Rita Schmidt Sudman

Rita Schmidt Sudman Rita Schmidt Sudman is a long-time observer of the California water scene. She served as executive director of the respected Water Education Foundation for 34 years, and now is its senior advisor. A former radio and television reporter and producer, she has a master's degree in telecommunications. At the Foundation, she and her team won three regional Emmys, and several Emmy nominations for public television documentaries. She has served on numerous boards including the...See more

Rita Schmidt Sudman Rita Schmidt Sudman is a long-time observer of the California water scene. She served as executive director of the respected Water Education Foundation for 34 years, and now is its senior advisor. A former radio and television reporter and producer, she has a master's degree in telecommunications. At the Foundation, she and her team won three regional Emmys, and several Emmy nominations for public television documentaries. She has served on numerous boards including the University of California President's Advisory Commission on Water and the national board of Water For People, an international program for water in developing countries. She has received awards from major agricultural, environmental and urban water groups including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Groundwater Resources Association and the Service to the Water Industry Award from the American Water Works Association. She was named a "Superhero" by the California State Fair for her water education work. Stephanie Taylor Artist and essayist Stephanie Taylor captures images of people and places in paintings and words. Driven by curiosity, location and audience, Taylor responds with whatever materials are most suited to interpret the meaning of a place, from paint, steel, and cement to words. With a degree from UCLA in history, she's inspired by site and how people relate to each other. Taylor has been a working artist since 1977. She has created countless exterior murals and sculpture projects in California, and site-specific installations, sculpture and paintings for major institutions and collections all over the United States, and in Paris and Kyoto. In addition to commissions, she exhibited in fine art galleries for many years. In 2006, Taylor received a masters in sculpture, along with a renewed interest in writing. Since 2011, she's been a freelance contributor to the Sacramento Bee Sunday Opinion; "California Sketches" combining her paintings and essays. She is a licensed artist in Disney's fine art program. Articles about her work have been published in the Sacramento Business Journal, Los Angeles Times and international design magazines. She has been interviewed about her work and art issues on NPR's Capitol Public Radio. See less