Ted Sommer

Ted Sommer was a 2023–24 PPIC-CalTrout Ecosystem Fellow and is an adjunct fellow at the PPIC Water Policy Center. In 2021, he retired as lead scientist for California Department of Water Resources, an organization with more than 3,000 employees statewide. During his 30-plus-year career, his research focused on the development of management solutions to California’s natural resources problems. His projects included work in the state’s waterways, particularly the San Francisco Estuary and its watershed. Since 2000, he has published more than 70 scientific papers, several of which have been used as the basis for improved management of native aquatic species in California. He holds a PhD and master’s degree in ecology from the University of California, Davis and a bachelor’s degree in aquatic biology from the University of California, Santa Barbara.