Accomplishments
Fellowships:
- Castanea Fellow
- Native and Indigenous Rights Fellow for the Harvard Divinity School.
Awards:
- Distinguished Alumnus Award, University of Utah Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology, 2022
- Outstanding Research Award, Southern Utah University College of Health, 2012
The Basics
Expertise: Health Behavior, Health Promotion
Title: Ph.D. Candidate
Current Institution: University of Arizona
Previous degrees: Master of Science in Nutrition from the University of Utah
“I do this work because it’s important. Having a voice in public policy, reclaiming narratives, and protecting ancestral lands is crucial for future generations.”
Cynthia was born and raised in Tsé Bii’ Ndzisgaii. She is of the Bit’ahnii Clan and born into the Kinyaa’áanii Clan.
Where I'm From
Cynthia Wilson is a Tribal member of the Navajo Nation, born and raised in Monument Valley, UT. She holds a Master of Science in Nutrition from the University of Utah and is a first-year Ph.D. student at UC Berkeley in Environmental Science, Policy, and Management.
My Why
I focus on Indigenous food, water, land, ontological environmentalism, and Indigenous political ecology in social science. When I began my journey in nutrition, I realized that it was heavy in Western science and it was missing a lot of the traditional food knowledge which encompasses more than food as something we consume, but food as a living breathing being. When we relate to our food, the land, water, medicine, and our way of life it becomes more of a reciprocal relationship moving beyond just a food system.
Advice
Knowledge comes from your fireplace, reconnect with your roots, be present in your community, and make time for the knowledge holders to uplift the story of your ancestors.
My Research
Ancient use and long-distance transport of the Four Corners Potato (Solanum jamesii) across the Colorado Plateau: Implications for early stages of domestication
Written by Lisbeth A. Louderback, Bruce M. Pavlik, Cynthia Wilson, Stefania L. Wilks, Kaley Joyce, Sara Rickett, John Bamberg, and Alfonso del Rio.
Published: January 21, 2026
Abstract: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.033567
Indigenous Stewardship of Ancestral Lands Activates Land and Culture: Will We Listen?
Written by Cynthia Wilson, and Gavin Noyes.
Published: January 15, 2025
It Is Time to Reclaim Our Lands and Data: Steps for Ethically Engaged Environmental Research with Indigenous Communities
Written by McKalee Steen, Leke Hutchins, Cynthia Wilson, Alexii Sigona, Anaalise Taylor, and Mindy Price.
Published: July 4, 2024
Research Article: https://doi.org/10.1089/env.2023.006
Plant species richness at archaeological sites suggests ecological legacy of Indigenous subsistence on the Colorado Plateau
Written by Bruce M. Pavlik, Lisbeth A. Louderback, Kenneth B. Vernon, Peter M. Yaworsky, Cynthia Wilson, Arnold Clifford, and Brian F. Codding
Published: May 17, 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2025047118
Wilson, C., & Noyes, G. (2024, February 21). Grassroots Strategies at Bears Ears National Monument, Utah. Indigenous Co-Stewardship of Public Lands: Lessons for the Future. Rohnert Park, CA.
Wilson, C., Campbell, W., & Mach, S. (2023, November 16). Caring for Navajo Culture: In Museums and Beyond. Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology. Cambridge, MA.
Wilson, C. (2023, August 4). Indigenous Leadership Summit. Native Forward Scholars Fund. Albuquerque, NM.