Denver is a city of diversity, fun, and adventure. For many years, people from all over the country have packed up and move to Denver to see our beautiful state and culture.
However, the entire state is not as politically liberal as Denver. Many Coloradans, roughly 40%, believe that their political beliefs are what shape their sense of belonging within the community. This is according to the 2024 Colorado Health Foundation poll.
For its fifth year, a bipartisan team of researches acquired 2,404 responses from the community. A big concern is the housing crisis within Colorado. The rise in the cost of living category is a huge red flag to those who were surveyed. This comes out as this year’s cost of living is the highest its been in the past five years, according to the poll and past research.
All of these issues bring a sense of what the people are really wanting. It is no secret that the cost of living is starting to severely affect both individuals and families who are now struggling to live because they can no longer afford certain things, causing them to seek second jobs or having to move into smaller spaces or with roommates.
Aside from the housing crisis, other issues such as drug overdoses, crime, mental health, jobs and economy, and natural disasters are also huge concerns for surveyors.
Natural disasters are now a huge concern in the community. The reason being that wildfires are now very active in the state of Colorado. Though the stats show that the concern for fires have decreased from 57% to 53%, fire concerns still remain high on the scale because of their frequency and constant threat to the state.
In the United States, the options of where to live are often endless. However, when choosing where to live, we want to feel like we belong within the community we choose. However, the sense of belonging is not only applicable within the home, but also in various other aspects of our lives.
Places like our workplace, neighborhood, public spaces, and school all have varying factors in how our sense of belonging functions. This poll suggests that many feel a better sense of belonging at home, whereas they feel more mixed emotions in the other three categories.
Feelings and priority take a huge part in this survey. Many who take it are pointing out really big issues that surround our state. They are things that they see and feel in their daily lives that may require enacting change in order to make it better. Polls like these show that enacting change caters to a better tomorrow.
