Ahead of World Water Day: Global Water Works Showcases “Future of Water”

March 18, 2022-Libertyville, IL-In advance of World Water Day, Global Water Works brought five water experts together for a virtual showcase to discuss how the future of water can be connected, efficient and renewable.

A recording of the event is now publicly available in a Global Water Works Playlist, and video captures from 5 speakers cover the opportunities for Lakes, Utilities, Villages and Buildings: http://bit.ly/FutureofWater

Discussions of looming water crises often forecast a grim future. Yet the speakers in the virtual showcase argue that a bright future is already here if enough people can get on board with solutions at hand.  This year’s World Water Day, March 22, offers an opportunity for all to showcase these solutions:-

For LAKES AND RESERVOIRS — While many waterways are compromised by pollutants, a holistic, nature-based process is now extending our built infrastructure into nature, restoring lakes and waterways.

• Dave Shackleton discussed a biotechnology-enabled process that is eradicating harmful algae blooms and research suggests can boost property values as much as 22 percent.

Wayne Carmichael,  —internationally  -recognized expert on Toxic Cyanobacteria joined the conversation to reiterate the need for action.  While the last 50 years have focused on identifying toxicity problems and monitoring for pollutants, the speakers noted nature-based solutions are now available to balance the nutrient load and eradicate harmful algae blooms.

In CITIES—Most water utilities miss problems as they happen, spotting trouble only after resources are wasted or households harmed. 70% lack comprehensive digital monitoring and system modeling.

• Gigi Karmous-Edwards and Chris Sosnowski discuss the digital transformation of our utilities, providing real-time visibility, insights. A migration to digital monitoring can happen within a week and at a cost that approximates a cell phone bill.

Karmous-Edwards and Sosnowski brainstormed with participants about ways to encourage adoption of game-changing digital technologies by utilities small and large. Their discussion included a look at new business models that could provide creative ways to finance these projects.

In VILLAGES—The global poor don’t want handouts and one-off solutions. They want opportunity and access. But often, water-stressed villages in rural Africa and Asia also lack reliable electrical power.

• Jon Kaufman’s GlobalWaterFirst puts control of water and energy in the hands of local villagers, tapping private partners to fund solar energy, pumping and filtration systems. The result is water, sanitation and hygiene for the 2.2B who currently go without.

With his breakout group, Kaufman and other experts emphasized the wealth creation in communities made possible by linking sustainable energy to sustainable water in “smart villages.” They also had an honest discussion of mistakes, a rare topic in public forums. Learning from mistakes in sustainable development accelerates positive change.

In BUILDINGS— Monitoring in-building water use is essential for us to capture 30-50% of water currently ‘lost’ for lack of solutions being put in place.

• Hariharan Chandra and a confederation of citizen action leaders in India show how households and developers can save 25-60% on demand for freshwater—with simple strategies.

When water is consciously regarded as an element of individual health and a cornerstone of community and ecological health, solutions that move from the individual to the household to the community catch on quickly. Chandra shared an account of a household rainwater harvest project in India that’s saving lives and livelihoods.

Global Water Works organizers and Co-executive Directors, Mary Conley Eggert and Frank Slovenec echoed the optimism of the speakers.  “While millions have advocated for wiser water stewardship, it’s only in the last few decades we’ve had the sensors, analytics and global connectivity to support visibility and real-time management of our world’s water resources,” says Eggert.

Slovenec, a pastor, Impact Investor and technology executive, who joined Eggert as Co-executive Director in 2020, acknowledged the opportunity every person on the planet has today – thanks to technology. “The Global Water Works platform and technology showcase links 2200 water professionals across 85 countries to support the collaboration on solutions.  We invite all in search of solutions to tap the people, processes and technology who are making water work.”

ABOUT GLOBAL WATER WORKS. Global Water Works is a 501(c)(3) community of 2,200 + members representing 85 countries, connecting the people, process and technologies to solve the global water crisis.

• The first-of-its-kind knowledge base includes a global Water Tech Showcase of 100+ water technology companies with proven water solutions and case studies.
• A global calendar of EVENTS offers extensive education and networking opportunities, many of which are free.
• Groups support more intimate communications on focused topics or regional efforts, providing a collaboration space to support and advance initiatives of partners, including The Water Tower, SWAN Forum, Israel WATEC, Water and Waste Management, the International Centre for Clean Water, the World of Water Action Forum and more.

Examples like these and ongoing educational programs are accessible via: www.globalwaterworks.org.

CONTACT:

Mary Conley Eggert, 312-282-6048, mary.eggert@globalwaterworks.org

Frank Slovenec, 415-297-9048, frank.slovenec@globalwaterworks.org

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RESTORED LAKES, LAGOONS:

Dave Shackleton, Founder and CEO, SIS.BIO, DaveS@sis.bio

Dave Shackleton is the Co-Founder and CEO of SIS.BIO, a provider of biotechnology solutions to support “Renewable Water.”  The SIS.BIO team has delivered solutions to water quality management in Europe, Africa, the USA, Asia, and Australia, addressing wastewater treatment of all kinds (municipal, livestock, industrial) and in eutrophic lakes, dams, and reservoirs of all size and depth. Dave brings more than 30 years of leadership roles with transformational technologies, ranging from the first digital music recording studios to digital satellite TV, cellular telephony, internet service provision, e-commerce, software and IT services, establishing dominant players in their markets. He has a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Cape Town, South Africa.

DIGITAL WATER AND WASTEWATER UTILITIES

Gigi Karmous-Edwards, Founder, Karmous-Edwards Consulting, gigi@gigikarmous.com

Gigi Karmous-Edwards has spent the majority of her 25+ year career on state-of-the-art digital technologies, including IoT, big data, data analytics, control and automation, and most recently Digital Twin technology for the water sector. She is the founder and co-chair of the SWAN Digital Twin H2O Work Group to help advance the use of much-needed holistic utility management using digital twins. She collaborated with SWAN and Julius Education on the development of an online introductory course “Demystifying Digital Twins” (https://www.swan-forum.com/digital-twin-course/). As CEO of Karmous-Edwards Consulting, she consults for global utilities, technology companies, and smart cities on the development of digital twin technologies and digital transformation. She has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering.

Chris Sosnowski, CEO, WaterClick and Waterly Software, Chris@waterlysoftware.com

Chris is the founder of Waterly Software and is responsible for making sure the vision of Waterly stays clear and all about the precious resource of water and the good stewards that make it safe to drink and use. With 20+ years of water technology engineering and consulting experience, along with an entrepreneurial spirit and care for those he serves, he works with utilities on how to best use technology to work for utility leadership.

SMART, CONNECTED VILLAGES:

Jon Kaufman, Founder, Global Water First, LLC, jkaufman@globalwaterfirst.com

Jon joined Rotary eight years ago to start a different kind of water project, one that elevated women and established independent villages. H2OpenDoors has installed 33 robust water plants in 11 countries, many of which are enterprises raising revenue for essential social services. Jon’s book, Long Walk on a Dry Road, chronicles these expeditions where he has brought over 500 to immerse in the cultures and provide service. GlobalWaterFirst intends to scale up this work to create hundreds of water and power plants throughout the world. Jon has owned the Silicon Valley marketing firm of Kaufman, Levine & Partners for 30 years.

GREEN, RESILIENT BUILDINGS:

Hari Haran Chandra, Founder, AltTech Foundation and World of Water Action Forum, Hariharan@alttech.foundation

Dr. Hariharan Chandrashekar is an Indian ecological economist, founding and presiding over urban people-led movements for urban sustainability on water and energy, a mentor for green enterprise, and enabler of industry directions on sustainability and resilience, at the building scale and the city scale.   His current preoccupation has been with the pioneering citizen action initiative, WOW Action Forum and the multi-city WOW Partner City Network that spans cities across South Asia, Africa and the Americas to help citizens and bulk water-users adopt local solutions for water efficiency. WOW is a citizen-led action for demand-side water management with voluntary compliance and solutioning sustainable options for saving water, money, energy and carbon.

Tags: SmartCity, WaterTech, WorldWaterDay, DigitalUtility, WaterEfficiency, GlobalWaterCrisis, WaterSavings