CHANGING THE NARRATIVE OF WOMEN & WHITEWATER

CHANGING THE NARRATIVE OF WOMEN & WHITEWATER: A conversation with Alison Steen, owner of Yellow Jacket River Guides

This workshop has already taken place but you can view the recording!

Where We Gather is a virtual workshop and conversation series created by AdventurUs to bring women together around learning, leadership, and the outdoors. Each session centers real, honest dialogue with women who are actively reshaping outdoor culture—while creating space for connection, reflection, and collective growth.

This series is rooted in the belief that meaningful change happens when we gather—to listen, to learn, and to imagine new possibilities together.

Whitewater rafting has long been dominated by male leadership—but that’s not the whole story, and it doesn’t have to be the future.

In this inaugural Where We Gather conversation, we sit down with Alison Steen, one of the few women rafting company owners in the industry, to explore what it means to lead, guide, and build inclusive community on the river.

Together, we’ll discuss:

• Why women remain underrepresented as rafting guides and guide owners

• The barriers women face entering and staying in the whitewater industry

• How women-centered trips foster confidence, safety, and belonging

• Why inclusion must be intentional and welcoming to all women, including trans and non-binary participants

• Why AdventurUs and Yellow Jacket River Guides, as two women-led, mission-driven companies, are coming together for a Women’s Salmon River Trip this August—and why this partnership matters

From Conversation to Experience

This workshop is just the beginning.

This August, AdventurUs and Yellow Jacket River Guides will bring the ideas discussed in this conversation to life on the Women’s Salmon River Trip—a multi-day whitewater experience designed around women’s leadership, inclusive community, and shared growth on and off the river.

Join us for the conversation. Then join us on the river.

👉 Register for the workshop and Explore Our Women’s Salmon River Trip