Tribes in American Southwest give 'personhood' status to the Colorado River

Tribes in the Southwestern United States are taking a big step to protect the Colorado River by giving it rights like a person.

In November 2025, the council for the Colorado River Indian Tribes, or CRIT, passed a resolution establishing "personhood" for the river.

"It established that this river is a living river," said CRIT Chairwoman Amelia Flores. "It is living. It gives life, not only to the people who live along its banks, but again, to the animals, to the trees, to the air that we - it gives life to the air that we breathe."

CRIT is comprised of four tribes that live along the Colorado River on the Colorado River Indian Reservation in parts of Western Arizona and Eastern California. The tribes include the Mojave, Hopi, Navajo and Chemehuevei tribes.  Establishing "personhood" is an effort to ensure the river's resources can be available for generations to come.

"We look at the river in the Western way as a commodity, something that we can generate revenue from," said Chairwoman Flores. "But we miss the mark of who it is as a spiritual being, as a living being, as a provider for the people."

According to CRIT's legal team, the move is intended to be protective, not punitive. For example, if an entity wants to lease water from CRIT, the law will require that there also be actions taken to address the needs of the river during that transaction. Some of those needs could include training or scholarships for tribal members or contributions to conservation and habitat preservation efforts.

As states in the American Southwest continue negotiations over water allocations from the Colorado River, CRIT is hoping the "personhood" status will help them gain leverage in discussions.

"We've been left out of the talks, out of the discussion," said Chairwoman Flores. "And so, if we're not part of the solution, it's not going to work. Tribes, if they're left out, we're going to be back square one again."

About a month after establishing personhood for the Colorado River, CRIT joined another tribal group and conservation group in Arizona in December 2025 in a proclamation to protect the river.

Production by Erica Stapleton/Reuters