The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Becky Mitchell and Douglas Kenney will kick off the 2025 CB Public Policy Forum Summer Speaker Series, June 24, from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Center for the Arts. They will be joined on stage by Julie Nania in a moderated discussion on The Colorado River, big river issues and water scarcity.
On Tuesday, we hope to engage our experts in educating the community about these issues and sharing the current state of discussions about the future of the Colorado River.
Becky Mitchell is the State of Colorado’s Commissioner to the Upper Colorado River Commission. Mitchell took on this upgraded role in July 2023 to enhance the state’s position in Colorado River interstate issues and negotiations on the operations of Lake Mead and Lake Powell. She is an accomplished water leader with more than 20 years of experience in the water sector and is highly knowledgeable in Colorado water law. Mitchell was also appointed director of the Inter-Basin Compact Committee (IBCC) in 2023. Mitchell’s appointment has strengthened and integrated water policy discussions happening across the state and the Colorado River Basin.
Doug Kenney has been with the Getches-Wilkinson Center at the University of Colorado Law School since 1996, where he is the director of the Western Water Policy Program, the chairman of the Colorado River Research Group and the host/organizer of the summer water conference. He researches and writes extensively on water-related issues, including law and policy reform, transboundary resource management and climate change adaptation. Dr. Kenney has served as a consultant to a variety of local, state, multi-state and federal agencies, including several Interior Department agencies, EPA, the U.S. Forest Service and special commissions (e.g., the Western Water Policy Review Advisory Commission); and national governments and non-governmental organizations in Asia and Africa.
Julie Nania is the executive director of the Coldharbour Institute and a faculty chair at Western Colorado University and teaches in areas that address water, restoration, and land management practices. She graduated from University of Colorado School of Law in 2011 and received her B.A. in International Studies from the University of Washington in 2007. Her career began as a fellow at the Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and the Environment at the University of Colorado Law School, where she worked with federal Indian tribes on federal reserve water rights issues. This early experience set the stage for her love of water resources. Since moving to the Gunnison Valley in 2014 she has served on the Gunnison Basin Roundtable and, for eight years, as a dedicated board member for the Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District.
The Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District is co-sponsor of this event.
The Public Policy Forum is free and open to the public and takes place each Tuesday beginning June 24 and culminating on August 12. All events take place at the CB Center for the Arts.
