About Us
Our Story
Colectivo de Paz began with the dream of a more connected, more equitable Denver people with self-reliant communities who are empowered to advocate for their rights and poised to win them. As a new immigrant, founder Hridith Sudev experienced firsthand the barriers facing working-class immigrants and noticed how resources meant for marginalized communities—immigrants, refugees, people of color, working families, and those at risk of homelessness—were disconnected and dispersed.
While studying at the University of Denver, Sudev conducted extensive community outreach, even partnering at times with future CDP co-founders Clare Nicholson and Methusella Rwabose, the latter himself an immigrant and refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2019, Sudev and his “Community Change Initiative” teammates at DU’s PLP Leadership Program, attempted to build a collective mutual aid space for immigrants, a precursor to what would become Colectivo de Paz, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted these plans. In 2021, Sudev assembled a diverse coalition of young organizers—Methusella, Nicholson, Logan Smith, and Olivia Montoya—to resurrect this idea and establish it as Colectivo de Paz. Incorporated on October 21, 2021, the organization was inspired by Burkina Faso’s revolutionary founder Thomas Sankara and adopted a dual approach: addressing immediate community needs through responsive services while building long-term self-advocacy capacity through proactive programming.
CDP’s work began modestly with mutual aid drives using food donations from the Colorado Singh Sabha Sikh Temple, churches, and local food banks. Operations soon expanded to a weekly community kitchen in Director Julian Temianka’s one bedroom apartment, where organizers prepared the hot meals which they then distributed to unhoused neighbors along with hygiene kits and resource materials. The program soon grew to include clothing, essential supplies, street medicine, and advocacy training.
These early efforts evolved into CDP’s four core programs: Community Aid and Resource Exchange (CARE); Urban Scholars Youth Network Collaborative (USYNC); Community Pathways Navigators (CPN); and CDP’s ongoing Civic Advocacy and Policy Engagement work. Beyond these core programs, CDP regularly hosts community events including town halls, mixers, listening sessions, and art sales, continuing its mission of building connected, empowered communities in Denver.
MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES
Our Mission
Colectivo de Paz is a grassroots nonprofit that creates ‘Communities of Action’ through proactive advocacy and responsive services to meet the immediate and systemic needs of Metro Denver’s historically underserved communities.
Our Vision
The end goal of Colectivo de Paz is to help historically marginalized peoples and families in the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood Metro Area build equitable, self-reliant and resource-liberated communities by building power at the grassroots level.
Core Values
Responsiveness
We actively listen to and address the immediate needs of our community through direct services and mutual aid, ensuring our work remains relevant and impactful.
Proactivity
We anticipate challenges, build preventive solutions, and create sustainable systems through advocacy and capacity-building that empower communities to address both their immediate and long-term needs.
Intentionality
Every action we take is purposeful and well-considered, ensuring our work aligns with our mission and creates meaningful impact rather than just symbolic change.
Intersectionality
We recognize and honor how different forms of identity, privilege, and oppression interconnect, shaping our approach to ensure our work serves and includes all members of our diverse community.
Driven by Community
Our direction, decisions, and actions are guided by the voices, needs, and leadership of the communities we serve as operationalized in the mass-line we derive from our community, embodying the principle that those closest to the problems are closest to the solutions.