Rick Reiff is a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist. He has been with the Orange County Business Journal since 1990. He served 10 editor and originated and wrote the paper’s “OC Insider column for 15 years. From 2004 through 2018, Reiff hosted and produced “Inside OC with Rick Reiff” and “SoCal Insider with Rick Reiff,” which aired on PBS SoCal, KDOC-TV, and Cox Cable. “Inside OC” won the Golden Mike Award for Best News Public Affairs Program in Southern California, Division B, in 2011 and “SoCal Insider” won the same award in 2012 and 2013.

John M. W. Moorlach ran unsuccessfully for Treasurer-Tax Collector in 1994 but would become a significant personality in Orange County because of predicting the then-largest municipal bankruptcy filing in United States history.  He would be appointed to replace the disgraced incumbent, serving in the position from 1995 to 2006.  He successfully ran for Orange County Supervisor, serving from 2006 to 2015, and the State Senate for the 37th District from 2015 to 2020. John has visited every county in California and photographed nearly all the official state historical landmarks.  He served as Vice President of the California Sesquicentennial Foundation and is a member of many historical societies.  He has been published in several history books and numerous newspapers and publications around the county, state, and nation.

Mimi Cruz is director of communications for the School of Social Ecology at the University of California, Irvine. She was part of the Connected Learning Alliance from 2014-2018, serving as communications manager for the Digital Media and Learning Research Hub, which was run by the UC Humanities Research Institute. Mimi has more than two decades of experience in communications, having worked as a journalist, including 14 years at the Los Angeles Times, and as a higher education public information officer. Her work in journalism and public relations has earned a number of awards over the years. 

Joone Kim-Lopez is the CEO/General Manager of the Moulton Niguel Water District, which provides water, wastewater and recycled water services to six cities in South Orange County. Joone serves on The Alfred E. Alquist Seismic Safety Commission, The Water Environment Federation’s Diversity and Inclusion Task Force, UC Irvine Water Leadership Board, Water Education for Latino Leaders (WELL) Board, BAYWORK Advisory Committee for its Digital Worker Initiative, The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People California/Hawaii Executive Committee, The California State University, Fullerton Center for Real Estate Advisory Board, and The Korean American Coalition Board of Directors. She’s also a founding member of The California Data Collaborative, a non-profit representing 21 million Californians, focused on leveraging data and technology to enhance statewide water management policies.