Koiya is a proud descendant of 5 Northern California tribes and is a member of the Yurok Tribe. He is a father of 4 boys and a fiancé to a wonderful partner. Koiya currently lives in Crescent City with plans to move to Klamath, CA, to live on the Yurok reservation. 

Koiya’s background is grounded in science with a B.S. in molecular and microbiology from the Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, and a M.S. in environmental microbiology from the University of Arizona. He was able to realize a childhood dream by returning to Yurok country to work on bringing balance back to the environment through sound science with culturally relevant priorities. For the last 10 years, Koiya has been a manager for the Yurok Tribe’s Environmental Department, working to mitigate illicit cannabis cultivation and the accumulative impacts of multigenerational mismanagement of solid waste streams.  

Outside of work, Koiya participates in cultural activities throughout Yurok and Tolowa territories. Through culture, Koiya finds a deep, meaningful purpose and finds guidance for how to prioritize family, place, and self. One of Koiya’s passions is fishing for chinook salmon, sturgeon, and lamprey in the Klamath River. Seeing the smoking rolling out of the smoke house is something he looks forward to every year. As a father of 4 athletic boys, Koiya has been a passionate coach for his sons' baseball, wrestling, and football teams.