Allison Williams - Rooted In Stewardship

Photo Credit: Allison Williams

Is our relationship to the outdoors connected to our heritage? Allison believes so; she has Muscogee Creek ancestry on her father’s side and feels an intense connection to the lands. She says, “I’m indigenous; my family was forced from their ancestral land, placed on the Trail of Tears, and relocated to Florida.”  As Allison Williams learns more about her own history, it compels her to honor nature. She does this through environmental stewardship and teaching others how to treat the lands with respect in a realistic and achievable way.

Allison is a Public Information Officer based in Wichita, Kansas, who flies out to wildfire hotspots throughout the US. She is an essential personnel member who disseminates information to the public about wildfires in their community. Her position is multifaceted, as residents may see her standing in front of the grocery store or hear her on a radio interview, providing information online in real-time. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, more than 7.7 million acres have burned (NIFC 2026). With so many fires burning at the same time, there are a lot of different sources for people to receive information, so when Allison is working on an incident, she makes sure she’s not only the top source but is also having conversations with people about pulling factual government information to place on their sites. 

Photo Credit: Allison Williams

She took basic firefighter classes and gets recertification every year. There are standard classes for public information officers and others for incident command classes on leadership and working in disasters. Once you have those fundamental classes, you must go out on assignments and get a whole checklist of things done before being signed off. She is on call throughout the Wildfire season, which mainly takes her out West during the warmer months and home to the state of Kansas in late winter.

Allison’s outdoor career started after graduating from the historical black college, Southern University in Louisiana. She worked as a lifeguard with MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Recreation), and although she loved swimming, she had never swum in an Olympic-sized pool. “To be honest, I didn’t think I was going to make it”, she said about passing her swim test for the job. She passed and became a lifeguard and swim instructor for almost 10 years, even working in Osaka, Japan. 

As fulfilling as this career was, Allison craved change, and in 2011, while in the Congaree National Park, she met some people from AmeriCorps. She aligned with their mission of protecting the land and began working with the non-profit as a volunteer and community outreach coordinator. A renewed passion for the outdoors formed as she helped with building and maintaining trails, all while strengthening communications between trail managers and outdoor organizations. Allison used her time at AmeriCorps to strengthen her environmental education through numerous training courses, teaching informal education tied to the Wilderness Act and embracing any environmental opportunities that came her way. It eventually led her to a federal career. Allison moved to Las Vegas and worked at the Hoover Dam guiding visitors on tour to teach its history. Over the years, she worked in National Monuments and Forests, educating visitors about not only history but the ecosystems and importance of the lands.  She continued to educate herself, taking classes and becoming an Environmental Master Educator, teaching about Leave No Trace Principles. She conducted workshops and offered hikes to tell others how to make a positive and sustainable impact in nature. 

Yoga and the Start of a New Journey

Photo Credit: Allison Williams 

Allison has studied and practiced yoga for nearly 20 years. As COVID hit in 2020, she used the time to become certified in Rocket Yoga and Vinyasa teacher training specifically for black practitioners. Feeling burned out from her job with the government, Allison decided to pursue a 500-hour yoga teacher and sound healing training at the Nepal Yoga Home. It was an intensive month-long course running from 7 am – 7 pm. Speaking of her training, Allison says, “I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love the school I went to. I do wanna go back. I want to learn more. That training was a gateway for change." She described her time in Nepal as more than training but an evolution in her practice. 

Fueled by her new yoga experience, Allison came back to the United States ready to start fresh with a new direction. She started an affinity group named The Sunflower Collective Outdoors. Her philosophy behind the business is to create spaces for wellness, conservation, and tourism that are affordable. When it comes to the outdoors, she says, "Removing barriers and making the outdoors more accessible is always at the forefront of my mind."

She wants to walk people through places and teach them about conservation and the history of the national parks and other spaces where the government is attempting to erase.  Allison expresses, “when  people who feel ownership of the lands are more likely to advocate and protect them.” As an indigenous woman, Allison also wants to ensure Sunflower Collective Outdoors includes creating ways to strengthen Native owned businesses. 

She started a YouTube channel to instruct yoga online but also teaches in her local park. “People value wellness and value an instructor that looks like them.” Allison says when speaking about hosting with the group Black People Hike Las Vegas who has partnered with them over the last 3 years. These encounters are meaningful to her because it gives her validation that she is on the right journey in helping others feel grounded.   

Embracing Time in Nature and Adversity

When she is not helping with wildfires, Allison can be found emerging herself in nature. She loves the connection and peace the outdoors brings. On a recent rafting trip down the San Juan River, she camped five days in the backcountry with a NOLS Instructor and 10 others. They were bordering BLM and Navajo Nation Lands traveling through untouched lands that felt outwardly with their cliff walls and historical ruins. She describes one of the nights as, “cozy” and “the sounds of the river flowing beside the camp felt soothing to my soul”, she continued, “this is sovereign land, not just American soil!” Allison loves to look for spots to hike or camp on public lands and in national forests.  Finding places where she feels grounded are very important to her, she enjoys taking her sound healing bowls with her to practice yoga and meditation.

Photo Credit: Allison Williams 

Adversity is something Allison knows a lot about. During her time working for the Federal government, she was one of a very few black women on the job. She felt she had to know more and work harder to be accepted. She has been questioned about her knowledge as an outdoor educator, and yet her dedication to her field hasn’t wavered. When it comes to stewardship, Allison reflects on her instinct to intervene and the need for maintaining self- restraint: “I must tell myself not to react, not to do anything. Don’t pick up that trash!” She thinks, “There is a time and place for everything, and hopefully I make it off the trail.” She adds that she watches people’s faces to gauge if it’s safe to say something. 

Advice for Others

Her advice for entry into outdoor adventure is to hike local trails or camp at a state park. Use the resources that are available to you, such as finding groups in your area. Going out with a group takes away some of the stress and allows you to meet others with the same interests.  You can observe and decide if it is something you want to continue to pursue. “Research the activity”, she suggests. “For example, if you want to go kayaking or backpacking, you can find group trips that work with your skill level.”  She also believes you don’t need the most expensive gear and admits she loves to thrift for camping and other outdoor equipment.  

Allison is a great example of what stewardship is. She embodies the spirit of her heritage and the ability to create kinship with the lands through education and awareness needed to teach others to want to fight to protect our parks and forests for future generations. You can follow Allison on her YouTube channel or Instagram at The Sunflower Collective Outdoors. 

Sources

“Coordination and Cooperation in Wildland Fire Management.” National Interagency Fire Center, www.nifc.gov/. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.