By Brian PowellFlinn Foundation Diana Rhoades has long been an advocate on behalf of parks and wildlands—whether it’s a large national forest or a small neighborhood park—through a career spent crafting public policy and strategic messaging. So it seems fitting…

By Brian PowellFlinn Foundation For most of his life, Gilberto “Gil”  Villegas rarely had politics on his mind. The Yuma County deputy chief financial officer, who has spent nearly his entire career in government finance, says after participating in the…

By Brian PowellFlinn Foundation Over a cup of coffee, an associate told Kim Hartmann that she had heard being on the Scottsdale Unified School District governing board was the most thankless job in the world. Hartmann responded: “Absolutely, you are…

By Brian PowellFlinn Foundation When one talks with Stuart Noggle about his hometown of Sanders, it is obvious how dedicated he is to the future of rural northeastern Arizona. Noggle is a multifaceted leader in his community. He holds public…

Flinn-Brown Fellows work within a vast number of the institutions that make up Arizona. Fellows represent large and small private businesses, nonprofits, educational institutions, and state, county, local, federal, and tribal government entities. They come from all walks of life,…

By Brian PowellFlinn Foundation As a college student, Amanda Stone went door-to-door in polluted neighborhoods, providing information and guidance to families affected by contamination. She was then a community-outreach intern with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. Today, more than…

“Flinn-Brown Takeaways” are short bursts of information and insight to help advance your own civic expertise. In this feature, Flinn-Brown Fellow Karen Francis-Begay shares her suggestions for collaborating with Tribes in Arizona. Karen is the Assistant Vice President of Tribal…