CPH 32 — Finding Her Way Home to Her Navajo Identity: A Conversation with Caroline Davis, MPH

In this deeply reflective conversation, Caroline Davis, MPH—a member of the Navajo Nation and executive director of a Native-led organization—shares her journey of finding her way back to her Indigenous identity after years of distancing herself from it. She speaks candidly about growing up as a white-passing Native kid on the reservation, navigating rejection and belonging, and reshaping her path in public health. Caroline also reflects on using her access to challenge harmful systems, finding a professional home where her full identity is valued, and holding a bold vision for a public health future rooted in equity, Native knowledge, and community care. She shares her dream of returning to writing as another way to honor her story.

Meet Caroline Davis, MPH

Caroline Davis (Diné) is a dedicated leader in Indigenous public health, health equity, and social justice. Born and raised on the Navajo Nation in Northern Arizona, Caroline is of Navajo and Irish descent. She brings over a decade of experience working at the intersection of public health and Indigenous community well-being.

Caroline holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Northern Arizona University and a Master of Public Health from New Mexico State University. Her career has spanned maternal and child health, mental health, disease prevention, social and environmental health, and healthcare workforce development. She is deeply committed to community-centered approaches and has provided training and technical assistance to Tribes and Tribal organizations across the country, with a focus on research and evaluation rooted in Indigenous values.

Caroline serves as the Executive Director of a national Native-led non-profit and co-leads her own consulting firm, working to challenge and transform the ways government agencies and non-Native institutions engage with Tribal communities. Her work is grounded in the belief that Indigenous knowledge and leadership must guide all health and healing efforts.

Caroline lives in Colorado with her husband, three children, and two cats. Outside of work, she enjoys mountain biking, hiking, and exploring her creative side through art and writing.

Listen To This Episode of The Courageous Public Health Podcast

Conversation Highlights

• Growing Up Between Worlds & Coming Back to Herself — Caroline reflects on being a white-passing Native kid on the Navajo reservation, facing rejection from both sides of her family, and later reconnecting with her identity through motherhood, traditional practices, and public health.
• Navigating Identity, Tokenism, and Courage — She describes the dual reality of being questioned by some and treated as a “safe” Indigenous hire by institutions, and how she found the courage to challenge white saviorism and push for culturally grounded approaches in her work.
• Finding a Native-Led Home & Reimagining Public Health — Caroline speaks about the healing of joining a Native-led organization that values mixed-race Native experiences, her vision for a public health system rooted in equity and Indigenous knowledge, and her hope for universal care and fully resourced schools.
• Reclaiming Creativity and Future Dreams — Looking ahead, she shares her desire to settle into stability and return to writing fiction and children’s books, bringing her identity journey onto the page.

“Being white passing gives me access—so I use that access to challenge tokenism, white saviorism, and the way systems talk about Native communities.” — Caroline Davis, MPH

Stay In Touch:

Caroline Davis, MPH on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-r-davis-mph-b59713105/

 

Dr. Kristi McClamroch on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristi-mcclamroch/

www.CourageousPublicHealth.com

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