Compromise brought contemporary artist Lin Fei Fei from China to Sacramento two and a half years ago. She and her husband “met halfway” while trying to decide on where to settle and call home, figuring that California split the distance between her husband’s hometown of Detroit and hers of Da Lian, China.

The #MeToo and #WeSaidEnough movements remind us that women’s voices, values and ideas must be heard and heeded — not only to take aim at a culture of harassment, but to empower future generations of women to achieve and succeed.

Sacramento can still be the place Ali Youssefi dreamed it could be. 

When Marybel Batjer left her C-suite position with Caesars Entertainment in Las Vegas to run California’s newly-created Department of Government Operations in 2013, Gov. Jerry Brown tasked her with a big mandate: Make the Golden State’s government more efficient. Five years later and recently named one of Governing magazine’s 2017 Public Officials of the Year, Batjer sat down with us to discuss what she’s done to make that a reality.

Kelly Gillett, vice president of the Women in Leadership club at UC Davis, and board member of WEAVE’s retail advisory board, offers her insight into attracting more women into leadership roles in both the business and nonprofit world.

Kristina Thompson, chief deputy of the Sacramento Probation Department, offers her insight into the changes in her department. 

Donna DeMartino, CEO of the San Joaquin Regional Transit, offers her insight into the regional transit industry.

More than half of U.S. business women, 80 percent of all female tech leaders, the majority of female legislators and nearly every female astronaut got their start in Girl Scouts.

Carmela Castellano-Garcia, president and CEO of the California Primary Care Association, offers her insight into the challenges facing the California health care industry, and the changes to come.

Amitis Pourarian, owner of The Studio Martial Arts & Fitness in Roseville, offers her insight into the changing dynamics of family fitness and martial arts.

In leadership, critique itself matters less than what you do with it.

Chandra Pappas, executive vice president at staffing company Nelson offers her insight into workforce strategy. For more from Pappas, check out “Strength in Numbers” in our March issue. Sign up for our newsletter and we’ll email you when it’s available online.

Zahra Ammar is one of five moderators of Contemporary Quilling, a growing global network of serious papercrafters, created as a reaction to the traditional Quilling Guild, which upholds strict guidelines based on the craft’s historic origins. Comstock’s recently spoke with Ammar about leading a papercraft rebellion, and what drives this Capital Region artist.

Connectivity between the capital city and one of the leading research universities in the nation is an obvious essential ingredient if our region’s diverse set of assets are to be leveraged collectively. This is particularly relevant as UC Davis and the City of Sacramento work together to provide the jobs and lifestyle amenities more likely to keep university graduates in the region.

Ellen Hanak, director of the Water Policy Center at the Public Policy Institute of California offers her insight into California water management.

The suburbs have long served as a symbol of opportunity in California, where families could realize the ‘American Dream’ of homeownership, expansive lawns and ample parking. But for many, suburban growth has instead been synonymous with racial and economic segregation, nightmare commutes and environmental degradation.

Krista Bernasconi, owner and principal of KFB Public Affairs, and member of the Community Priorities Advisory Committee and Roseville Planning Commission of the City of Roseville offers her insight into the challenges facing the city with dwindling sales tax revenue

Comstock’s chats with Cyrus Abhar, city manager of Rancho Cordova, about growth in the rapidly developing suburb.

Community foundations have a long tradition of helping to bring about thoughtful, effective change. As 501(c)(3) tax-exempt public charities, they enable people to easily and effectively support the issues they care about, including education, youth, arts, social services, environment, recreation, public health and more.

Comstock’s goes behind the screens of @FreeArtFridaySacramento to discuss the importance of accessibility in art and what the duo hopes to achieve with the project.