Colorado’s Diversity Index up Thanks to the Millennials Moving In

For the first time in a long time, the Baby Boomer generation doesn't comprise the largest share of the population not only in Colorado but the U.S. as a whole. That distinction now belongs to the Millennials, who make up roughly 72 million of our 329 million people living in the United States.

And while not quite as diverse as the Generation Z crowd, the Millennials rank a bit higher than the U.S. population as a whole on the Simpson Diversity Index.

To clarify upfront - mostly because the term "Millennial" is too often used incorrectly - the living generations of those living in America vary depending on who's trying to make a point, but typically break down somewhat as follows:

• The Silent Generation: Those born between 1928 and 1945.
• The Baby Boomers: Born between 1946 and 1964.
• Generation X: Born between 1965 and 1980.
• Millennials (Often referred to as Gen Y): Born between 1981 and 1996.
• Generation Z: Born between 1997 and 2012.
• Generation Alpha: Born between 2013 and now, for the next few years.

Anyone taking bets the next generation will be called Beta? But I digress.

There is actually a fascinating breakdown of stats compiled by the Pew Research Center, like the number of people born during each generation, which really helps explain things like why the Baby Boomers were called as such - there literally was a "boom" of babies born during that era.

And thanks to Millennials generally moving around the country while also being the largest living generation at the moment, in addition to the largest number of U.S. immigrants belonging to that generation, America as a whole is becoming more racially diverse.

According to Census data, roughly four out of every 10 people in the country now identify as "non-white," a number that has been going up for some time. Coupled with the fact data suggests that between 2010 and 2020, not only did the white "share" of population decrease during that time, so did the actual total number of white people, according to a research study from Brookings.

While the total population of the US has increased, it has done so mainly by increased numbers of racial and ethnic minorities. So it makes sense that the nation is diversifying, as is Colorado, thanks largely to the Millennials and of course, the super-diverse Generation Z.

That being said, the Denver metro area ranks 55th on the list of the "Large Metros with the Most Diverse Millennial Population."