President and CEO, The Denver Foundation

Javier Alberto Soto serves as president and CEO of The Denver Foundation, a community foundation that deploys philanthropy, civic leadership, and community investment to improve the quality of life in Metro Denver.

Since joining the foundation in the fall of 2019, Javier has led the development of a strategic framework, the mobilization of significant resources to respond to the COVID-19 crisis, and the foundation’s celebration and campaign for its 100th anniversary. He also deepened the foundation’s commitment to policy and advocacy work, expanded its strategic communications team, and increased the impact investment pool, making it one of the largest dedicated impact investment portfolios in the state.

Prior to his move to Colorado, Javier served as president and CEO of The Miami Foundation for 10 years. Javier led the Miami Foundation through a period of significant growth that positioned the organization as a prominent civic and philanthropic leader in the South Florida community. Under Javier’s leadership, the Miami Foundation launched several signature initiatives, including “Give Miami Day,” a 24-hour, annual online charitable giving event that has raised more than $200 million for Miami area nonprofits since its launch in 2012.

Javier began his career in the public sector, beginning as a litigator in the Miami-Dade County Attorney’s Office and later serving as Chief of Staff to County Mayor Alex Penelas. He has also worked in the private sector, serving as a litigation associate at Holland & Knight and as Vice President & General Counsel at Grayling, a multi-disciplinary public affairs firm.

Javier has been active on several civic and corporate boards. He served as board chair of the Council on Foundations, as a director at TotalBank - a community bank in Miami, a member of the Orange Bowl Committee, and currently serves on the boards of America’s Promise Alliance, The Nature Conservancy Colorado, and Firefly Autism.In 2013, Javier was selected as a Henry Crown Fellow, a leadership program of the Aspen Institute that engages leaders to develop community-spirited and values-focused leadership. Javier has also been a member of the Colorado Forum since 2023 and was awarded the Denver Business Journal’s Leader in Diversity Award in 2024.In 2025,Impact Finance Center recognized Javier as Who’s Who in ImpactInvesting.

Javier has a B.A. in History and Political Science from Florida State University, a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, and an M.A. in Sociology from the University of Colorado Denver.