Steph fell madly in love with the Colorado Plateau at first sight and has nurtured her relationship with place ever since. Over the years, she has worn many hats, from hiking guide to field technician. Most recently, she led visitor-education efforts to protect cultural resources in Bears Ears National Monument. Steph holds a B.A. in Colorado Plateau studies and is pursuing her graduate degree in cross-cultural land management. Steph is excited to bring her experience and passion to the Grand Canyon Trust in service of supporting Native priorities on public lands and protecting the cultural landscapes of southern Utah and beyond. She is dedicated to the interconnectedness of land and culture and the inclusion of people in discussions of place and strives to support Indigenous voices in the stewardship of ancestral lands.
Of all the things I wondered about on this land, I wondered the hardest about the seduction of certain geographies that feel like home — not by story or blood but merely by their forms and colors. How our perceptions are our only internal map of the world, how there are places that claim you and places that warn you away. How you can fall in love with the light.
— Ellen Meloy