By Joe Arney
Photos by RJ Sangosti
Photographer RJ Sangosti carved out a niche in environmental journalism because crime stories had a way of following him home when he was working general assignment for The Denver Post.
鈥淚 want to stop people, make them think, and elevate how we are conserving water and planning our growth in the West.
鈥擱J Sangosti
He鈥檚 still doing great work鈥攂ut it鈥檚 still following him home.
Sangosti has been at the Post and through other channels, including a Scripps Environmental Journalism Fellowship at CU Boulder. He also has received grants from CMCI鈥檚 to travel and hire artists to showcase his work on the river.
That support emboldened him to approach the story of a local river as a national crisis鈥攁 key goal of the Water Desk, which is dedicated to improving journalism connected to the Colorado River, especially around changes driven by climate, population and politics.
鈥淭he fellowship made me aware that journalism is not just the one big story鈥攊t鈥檚 about helping people understand and tell stories about the river,鈥� he said.
A Gunnison native who grew up fishing and playing in the Taylor River, Sangosti hopes his work creates a visual story of the river that inspires others, including widespread sharing of his photos through the Post and, one day, a comprehensive website with photos, charts, maps鈥攅ven drawings from Indigenous people who live nearby.
鈥淚 want to stop people, make them think, and elevate how we are conserving water and planning our growth in the West,鈥� he said.听
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