S. Geoffrey Schladow

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Davis

Dr. Schladow is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Davis, and from 2004 through 2023 was the founding Director of the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC). TERC is producing the critical scientific studies and predictive modeling that is underpinning the restoration of Lake Tahoe and lakes and reservoirs at locations around the world.

Dr. Schladow’s research has focused on the interactions between the complex fluid motions found in nature and their impacts on water quality, ecosystem health and watershed processes. He has published over 300 research papers and technical reports, and has guided over 100 graduate students. Dr. Schladow has expertise in both field data collection and numerical modeling, and has brought together teams of researchers to work on large, interdisciplinary projects across the globe.

Sudeep Chandra

Department of Biology, University of Nevada, Reno

Sudeep Chandra serves as Director, University of Nevada, Reno Global Water Center Solutions for Sustainability, the Ozmen Institute for Global Studies, and as co-Director for the Lake Tahoe Science Advisory Council. He also serves as the Director for the Castle Lake Environmental Research Station, which was founded in 1959 by Dr. Charles R. Goldman at UC Davis; the station is home to the longest running mountain lake science collection in North and South America. Researchers and students at the Station answer important science questions about environmental changes in mountain lakes and their watersheds. In 2012–13, Sudeep served the national science community of the United States by serving as a Director for the Ecosystem Sciences Program at the US National Science Foundation.

Sudeep’s research program focuses on the conservation of aquatic ecosystems and the betterment of livelihoods through the development of science-based environment policies. He advocates for cooperative international research that assists people in developing countries. His interest in international research began in 1997 when he participated in the Tahoe-Baikal Institute’s annual environmental exchange program, which brought him to Lake Baikal, Russia. In 2003, he was awarded his 1st international research funding from the Trust for Mutual Understanding and the National Geographic Society to investigate the impacts of mining activities in the Lake Baikal watershed in Russia and Mongolia. This work led to the development of a project funded by the Global Environment Fund and World Bank to use faith-based, economic generation initiatives to protect Mongolian culture and livelihoods during a period of rapid economic development and the transition to democratic governance. Towards that end, University of Nevada Researchers have continued to use scientific information that conserve the world’s largest trout of Mongolia, the Taimen. You can see a movie about their work, Fertile Waters.