Conservationist Rialin Flores is working to protect the environment for all Idahoans

Rialin Flores is one of USA TODAY’s Women of the Year, a recognition of women who have made a significant impact in their communities and across the country. The program launched in 2022 as a continuation of Women of the Century, which commemorated the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote. Meet this year’s honorees at womenoftheyear.usatoday.com.

The day Rialin Flores stood on the steps of the Idaho Statehouse and looked out over a crowd of hundreds who showed up to support her organization's conservation efforts, she knew she had succeeded in bringing Idahoans together to protect their public lands. 

As the executive director of Conservation Voters for Idaho, Flores works to elect politicians from across the political spectrum who prioritize protecting the environment. With a passion for environmentalism and civil society, she has made it her mission to preserve Idaho's democracy, clean air, water and nature for the Idahoans of today and future generations.

As successful as Flores is, it hasn't been an easy journey. The mixed-race Latina has fought against adversity her entire life – her father was a farm worker with a seventh-grade education and her mother was in and out of the foster care system as a child. The path to professional success was anything but laid out for her. They moved around a lot, and Flores learned at a young age to adapt to her environment.

And adapt she did, moving on to become a first-generation college graduate and the executive director of a nonprofit. But on her path to success she did not forget the mantra "lift as we climb" that was imparted to her by her own female mentors. She has created internships, mentored students and employees, and participated in women-focused leadership groups that, she says, "help ensure that my perspective and the unique path that I took into where I am today can be seen by others so that they can see themselves in leadership in general in the future."

For her commitment to conservation in her community and beyond, Flores has been named USA TODAY's Women of the Year honoree from Idaho.

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Who paved the way for you? Who did you pave the way for?

I think there were probably generations of women in my family who helped pave the way for me. And then, throughout that journey, I had incredible educators who regularly saw me as a first-generation student navigating certain systems. They kept me moving.

As I work to navigate organizational leadership and leadership within my community, I have always sought to connect with others and find ways in which we can bring more people into the work. Whether it's creating new internships, mentoring students on campus, or being a part of women-centered leadership groups: To help ensure that my perspective and the unique path that I took into where I am today can be seen by others, so that they can see themselves in leadership in general in the future, as well.

What is your proudest moment?

In 2017, we were seeing some attacks on public lands in Idaho. We worked with a coalition of partners to bring together folks to the Statehouse and it ended up being a Saturday in the middle of the afternoon. There was a rally. I walked around the statehouse and saw the front steps crowded with people across the street into the park, across from the statehouse, and I got to stand at the podium with incredible leaders in the conservation community in Idaho. And to just see the crowd: It was young families and fifth-generation Idahoans wearing their camouflage head to toe, and folks who are either hunting or hiking.

And it was such a powerful moment – to remind me that when I step into spaces with elected officials, who aren't always so friendly to our issues, or who need room to grow when it comes to being supportive of our policy positions – that I never stand in those rooms alone; I'm never testifying in front of a committee alone. There are people across the state who deeply believe in Idaho's natural heritage and in protecting what we all enjoy as part of our quality of life for future generations.

But it was a reminder of the power of people, and that we never shape this policy or politics in a vacuum.

What is your definition of courage?

The willingness, when things are really hard, to take that next step forward and to keep advancing and fighting for what you believe in. And I also think it's a willingness to say the thing that needs to be said, that not everyone's necessarily ready to hear, but in a way that brings them in.

I think there's courage there.

Is there a guiding principle or mantra you tell yourself?

Sometimes it's just "keep swimming." It's also "lift as we climb," a mantra that I heard early on. I know that many folks helped make room for me, and I hope to continue to make room for others.

Who do you look up to?

I have always I've been fairly lucky to work mostly for women in my career. And I would say I've had several bosses who are not just bosses, but mentors and friends, who were honest about the challenges of leadership, and particularly, most recently, of being a working mother. I had bosses who modeled what it looked like to be our whole selves as we grow as leaders, but also the challenges in balancing being a working mother.

How do you overcome adversity?

I have been navigating adversity most of my life. My father was a migrant farm worker whose education stopped at around seventh grade. My mother grew up in and out of the foster care system, and we moved 24 different times by the time I was 18. I was always ready to navigate.

Being flexible. Being OK with things changing is the resiliency that's needed when there's a challenge or loss or frustration. And so taking both what I learned about resiliency throughout my childhood into a professional career.

What advice would you give your younger self?

I remember when I was younger standing on the toilet in the bathroom to look at myself in the mirror and just envisioning who I was going to be when I grew up. And I remember, a lot of that had to do with what I thought success would be. I thought success would be, you know, I'd have all the brand names. I'd have Captain Crunch cereal and all the milk I wanted. I'd have the outfit, the car, and the house. And I remember having this moment when I think I was like 25 remembering that reflection of my younger self.

So, for me, I would tell myself instead of paying attention to what people define as success and leveraging those as your benchmarks for where you're going, pay attention to the people along the way who are consistently there for you, who are honest, who helped bring joy to your life, but also, who are there in the hard times and help make life just a little bit easier. Those are the things that are going to matter when it gets really hard.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: USA TODAY's Women of the Year honoree for Idaho is Rialin Flores