A podcast featuring conversations with influential and interesting people from the water sector and news from the Water Environment Federation.
November 10, 2022
Ifetayo Venner is the new President of the Water Environment Federation and a Senior Vice President at Arcadis. In this episode, Ifetayo discusses her journey in water, from her time growing up in the Caribbean to her work for Arcadis. She also talks about WEF’s new Strategic Plan, including the goals of building the water workforce, community, and circular economy.
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February 3, 2022
Mike Martin is Technical Services Director at the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District and Chair of WEF’s Utility Management Committee and Zonetta English is Strategic Initiatives and Project Delivery Director at the Louisville Metropolitan Sewer District and Vice-Chair of WEF’s Utility Management. In this episode Mike and Zonetta discuss some of the current issues and trends in utility management, including data management, workforce development, diversity, affordability, and PFAS. They also share how they are tackling these areas at their utilities in Milwaukee and Louisville. These topics are part of the programming at WEF’s Utility Management Conference on February 21-24.
Episode #209
Hosted by Travis Loop
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January 26, 2022
Pam Elardo is Deputy Commissioner at the Bureau of Wastewater Treatment at New York City Department of Environmental Protection. She visited the WEFTEC Live studio in October 2021 to discuss the evolving landscape of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the water sector, what actions we can take individually and organizationally, and the effects that these actions can have. At WEFTEC, Pam also helped facilitate a peer-to-peer Learning Exchanges focused on LGBTQ+ issues in the workforce, and she talked about her personal journey in water.
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May 12, 2021
Megan Yoo-Schneider is Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Municipal Water District of Orange County and President of Seven Management and Consulting. Donnell Duncan is an Associate Vice President at Arcadis. In this episode Megan and Donnell discuss the efforts by the Water Environment Federation (WEF) to address diversity, equity, and inclusion issues within the organization, among its membership, and across the water sector. They talk about the ongoing work and expected impact of the DE&I Subcommittee of the WEF Board of Trustees and the DE&I Work Group of the House of Delegates. Megan and Donnell explain why they volunteer their time and that transformation in the water sector will be a process. Learn more about WEF’s DE&I work on this web page.
Episode #186
Hosted by Travis Loop
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March 8, 2021
Rebecca West is President of RFW Consulting Services and a Past-President of the Water Environment Federation. In this episode Rebecca shares her perspectives on leadership, dealing with adversity, and adapting. She draws from her experiences in the water sector, volunteering overseas, serving on the WEF Board during the 2008 economic downturn, and the coronavirus pandemic.
WOW: Take It From The Top
Hosted by Tom Kunetz
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November 10, 2020
Moriah Brown, Nadine Robertson, and Kayson Smith-Bejgrowicz are participants in the Water Environment Federation’s InFLOW program, which stands for Introducing Future Leaders to Opportunities in Water and identifies promising students from underrepresented minority groups who are interested in professional careers in the water industry and provides them scholarships to attend WEFTEC. In this episode they discuss how little they knew about water careers before InFLOW and how it was encouraging to interact with water leaders that reflected diversity. They also explain how InFLOW changed their perceptions of the water sector and led them toward water careers, with Nadine now working as an operator in New Orleans and Kayson as an engineer in Honolulu.
This episode is part of a series of conversations on the Words On Water podcast about equity and the water sector. It is co-hosted by Travis Loop and Rahkia Nance.
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September 21, 2020
Cathy Bailey is the Executive Director of Greater Cincinnati Water Works, Randy Hayman is the Commissioner and CEO of the Philadelphia Water Department, and Tony Parrott is CEO of Louisville and Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District. In this episode they talk candidly about their experiences as Black Americans working in the water sector and reaching the level of utility executive, including sharing examples of discrimination and racism they encountered along the way. Cathy, Randy, and Tony discuss how it feels to be Black Americans in leadership positions and how utilities should address issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion.
This episode is part of a series of conversations on the Words On Water podcast about equity and the water sector. It is co-hosted by Travis Loop and Rahkia Nance.
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August 5, 2020
Jackie Jarrell is the President of the Water Environment Federation and Interim Deputy Director at Charlotte Water, Nikita Lingenfelter is Speaker-Elect of the WEF House of Delegates and an Engineer with the State of Nevada Department of Environmental Protection, and Stephen Sanders is Director and Head Trainer at The Environmental Training Center at Morrisville State College. In this episode, they discuss how WEF has responded to the calls for equity for Black Americans and the work of WEF’s Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Task Force. Nikita and Stephen talk about their experiences as Black Americans working in the water sector and how WEF can improve diversity and equity for its members and volunteers. They also share personal perspectives on racism in America.
This episode is part of a series of conversations on equity and the water sector. It is co-hosted by Travis Loop and Rahkia Nance.
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December 9, 2019
Ifetayo Venner is Water Sustainability Leader and Wastewater Service Line Leader at Arcadis and a member of the Board of Trustees for the Water Environment Federation. In this episode Ifetayo explains how growing up in the Caribbean led her to work in water and how her varied educational experiences and degrees shaped her career. She talks about the reasons the water sector needs to increase its diversity, not just in gender and race, but also in skill sets, education, perspectives, and life background. Ifetayo discusses how students and young professionals should seek out a variety of experiences to discover the direction that is best for them.
Episode #115
Hosted by Travis Loop
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November 13, 2019
Valerie Lucas is the Executive Director of the Clean Water Professionals of Kentucky & Tennessee. In this episode Valerie explains why the organization changed its name to better communicate with the public about the water sector’s work. She talks about collaborating with the Louisville water utilities and four breweries to create their version of Pure Water Brew called Next Round. Valerie also discusses how she has seen the role of women in water change during her career and why it is important to increase the number of women in the industry.
Episode #114
Hosted by Travis Loop
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April 2, 2019
Mel Butcher is an engineering consultant at Arcadis, facilitates a career support group for women in male-dominated fields called CollabSuite, and is launching a podcast for Empowering Women in Industry. In this episode, Mel discusses what the low number of women in the water workforce means for those individuals and the whole sector. She talks about challenges women continue to face, from overt sexism to unconscious bias, and how both male and female colleagues can be allies in addressing these obstacles. Mel also says that there are many opportunities for women to have an impact on solving water challenges and the sector should have more honest conversations about diversity and inclusion to better reflect the communities they serve.
Episode #84
Hosted by Travis Loop
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December 17, 2018
InFLOW is a new program from the Water Environment Federation that stands for Introducing Future Leaders to Opportunities in Water. In this episode, WEF staff Morgan Brown and Rahkia Nance explain that InFLOW identifies promising students from underrepresented minority groups who are interested in professional careers in the water industry and provides them scholarships to attend WEFTEC. In its first year, 16 students from Howard University, Tuskegee University, and the University of South Florida participated in the program. Three of those students – Maya Carrasquillo, Sigmund Skinner, and Faith Oviawe – discuss their experiences with InFLOW and perspectives on water careers.
Episode #69
Hosted by Travis Loop
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October 9, 2018
Tom Kunetz is the new President of the Board of Trustees for the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and Assistant Director of Monitoring and Research for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD). In this episode, Tom discusses his priorities for the next year as WEF President, which include increasing the diversity of the water workforce and expanding resource recovery by utilities. He also talks about his work at MWRD, the rebound of the Chicago River, and his involvement in comedy.
Episode #58
Hosted by Travis Loop
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