Contact: Mary Juhl; (651)-215-9008
NISSWA, Minn. — Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) leadership presented Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) Outreach and Communications Manager Kendra Sommerfeld with the 2025 Outstanding Watershed Organization Employee award today during the Minnesota Watersheds annual conference in Nisswa.
“It’s an honor to recognize the excellence of professionals like Kendra Sommerfeld, who work diligently to improve and protect Minnesota’s water resources and advance conservation priorities in their districts by sharing their work broadly,” BWSR Executive Director John Jaschke said. “The passion and dedication demonstrated by local government staff is what drives successful conservation efforts throughout the state.”
Sommerfeld leads outreach and communication efforts for the RCWD, which serves nearly 30 cities and townships across four metro-area counties. Since joining the district three years ago, Sommerfeld has transformed RCWD’s outreach efforts by building meaningful partnerships with community organizations. Her accomplishments include leading RCWD’s website redesign in 2023, creating the district’s first ArcGIS story maps, and integrating strategic communications planning into district programs and initiatives.
Sommerfeld expanded RCWD’s support for local educators and schools by providing resources and funding that led to incorporating stormwater education and creating “live classrooms” on school grounds through rain gardens and native plant installations. She created the district’s Visual Arts Media Program to integrate art into stormwater education, and completed RCWD’s first public art installations in Fridley, with another on pace for completion in 2026.
“Sommerfeld helps ensure that RCWD’s work is visible, understood and celebrated by the public,” said RCWD Administrator Nick Tomczik. “By cultivating strong partnerships, she expands RCWD’s capacity by multiplying the district’s impact through collaboration. Public engagement, website traffic, workshop attendance, social media interactions and grant applications have all increased dramatically under her leadership.”
Each year, BWSR celebrates the excellent work accomplished by local government staff to advance conservation efforts across the state.
