CDTC is working to create, cultivate and solidify a community to bolster efforts around any trail need or issue so that together with the addition of other hands to the task, we create a tremendous source of new energy and hope, not just for the issue but for the Trail itself.

10. Finally, CDTC is working to create the opportunity for a unified community that will advocate for the Trail more effectively than a number of disparate groups and individuals working alone. And bring to bear political pressure from all sectors of the community, and wield a large amount of political power focused on the future of the Trail.

We all know that real change usually takes place over a period of time through people gaining trust, sharing ideas, and getting beyond their preconceptions to the real issues underlying community needs. CDTC, is building and nurturing a structure of cooperation among diverse groups and individuals and has a problem-solving focus, serves to ease the process of change in our Trail community so not only is the Trail here today, but for generations to come.

We know CDTC has to be here for as long as the Trail exists to provide the “space” for all the various communities and partners to connect. And, as a coalition, CDTC will build a culture of flexibility to create opportunities for community connection along the Trail that exist as long as they are needed or desired.  The partnerships may be surrounding one or two specific events, issues, or goals, and they may be temporary or last as long as the CDNST’s lifetime, either way, CDTC will stand proud and sustainable so that these relationships both with  CDTC and with in CDTC and its partners will always exist and prosper.  

So that’s it, that's how we came to be called the Continental Divide Trail Coalition.   As we grow to not only represent our name, but continue to evolve, we hope you’ll join us and help us represent the best we have to offer not just for the Coalition, but for the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail.

(many of these are excerpts and were adapted from the Community Tool box-http://ctb.ku.edu, thank you community tool box for providing such great guidance!)