Community

Environmental Activist Rhea Suh Named New President, CEO of Marin Community Foundation

Suh spoke at the 2017 Women’s March on Wash., D.C., and has also appeared as a media commentator for the New York Times, Washington Post, MSNBC, NPR, and other news outlets.

Published

4 years ago

August 21, 2021

Isabelle Price

Rhea Suh rallies the crowd at the Women March on Washington, D.C.; Photo Courtesy of NRDC

Rhea Suh, who was the past president of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) from 2015 to 2019, has been hired as the president and CEO of the Marin Community Foundation (MCF). Dr. Thomas Peters, MCF’s longstanding president, announced his retirement in June 2020. Suh was selected in June of 2021 and will assume the position on Sept. 7, 2021.

According to the MCF’s press releases, Suh was born and raised in Boulder, Colo., by Korean immigrants who left the country after the Korean War. Suh’s father, Chung Ha Suh, worked as automotive engineering specialist at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and her mother, Young Ja Suh, was a homemaker. She also has two sisters, Betty and Maggie.

Suh graduated with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Barnard College of Columbia University in 1992. While a student at Barnard, Suh taught earth science at Stuyvesant High School. After receiving a Fulbright fellowship to South Korea where she studied environmental movements, she attended Harvard Kennedy School and earned a master’s degree in education, administration, planning, and social policy. Her graduate school project focused on helping the U.S. National Park Service by establishing a formal education program at schools around the country.

Suh served as the assistant secretary for policy, management, and budget at the U.S. Department of the Interior from 2009 to 2014. She was nominated for this position by former President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate in 2009.

She successfully developed a diversity program for the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and guided the Administration’s successful effort to have the Native Hawaiian community become a federally recognized tribe. This allows them to have a government-to-government relationship with the United States, with the responsibilities, powers, limitations, and obligations attached to that designation, and is eligible for funding and services from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Suh also worked at the David and Lucile Packard Foundation where she developed a $200 million program dedicated to environmental conservation and clean energy in the West and helped to establish the first-ever collaboration among nonprofit organizations to coordinate conservation efforts across the Colorado River Basin.

Rhea was the president of the NRDC from 2015 to 2019. The organization grew to more than $50 million and increased its membership by more than 40%. She led nearly 500 scientists, attorneys, and policy experts and made NRDC one of the country’s most effective environmental action organizations. She led the creation of a 10-year strategic plan, reorganized the NRDC, helped steer the discussions that led to the historic global climate agreement in Paris.

Suh championed the settlement for the residents of Flint, Mich., regarding the drinking water crisis.

Suh spoke at the 2017 Women’s March on Wash., D.C., and has also appeared as a media commentator for the New York Times, Washington Post, MSNBC, NPR, and other news outlets.

The Marin Post’s coverage of local news in Marin County is supported by the Ethnic Media Sustainability Initiative, a program created by California Black Media and Ethnic Media Services to support community newspapers across California.

Isabelle Price

Posts by Isabelle Price

Up Next

African American Bay Area woman successfully launches natural hair care collection in the middle of the Pandemic

Don't Miss

Gov. Gavin Newsom Speaks Out on Recall Attempt: Urges ‘No’ Vote on Sept. 14 Special Election

Isabelle Price

Click to comment

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of November 5 – 11, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 5 – 11, 2025

Published

5 days ago

November 7, 2025

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

#NNPA BlackPress

Michael: The King of Pop’s Story Returns to the Big Screen

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The curtain has finally lifted on one of Hollywood’s most anticipated films. Lionsgate has unveiled the official trailer and release date for “Michael,” the sweeping biopic about Michael Jackson that has been years in the making.

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

The curtain has finally lifted on one of Hollywood’s most anticipated films. Lionsgate has unveiled the official trailer and release date for “Michael,” the sweeping biopic about Michael Jackson that has been years in the making. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film will arrive in theaters on April 24, 2026, with the singer’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, stepping into the spotlight to portray his legendary uncle.

The trailer wastes no time rekindling the aura of Jackson’s genius. Opening with a studio scene between Jackson and his longtime producer Quincy Jones, played by Kendrick Sampson, the clip builds from a quiet, familiar rhythm to the electrifying pulse of “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’.” Viewers catch glimpses of the singer’s childhood, flashes of “Thriller,” and the silhouette that redefined pop culture. Each frame reminds fans of why Jackson remains unmatched in artistry and influence. The cast surrounding the late pop king’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson, reads like a who’s who of Black entertainment and music history. Colman Domingo plays Joe Jackson, Nia Long portrays Katherine Jackson, and Larenz Tate takes on the role of Motown founder Berry Gordy. Laura Harrier portrays music executive Suzanne de Passe, while Kat Graham embodies Diana Ross. Miles Teller plays attorney John Branca, a towering entertainment lawyer and longtime Jackson confidant who later became co-executor of his estate. The film’s journey to release has been as complicated as the icon it portrays. Production wrapped in 2024, but legal hurdles over depictions of past controversies forced extensive reshoots and editing delays. Even so, Fuqua’s film now appears ready to reclaim the narrative, focusing on Jackson’s creative ambition and humanity beyond tabloid noise. IndieWire reported that the film had faced “a massive legal snafu” over a disputed storyline but was retooled to center the music and legacy that defined generations.

Maven. Photo Credit: Glen Wilson

“Michael” promises more than a chronological retelling. It aims to explore how a child star from Gary, Indiana, became the world’s most influential entertainer. The script, written by Oscar-nominated John Logan, traces Jackson’s early years with the Jackson 5 through the triumphs and isolation of global superstardom. With Fuqua’s cinematic eye and producer Graham King—who brought “Bohemian Rhapsody” to life—joining forces with estate executors Branca and John McClain, the film is positioned as both a tribute and a restoration of Jackson’s cultural truth. Branca’s work behind the scenes has long shaped Jackson’s posthumous success. After the singer died in 2009, Branca and McClain took control of the estate burdened by debt and turned it into a global powerhouse worth billions. Under their stewardship, Jackson’s projects have generated more than $3 billion in worldwide ticket sales and landmark deals, including a $600 million joint venture with Sony earlier this year. At its heart, though, “Michael” is a story about artistry that transcends scandal. It offers a reminder that, despite the noise surrounding his life, Jackson’s music still bridges continents and generations. The trailer’s closing moments capture that spirit. As the beat of “Billie Jean” swells and Jaafar Jackson moonwalks into a spotlight, audiences are left with a familiar feeling—the awe of witnessing something timeless return home.

“Michael” opens worldwide in theaters April 24, 2026. See the official trailer here.

Stacy M. Brown

Posts by Stacy M. Brown

#NNPA BlackPress

Donald Trump Is the Biggest Loser

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The Trump Brand took a significant hit as it was swept up in the Democratic blue wave of the election last night.

Published

7 days ago

November 5, 2025

Oakland Post

By April Ryan

The Trump Brand took a significant hit as it was swept up in the Democratic blue wave of the election last night.

Chris Jones, Democratic candidate for U.S. House of Representatives (AR-02), says, “Last night was electric, and it was unquestionably a wave.” Democrats won big in what is widely considered a repudiation of Trump’s 9 months at the White House in his second term.

In the state of Virginia, which produced the first big election night win and saw the election of the first woman governor, Democrat Abigail Spanberger, 56% of Virginia’s residents disapprove of President Trump. In New Jersey, 55% of state residents disapprove of the president; in New York, 69% disapprove; and in California, 63% disapprove of the president. The Trump brand or his support for any candidates did nothing to benefit those he endorsed in this election. They actually lost in each race he publicly put his name behind. Trump endorsed former New York Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo, who lost the New York mayor’s race in his run as an independent. And New Jersey Republican Jack Ciattarelli, who ran for governor with the presidential endorsement, also lost his prospective race.

The next question is, will the democratic momentum be sustainable? Jones further explained, “This can become a 2026 tsunami, but turning a wave into a tsunami takes energy. A lot of energy. It doesn’t just happen. The conditions are there. Now we have to work!”

Some Democrats would argue that the work is already underway. The pushback against Trump’s national redistricting efforts received a thumb in the eye from California voters. Prop 50, California Governor Gavin Newsom’s counterbalance to President Trump’s redistricting efforts, passed in California last night. Although Trump’s name was not on the ballot last night, his Republican policies were. The United States has now entered the longest government shutdown in its history. Forty-two million Americans are not getting SNAP benefits. Economists are acknowledging that the government shutdown is contributing to the rise in delinquent debt in the student loan, automotive, and credit card industries. These items are among the negatives Americans are protesting against.

Compounding Trump’s political problems is a tariff battle that’s directly impacting pocketbooks. The day after the elections, the Trump administration was arguing before the US Supreme Court in favor of the president’s tariff powers. Meanwhile, President Trump‘s poll numbers are underwater, standing at a 37% national disapproval rate