A generational native of Bayou Liberty, Louisiana, Colette Pichon Battle is the Vision & Initiatives Partner at Taproot Earth, a global and time-bound political project advancing climate justice through Black liberation and Indigenous Sovereignty.  She is a trusted voice in the climate justice and Black liberation movements, and her work focuses on creating spaces for frontline communities to gather and advance climate strategies that support the collective stewardship of water, energy, and land.

Internationally, Colette is recognized for her impactful use of legal and judicial strategies to advance environmental goals. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2023 Heinz Award for the Environment, the 2022 Catalyst Award from Rachel’s Network, and the 2022 William O. Douglas. In 2020, she was selected to give a TED talk on climate migration which launched her global work on the human right to migrate inside of a new climate reality. In 2019, she was selected as an Obama Foundation Fellow for her work with Black and Native communities on the frontline of climate change in the US. In 2016 Colette was named a White House Champion of Change for Climate Equity and in 2015 she was selected as an Echoing Green Climate Fellow advancing social entrepreneurship inside of climate disaster recovery.

Colette earned her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio and received her Honorary Doctorate (2018) and her law degree from Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.