Susan is currently completing her first book of non-fiction.
HER MANUSCRIPT won the 2018 Chris White
Award for the best memoir from Goucher College, where she graduated with an MFA in Creative Non-Fiction.
"Susan is a natural storyteller with an eye for visual detail and an ear for dialogue. She is able to imbue even painful memories with a touch of humor and the observational nuance of a social anthropologist.”
Wil S. Hylton, New York Times Magazine Contributing Writer, Author, Core Faculty Goucher College
The photograph of Susan was taken in Bergen, Norway 2017 when she was visiting her ancestral homeland to research her book.
RECENT PROJECTS:
Unesco Cid west & the Presidio Performing arts foundation / INTERIM director of COMMUNICATIONS, 2020
Susan joined the UNESCO International Dance Council West and Presidio Performing Arts Foundation (PPAF) team to create and establish a new cultural hub that welcomes performing artists from all dance genres, providing them with an international platform for performance and education. The nonprofit organization is committed to global dialogue and human connection through the artistry of dance and while supporting the arts in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area. The Presidio Performing Arts Foundation has been recognized by the U.S. State Department for “Distinguished Service in Cultural Diplomacy through Dance” and the European Parliament for “merging art and social justice.”
De-Extinction Project/ Community development consultant
Working with Stewart Brand and Ryan Phelan, Co-Founders of Revive & Restore, Susan initiated and implemented a conversation with the community of Martha's Vineyard to consider bringing back the heath hen, an extinct species.
The challenges: Many Islanders were first horrified by the idea, "We don’t want to turn our island into Jurassic Park?!!" Now Susan, an island resident, is more often asked, "What's taking so long?" The answer is simple: Science. When Susan offered to help Stewart Brand with his de-extinction project, she made it very clear - science wasn't her thing, or so she joked in her TEDx talk. Susan is a catalyst.
The solution: Susan soon realized her task was equally challenging as the science. She had to identify the stakeholders and determine how to win their support and, more importantly, the Islanders. The solution involved education in the schools and the clergy. Working with the press to help educate, writing press releases, coordinating and orchestrating an exhibit, recruiting the libraries, planning and hosting small talks, luncheons, and cocktail parties, designing the graphics, and holding an Island-wide town hall meeting. She equated it to the marketing behind the first moon launch. It wasn't too far off. Most of the funding for NASA came from TANG and the other corporations then. There was no big money behind de-extinction; it had to come from the community. As the project grew, Susan went from volunteering to officially join the Revive & Restore team as Community Development Consultant.
The Outcome: Most Martha's Vineyard residents came to embrace the idea after rediscovering their history, rooted in being the world's first conservationists when they attempted to save the last of the Heath Hens. A brainstorming session with the environmentalist leaders of the Island revealed even trying to bring back the health hen would benefit the residents and many native Island species. As a result, the de-extinction project has made significant progress. Susan also worked closely with Tom Chase, former Regional Director of The Nature Conservancy, Ryan Phelan the Director of Revive & Restore, and Steward Brand, on every aspect of the project.
Revive & Restore, a long now foundation project The Heath Hen de-extinction project on Martha's Vineyard.
alphabet soup, Founder, Writer, Catalyst, community builder
Alphabet Soup uses themed cooking, art, and garden activities to teach hundreds of families how to use food as a vocabulary to educate young children to become global citizens. There are over 100 themed lesson plans designed to make creative interconnections. Alphabet Soup was first envisioned as a PBS program in 1996 when Ward Chamberlin, WNET Managing Director, said, "Alphabet Soup could be the next Sesame Street." From 1996 to 2004, the pre-school program was taught in the San Francisco Bay Area. With a staff of eight, Alphabet Soup served 1000s of families from the Greater SF Bay Area. SF KRON 4 NEWS, reported by Emmy Award winner Emerald Yeh, aired a special segment. Susan has since renamed Alphabet Soup to Architects of Peace, focusing on its mission statement. She passionately believes Alphabet Soup has all the ingredients to raise a generation of Architects of Peace.
GLORIOUS LIVING, CATERING AND LIFESTYLE BUSINESS
Susan is the founder of Glorious Living based in New York City and Millbrook, New York. Working with foods from her organic garden at her farm in Millbrook, Susan catered events, was a personal chef, and sold her soups, Suzy Salads, pate, and pastries at her farmers market table. She specializing in creating healthy, organic, delicious cuisine, and entertaining.
ogivly & mather, SENIOR VP, Creative Director
Susan worked at Ogilvy for a decade during the period defined by globalization and the growth of Direct Marketing and Promotion campaigns. During her tenure, Ogilvy twice won the Agency of the Year Award (in 1985 and 1990). One project stands out in the vast collection of campaigns she worked on: "Cause-Related Marketing." In 1981, Ogilvy Promotions created a new type of promotion to boost card usage in regional markets. They coined the term cause-related marketing for American Express with their "Charge for the Arts" campaign. A few years later, while the hugely successful regional campaign was still rolling out in select markets across the country, they applied the same promotion on a national level for American Express. Thirty years later, “For Liberty’s Sake,” the Statue of Liberty restoration cause-related marketing promotion, continues to be taught at the Harvard Business School for its effective strategy.
cause-related marketing, thinking outside the box
I.M. Pei & Partners, graphic designer
Susan worked with the in-house graphic design team at I.M. Pei & Partners Architecture. Her primary projects were the MIT Media & Technology Lab - a collaboration of artists and architects - and the New York Jacob Javits Convention Center.
cooper hewitt Museum, exhibit Design and installation
Susan was a member of the startup team for the grand opening of the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Museum of Design in New York. She worked under the direction of Lisa Taylor and Dorothy Globus on MANtransFORMS, assisting Richard Buckminster Fuller and Hans Hollein on the installation of their rooms. The groundbreaking show is recognized for how it challenged the concept of what design means. Recently, there was an exhibition in Europe about the making of this exhibit.
Smithsonian institution, graphic designer
While studying graphic design at the Corcoran School of Art and George Washington University, Susan worked for the Smithsonian Division of Performing Arts and SITES, the traveling exhibits division. Susan worked on every aspect of the American Folklore Festival - from programs, books, brochures, and signage, to exhibits. It is where she learned, hands-on, every part of production in print, silkscreen, construction, and installation.