Katie Navin's journey in environmental education (EE) began long before she considered it a career. Growing up in Nebraska, she was fortunate to be raised in a family that embraced camping, hiking, and exploring outdoors. Her mother planned family trips by scouring the library to find place-based activities, crafts, and stories that helped them connect more deeply to the places they were visiting. During a family vacation to Rocky Mountain National Park, Katie attended a ranger program and was captivated by the ranger leading the program. When her father remarked, "You could do that as a job," she started down the path that would become her career. 

Family trips to national parks became opportunities to interview park rangers about their educational backgrounds and career paths. Her ninth-grade career report focused on park rangers, and she eventually pursued a degree in interpretation at Colorado State University. Her first job was at Grand Canyon National Park in the EE department teaching geology to fourth graders. One of the first rangers she worked with there was someone she had interviewed years earlier as a high school student while visiting Yellowstone National Park, bringing her path full circle.

While many environmental educators describe their connection to the field as beginning with nature itself, Katie reflects that it was her connection with the interpreters, educators, and mentors who made those experiences come to life. After working in numerous EE programs, across six states, with audiences ranging from preschoolers to seniors, Katie was inspired to pursue a graduate degree in curriculum and instruction at Florida Atlantic University, where she completed an assistantship at Pine Jog Environmental Education Center. There, she helped develop and deliver EE programs designed to inspire action and extend learning beyond the field experience into the classroom.

During graduate school, Katie’s advisor, Susan Toth, and Susan’s husband, Mike Way—one of the founders and former executive directors of Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE)—introduced her to CAEE’s work. Knowing she hoped to return to Colorado, they encouraged Katie to get involved and helped her learn how CAEE was strengthening EE across the state. She joined as a member while still living in Florida. When Katie returned to Colorado to work at the Plains Conservation Center, she immediately became involved in CAEE's Certification Committee, helping develop the state’s certification program. It was a powerful opportunity for Katie to wrestle with ideas to strengthen the field, engage with accomplished educators from across the state, and contribute to something larger than any one program or organization could achieve alone. That networking experience inspired her, gave her a sense of community, and shaped her belief in the power of what networks could build when working together.

Katie was hired as CAEE’s Program Coordinator in 2008 and became its executive director in 2009. With minimal experience in nonprofit management and fundraising, Katie sought out and benefited greatly from CAEE’s diverse network and the unwavering support and guidance of the two former executive directors. Ali Goulstone Sweeney was an exceptionally valuable mentor throughout her entire tenure. 

Under Katie’s guidance, CAEE strengthened partnerships across K–12 schools, higher education, nonprofits, state agencies, and community organizations. In 2009, CAEE helped ensure EE was intentionally included for the first time during the revision of Colorado's academic standards. The following year, CAEE helped pass legislation requiring the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) to develop a Statewide Environmental Education Plan, which was adopted by the State Board of Education in 2012. As part of that effort, CAEE fundraised and partnered with CDE to convene more than 900 stakeholders to provide input into the plan. When Colorado revised its academic standards again in 2020, CAEE mobilized educators to organize and submit comments that helped ensure EE remained embedded within science, geography, and civics education.

In 2017, CAEE worked with Blue Lotus Consulting and Evaluation to learn more about how programs were using evaluation and what was needed to support more evaluation efforts. Work continued with Point B(e) Strategies to create a library of tools and resources to support educators in measuring and communicating the incredible impact of their work.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, schools closed and so did many traditional avenues for delivering environmental and outdoor learning experiences. CAEE hosted weekly calls for educators to problem solve, share ideas and resources, and learn how to pivot from each other. The resulting collaboration extended beyond Colorado and contributed to national guidance that informed schools and educators navigating reopening efforts.

Katie played a key role in professionalizing EE through the CAEE Environmental Education Certification program for teachers and outdoor educators. She supported the creation of multiple certification rubrics through a collaborative process with skilled environmental educators, which has led to the certification of well over 250 environmental educators in three distinct levels. Multiple budding and experienced Colorado environmental educators have been certified through CAEE’s program.

The year-after-year planning and implementation of CAEE’s annual conferences and statewide meetings, bringing together hundreds of educators, administrators, policymakers, and nonprofit leaders, is a major part of Katie’s lasting legacy. These gatherings have become more than professional development events—they are community-building spaces where innovation is shared, partnerships are forged, and emerging leaders are mentored. The CAEE conferences reflect Katie’s philosophy: EE thrives when educators feel supported, connected, and valued.

One of the accomplishments Katie is most proud of is not a program, policy, or initiative, but the collaborative process that shaped CAEE’s approach to working together. In 2021, CAEE’s Board of Directors cemented those values into CAEE’s Ways of Being, inspired by the work of the Maine Nature Based Education Consortium. They reflected a belief that how we work together is just as important as what we accomplish together, which includes striving to ensure that we care for ourselves and each other, owning when our actions have unintended consequences, prioritizing listening and making space for diverse voices, engaging the network in decision making, making time for process and discussion, and supporting each other to reach our collective goals.

The Colorado Environmental and Outdoor Learning Landscape Analysis is a recent accomplishment. CAEE partnered with neighboring states, building on work started in the Southeastern Environmental Education Alliance that collected data illuminating the strengths, gaps, and needs of the EE field. 

Working together, people in the Colorado Network with the support of the North American Alliance for Environmental Education (NAAEE) and other State EE Associations generated recommendations about how to build a stronger system for environmental and outdoor learning in Colorado. The data has been used by funders, included in grant applications, and presented to school boards. By understanding our needs, we can continue to strengthen the system.

Katie’s influence extended far beyond state borders. From 2018-2023, she served as NAAEE’s Affiliate Working Group Co-chair, supporting a network of 54 EE Associations across the United States and Canada. As they shared resources, brainstormed, and tackled the challenges of network building and systems change, Katie guided them through periods of significant transition with remarkable grace and effectiveness. Her engagement with NAAEE helped connect Colorado’s educators to national networks, resources, and thought leadership and brought Colorado’s innovations to the national stage, ensuring that local successes informed broader movements.

During her 17-year tenure at CAEE, Katie earned several professional certifications and was honored with NAAEE’s 2018 Outstanding Service to EE Award. Under her visionary direction, CAEE also received numerous awards for impact, service, and strategic partnerships.

Throughout her career, Katie has led with humility and integrity modeling the very values EE seeks to instill: curiosity, collaboration, resilience, and hope. She is known for listening deeply, celebrating others’ successes, and quietly doing the hard work that sustains movements over time. Katie has provided steadfast leadership for CAEE, successfully guiding the organization through financial challenges, political shifts, and an ever-changing nonprofit landscape. She has strengthened a field, empowered a generation of educators, and ensured that environmental literacy remains central to 
Colorado’s future.

Katie stepped down from her executive director role at CAEE in May 2026, when her husband accepted a new position taking them to Virginia. She is consulting with NAAEE to continue the initiatives she championed in Colorado at a national scale. Her work focuses on supporting EE Affiliate organizations across the network and developing a comprehensive landscape analysis report that synthesizes data from across the field to identify opportunities to strengthen EE and expand equitable access to high-quality learning opportunities. Whatever the future holds for Katie’s career, EE is deeply woven into who she is and will forever be at the core of her professional endeavors.

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