Colleen Cooley

Colleen Cooley on the San Juan River, where she works as a river guide. Colleen Cooley, with permission

Colleen Cooley became a river guide on the San Juan River in 2010 during her early twenties. At the time, she was one of the only Navajo (Diné) women working as a guide. Now, Cooley works with the Canyonlands Field Institute delivering their annual Native Teen Guide in Training program, on which Native teens (between thirteen and seventeen) are given the opportunity to connect with their culture and heritage on a week-long trip along the San Juan River.

Cooley’s journey as a river guide began in part thanks to her older sister Nikki, who herself spent several years working as a river guide on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. “She saw that she was one of the only Native American guides,” Cooley told MY HERO, “and the people that were on these trips, both the guides and the guests that were coming from all over the world, were really interested in what she had to share about the landscape, about her cultural connection to these landscapes, and about her Navajo heritage.” With a group of colleagues, Nikki decided to create a guide training program to provide others with the skills and knowledge required to become a guide. Colleen did the training on the San Juan River and, once she had completed the course, began working full-time for a company in Bluff, Utah, before taking time to complete her degree and explore other ventures.

Though her work as a guide is now very part time, Cooley is still committed to the Native Teen Guide in Training program with the Canyonlands Field Institute. The program offers young Indigenous people, some of whom are from cities far from their homelands, the opportunity to connect with their culture and other Native American people. “[The trip] allows them to connect or reconnect to their homeland that they might not have had access to before,” Cooley explained, adding:

It’s about sharing with them some of our history, sharing the importance of Indigenous representation, sharing with them the importance of language. I think it's just basically us being ourselves as Indigenous people. We have a safe space that we can provide for them, and they can be themselves.

Cooley is particularly passionate about supporting youth, providing young people with opportunities, and including them in important conversations in their communities. In particular, she works hard to ensure the voices and suggestions of young people are heard in conversations regarding the climate crisis and possible solutions. On this, Cooley told MY HERO:

In some [organizations], they're talking about the youth and say, “The youth are our future. We’re doing this for our youth. And I question that because it's like, “Okay, where are the youth? We need them in these spaces, right? You're talking about them, but where are they?” [We need to] see if there's a way to include them and not just talk about it, right? Include them in these spaces and have their ideas incorporated in the climate conversations, especially.

Combating climate change and protecting the Earth’s land and water is deeply important to Cooley; it is something she has dedicated much of her life and career to. Following high school and her first year as a river guide, Cooley returned to education in Flagstaff to complete a master’s degree in Climate Science and Solutions to learn more about the ways that the effects of climate change can be mitigated. “There's a lot of different ways that people can go into sustainability, into what they call lead-certified buildings or engineering, or renewable energy,” she explained, “The courses [during my master’s degree] were kind of talking about the science of climate change policies, economics and some solutions.” Once she had graduated, Cooley began working for a company focused on advocacy and educating people on the way coal ash from a power plant impacts its surrounding landscape, waterways, and communities.

Though Cooley knew this type of work was vital, her focus shifted towards the solutions to issues like coal ash, along with the people and organizations working to implement them. Said Cooley:

That work is important and still is. But I wanted to go into the direction of, “Okay, what are some solutions around this? What are some positive things happening in our communities?” I started working with other groups that were working on food sovereignty and security or growing food. “What are these types of foods or that are traditional to us? How long does it take to grow? How can we obtain and save seeds and share that with each other?” The group Tó Nizhóní Ání, for example, they're not just talking and educating people about the issues, they're providing solutions and workshops for their communities to learn about as well. They're doing both, the issues and the solution. I really love that.

In 2022, Colleen founded her consultancy company, Cooley Consulting LLC, to advise non-profit organizations and support them in their missions. Cooley works closely with organizations that align with her values of protecting the environment, acknowledging Indigenous land, and uplifting a diverse range of communities and voices to bring about meaningful change. She offers various types of support including project planning, event coordination, and assistance with preparing for conferences and summits. Learn more about the numerous organizations and projects Cooley has supported in recent years here.

It is not only organizations, however, that should be finding solutions to the climate crisis, but individuals too. Most of us can implement even the smallest of changes to help. “You can start out small and carry a reusable water bottle or bamboo utensils when you're traveling,” Cooley explained, “[It’s about] what we can do ourselves as individuals and then hopefully influence others or inspire others to make some of those changes.” On whom her inspiration or personal hero is, Cooley shared:

My mom. Just her strength, her patience, and her resilience. I have six siblings, so she raised seven of us. But not only seven of us; she was also a dorm aide in a boarding school, she's been a substitute teacher… so she's helped raise a lot of kids, not just us. When she was weaving in the film, I mean, she taught herself how to do that. Even from processing the wool, taking it off the sheep, cleaning the wool, carting it, spinning it, and dyeing it. She does all of it and that's really inspiring to me because she learned from her own family and her own relatives to do that. And now she's weaving rugs and learning how to do that on her own. […] As long as we're happy, she's happy. She knows also when something's wrong with one of us, she will reach out and she just feels it because she's a mother. She's my hero.

Water Flows Together

A short documentary about Cooley and her connection to the San Juan River and Navajo Nation, Water Flows Together, won third place in the Documentary category at the 20^th Annual MY HERO International Film Festival. Directed by Palmer Morse, Matt Mikkelsen, and Taylor Graham of Spruce Tone, the film highlights the importance of acknowledging Indigenous land.

Cooley was introduced to the filmmakers by her friend Amy, after the filmmakers had shared with Amy the concept for Water Flows Together. After some discussion, the group set a date to take a trip along the San Juan River. Though the film was originally supposed to feature both Colleen and her older sister, she was unable to participate due to scheduling conflicts. However, Cooley was joined on the trip by her close childhood friend Brandi and the team spent time with Cooley’s mother whilst visiting her home in Shanto. On what drew her to partake in the project, Cooley explained that Morse, Mikkelsen, and Graham were keen to capture her perspective and consider her input. “It was an opportunity to tell my story and my connection to this place,” she said. On the importance of the film, Cooley shared:

Water is life. It really is. And to have the opportunity to talk about it and the landscape… I think I mentioned, these boundaries around the river, the state boundaries, the federal boundaries, none of those existed, right? It was just a watershed. It provides life for, not just us as humans, but for our nonhuman relatives too. I think just providing a glimpse into why that's important and why this land should be protected and to let people know that there's a history here before any humans impacted it.

I think [it’s important to share] why it's important to us, but also other Indigenous people. There’s a lot of other Indigenous nations that have a connection to this place, not just us as Navajo people. There are other Indigenous people that have come through here, that have lived here, and that still have a connection to this place. And I think that's what I want to portray to the youth as well. It's not just us Navajo. There's Navajo people that live around here along the landscape, but it's not just important to us.

Watch Water Flows Together here.

Discover the Organizations Colleen Champions:

• Tó Nizhóní Ání: https://tonizhoniani.org/
• The Navajo Water Project: https://www.navajowaterproject.org/
• Universal Access to Clean Water for Tribal Communities: https://tribalcleanwater.org/
• Ten Tribes Partnership: https://tentribespartnership.org/the-ten-tribes-partnership/

About the MY HERO International Film Festival:

The My Hero Film Festival is an annual event dedicated to showcasing films that celebrate the power of the human spirit. The festival provides a platform for filmmakers to share inspirational stories of everyday heroes. Thanks to generous sponsors, prizes are awarded to elementary, middle school, high school, college and professionals in a variety of categories including documentary, narrative, music video, animation, experimental, and more.

The festival aims to inspire audiences to recognize the heroism in their own lives and encourage positive actions in their communities. Learn more.