Featuring Shannon Francis - Executive director of Spirit of The Sun
Shannon Francis leads Spirit of the Sun, an Indigenous women‑led nonprofit based in Denver, working to empower Native youth and communities through sustainable agriculture, traditional ecological knowledge, and cultural resilience.
Shannon is both Hopi (from Kykotsmovi, Arizona) and Dineh (Navajo from Shiprock, New Mexico), born into the Towering House clan and Red Running Through the Water clan, with ancestral ties to Massau’, Bear, Sand, and Snake clans. She descends from twelve generations of seed keepers, ethnobotanists, and earth caretakers. Rooted in this legacy, she became a certified Permaculture Design Instructor, blending Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) with innovative science to promote land stewardship and food justice
As Executive Director of Spirit of the Sun since at least the early 2020s, Shannon has woven her background and permaculture expertise into programs that reconnect Native youth and elders with their ancestral traditions and the lan. Her leadership is anchored in reciprocity and intergenerational healing, developing educational programs in sustainable farming, food sovereignty, permaculture, and wellness. Under her guidance, Spirit of the Sun has implemented impactful initiatives such as Indigenous Permaculture Community Gardens in partnership with Four Winds American Indian Council and educational outreach across Colorado urban and reservation communities.
Shannon’s advocacy centers on food justice, environmental health, Indigenous healing, and youth empowerment. She has trained and inspired community members through gardening workshops, garden expansion projects, and leadership development activities. She has served on the Four Winds Council (as Board Chair) and the leadership council for American Indian Movement of Colorado (AIM), strengthening ties between community-based initiatives and broader Indigenous organizing networks. Spirit of the Sun and Shannon have garnered recognition for their impact, including the 2020 Human Rights Award from Youth Celebrate Diversity and the 2023 “From Action to Nourishment” Award from Denver Food Rescue. Shannon herself was honored with the Justin B. Willie Humanitarian Award (2014, Navajo Nation) and the Cesar E. Chavez Female Leadership Award (2015) for her pioneering work in Indigenous gardening and community-building.
Beyond Spirit of the Sun, Shannon is a sought-after educator and speaker at national and regional forums, including Bioneers, White Earth Indigenous Farming Conference, Dartmouth College, Denver Green Festivals, and the National Environmental Education Association conferences. In 2023, she was named a Livingston Fellow through the Bonfils Stanton Foundation and was selected as the 2025 Career Accelerator award recipient by the Colorado Water Congress, recognizing her leadership at the nexus of food justice, environmental resilience, and Indigenous community health.
Shannon Francis’s leadership has elevated Spirit of the Sun into a beacon of cultural resilience and Indigenous environmental justice in Colorado. Her stewardship through community gardens, youth empowerment, and healing-centered permaculture work has created intergenerational impact, bridging ancestral knowledge and modern practice. Her legacy is one of reviving ancestral connections, restoring ecological relationships, and empowering Indigenous communities to heal and thrive well into the future.