Andrea celebrates one-year anniversary with CalWild

• December 8, 2022
• CalWild

2023 is an exciting year for many reasons – particularly for Andrea Iniguez, our Riverside County Public Lands Fellow through the Wyss Fellows Program, as it marks her one-year anniversary of working for us. Born in Jalisco, Mexico, Andrea immigrated to Southern California with her family at the age of two. Now a resident of California for over 27 years, Andrea is an important member of the CalWild team working on our Protect California Deserts campaign.

Wyss Fellow Training | Santa Fe Caja Del Rio

“The past eleven months working for CalWild have been exceedingly memorable and impactful to my life,” states Andrea. “With the support of CalWild, I’ve had the opportunity to build so many meaningful connections with my community, while simultaneously supporting conservation efforts throughout California that are close to my heart. This is a dream I’ve been working towards since I was a teenager, so it’s hard to believe that I’m almost halfway through my two-year fellowship.”

Andrea was inspired to transition into a career in public lands advocacy by her love of California’s natural landscape and a profound sense of responsibility to the success of her community. She feels motivated when she is able to collaborate with others to make a positive change, so she is thrilled to work with Riverside community leaders and members to protect California’s beautiful and diverse public lands.

“As a member of CalWild, I’ve had many wonderful experiences, including attending my first Latino Conservation Week event. I’ll never forget my visit to Santa Fe, New Mexico where I held my first tarantula. I’ve gone on countless hikes throughout the country and camped under a bed of stars more than once. However, the memory of flying over Riverside County and seeing a bird’s eye view of everything we are trying to protect is something I will treasure forever. I am super excited about this next year and all the growth and opportunities it will bring!”