Yousef Yousef

Yousef Yousef is an innovator at heart with an entrepreneurial mindset. From developing original technological solutions that are environment-friendly to setting up new businesses and coaching innovative startups into becoming scale-ups. His passion lies with the green scale-ups. Yousef is a proud CEO of LG Sonic, which is a leading example of what a green innovative SME can achieve.

LG Sonic’s mission is to fight environmental pollution and eliminate harmful chemicals in the water treatment industry. They invest in the design and development of innovative technologies to monitor and control algal blooms, a major environmental problem that degrades water quality and its ecosystem. With nearly 10 years of experience, we serve 12 different industries in over 55 countries. LG Sonic’s technology has won multiple awards including Coordinator of several European FP7 projects, Official Innovation Partner of American Water, Aquatech Innovation Award (2015), and Shell LiveWIRE Award (2014).

To learn more about LG Sonic, please visit https://www.lgsonic.com/

Eric Schwartz

Career trajectory: After receiving his undergraduate degree in mathematics and Ph.D. in marketing from the University of Pennsylvania in 2008 and 2013, respectively, Schwartz packed his bags and moved west to Ann Arbor, where he was an assistant professor of marketing from 2013 to 2020 and then became a tenured associate professor last year. After working in Flint with U-M students on lead issues in the water system, Blue Conduit — an AI startup that helps identify lead pipes — was officially founded in 2019. It has done work in Flint, Detroit, Benton Harbor and Toledo.

Proudest achievement: Developing Blue Conduit, which has received grant funding from Google.org, the California-based Internet giant’s charitable arm; Troy-based The Kresge Foundation; and the New York City-based Rockefeller Foundation. Schwartz said Blue Conduit is expanding to “dozens of other cities” beyond Flint. The company has grown from no revenue and one employee in 2019 to just shy of $1 million in revenue this year and more than a dozen full-time employees, Schwartz said.

What’s next: Getting Blue Conduit “in the hands of as many communities as possible,” Schwartz said. A second goal is developing a second line of business applying AI to other public health issues, such as tracking legionella bacteria in water, for example.

Words of wisdom: “When you get that burning gut feeling that you should be doing something that you’re not doing yet, you probably should do it,” Schwartz said.

Seyi Fabode

Seyi Fabode has been at the forefront of product management, technology adoption, and strategy within the utility industry as an analyst, operator, consultant, and company founder. His education spans metallurgical and materials engineering, system manufacturing, and strategic management. He has been recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice in Technology in 2016 and 2017. Seyi is the author of ‘Antifragile Grid’, ‘Advancing Technology and the Utility Industry’ and ’40 Semi-Obvious (Startup) Lessons’.

Seyi is the founder and CEO of Varuna Tech Inc, which is the leading water distribution system monitoring company providing real-time visibility, awareness, and insights into water utilities. The company helps water utilities become more efficient, reduce operational costs, and make better financial decisions by deploying a network of sensors and cloud-based software. Varuna is backed by leading investors and has participated in the Urban-X Program backed by BMW-Mini as well as the prestigious Imagine H2O Accelerator.

To learn more about Seyi and his company please visit http://www.varunaiot.com

Cynthia C Baughman

Cynthia Baughman grew up in California’s Silicon Valley and started programming in high school. After developing an interest in technology, she pursued a Bachelor of Science from San Jose State University in Business – Information Systems and a minor in Cybernetic Systems. She holds several certifications, including NIMS, Business Continuity Planning, Project Management, and Business Relationship Management.

Cynthia is a strategic technology leader with 35 years of experience working in all aspects of IT and innovation. She has worked for the City of Garland, TX, for 25 years, previously serving as the IT Network Services Manager; as an IT Business Relationship Manager; and she currently serves as the Water Utilities Technology Director, overseeing technology and system operations. She joined the Water Utilities division in 2014 to lead the cultural change and implementation of their asset management system. Cynthia and her team support all Water Utilities technologies from GIS and asset management, to SCADA and Cybersecurity. She also serves as the Logistics Section Chief in the City’s Emergency Operations Center.

Cynthia considers herself a life-long learner and loves to share her lessons learned with others. As a member of Women in Technology, Women in Cybersecurity, and the Alliance of Technology and Women, she helps to promote STEM careers to children and teens. She speaks on a variety of topics including asset management, project lessons learned and best practices, crisis communications, and cybersecurity.

Anthea Sargeaunt

Anthea Sargeaunt is CEO of 2S Water, where they have developed the world’s first sensor for detecting metals in water in real time. She has an MBA, is a 3x entrepreneur, and a mother of two. Anthea received the Clean50 2021 for her research and development work. She was voted Startup Alberta’s Most Promising Startup Entrepreneur 2019, and her company has been awarded the Covergx Precommercialization award for the best new technology with applications in industry and defense and was selected by Famae as one of the top 100 best water innovations worldwide.

Mark Lambert

Mark Lambert is a senior executive with extensive experience in the Water and Environmental industries and has a strong track record of success in the management of successful organizations. Mr. Lambert has held various senior management positions in the Water Industry including IDE Americas, American Water, U.S. Filter Corporation, Culligan and Imperial Chemical Industries. He is a managing partner at WaterMark Resource Development, which is a project development firm focused on developing, building, and managing water infrastructure and related assets in California and the Southwestern U.S.

Mr. Lambert is actively involved in the water industry community. He serves as an Imagine H2O mentor. He also serves as an advisor to Oneka Technologies; developer of zero energy ocean water desalination systems. Mark is also an advisor to Olympus Capital and Prodos Capital. Lambert has been previously an active member of the international Desalination Association (IDA), American Water Works Association (AWWA), and Water Quality Association (WQA) and has served on several AWWA and WQA steering committees including the Point of Use committee and was a founding member of the WQA World Assembly.

To learn more about WaterMark Resource Development, Inc, please visit https://www.watermarkrd.com/team-strategic-partners.

Julie Bliss Mullen

Julie Bliss Mullen co-founded Aclarity to sustainably and cost-effectively clean
the world’s most challenging waters. Julie invented Aclarity’s primary technology
as a PhD Candidate at UMass Amherst where she studied innovative water
treatment technologies. Previously, she worked at the US EPA’s Drinking Water
Unit in Region 1 in engineering and policy development. Julie holds degrees in
Environmental Engineering and Environmental & Sustainability Studies from
Worcester Polytechnic Institute. She has been recognized as a 2019 Forbes 30
Under 30 recipient in Science, 2019 Lemelson-MIT Award recipient, and 2018
Innovator of the Year by NEWIN/NEWEA. Her most rewarding role yet is being a
mom.

To learn more about Aclarity, please visit https://www.aclaritywater.com/

Megan Glover

In Episode 9 of The Water Entrepreneur podcast, Megan Glover talks about the impact of winning the Imagine H2O Accelerator competition and how it validated her vision and her company.

Megan Glover is a successful B2B Software Marketing and Sales Executive that saw an incredible need to improve our nation’s lead in drinking water programs that protect public health. She became the proud CoFounder & CEO of 120Water.

120Water launched it’s first product, a lab-certified consumer test kit, in May 2016. Since then the company has developed and deployed Enterprise cloud software and additional kits that help Government Agencies, Public Water Systems and Facilities (such as School Districts & Daycares) execute lead in drinking water programs. 120Waters software has been deployed to manage over 150,000 locations, across 12 states that impact over 3.4M lives.

To learn more about 120Water, please visit https://120water.com.

Jose Ignacio Galindo

In Episode 8, Paul and Jose Galindo discuss how national football clubs and company founders have unique cultural traits based on history and experiences.

Jose Ignacio Galindo has a Masters in Engineering from the Technology Institute of Buenos Aires. Jose worked as a Google Ambassador and as Chief Sales officer of Wolox. Jose has founded two companies. He is currently the co-founder and CEO of Waterplan (YC S21).

Jose was a speaker and delegate in several international business and entrepreneurship conferences in Europe, USA, and Asia and is now part fo the Board (Learning co-chair) of the argentine Chapter of Entrepreneurs Organization, the most prominent global network exclusively for Entrepreneurs. He is also a Global Shaper from the World Economic Forum, a network of inspiring young people under the age of 30 working together to address local, regional, and global challenges.

Jose Ignacio is an avid learner and passionate about purpose-driven entrepreneurship, growing businesses, and social causes. Herolens was one of the first 100 Argentine companies to be certified as a B company, a new kind of business that balances purpose and profit. This is a community of leaders, driving a global movement of people using business as a force for good.

Some of José areas of knowledge are: Software as a Service, SaaS, Networking, Sales, B2B, B2B Sales, SaaS Sales, Sales Process & Execution, Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), Goal Setting & Execution, People Management, Organizational Design, High Growth, Customer Success, Customer Service, Strategy, Strategy Planning Process, Scaling Up, Coaching, Servant Leadership, Tech Startup, Product Startup, Bootstrapped growth, Exit, Providing feedback & Candor, Early Startup Stages, three-figure growth, Values and Purpose Finding, Culture.

To learn more about Jose’s company visit http://www.waterplan.com/.

Sally Gutierrez

Sally C. Gutierrez is the Director of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Technology Innovation Cluster Development and Support Program within the Office of Research and Development (ORD). This new effort seeks to advance environmental protection in tandem with economic development through the formation of community based public private partnerships. She has been leading EPA’s efforts to leverage its research and development capability in Cincinnati, Ohio with community based assets to establish the region as a water technology innovation hub and is leading an effort to network water innovation clusters across the U.S. (http://www2.epa.gov/clusters-program).

Prior to this new appointment, she was the Director of the National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL) in Cincinnati, Ohio for 8 years. NRMRL is one of three Federal research laboratories within the USEPA’s ORD and consists of 400 scientists and support staff. The Laboratory is responsible for conducting engineering and environmental technology research to support the Agency in policy and regulatory development and implementation.

She was the Director of the Water Supply and Water Resources Division in NRMRL before becoming its Director and was responsible for leading a national technology demonstration program for control of arsenic in drinking water. Before coming to EPA she was responsible for administering water programs for the State of Texas environmental agency in the areas of drinking water, water monitoring, wastewater permitting, dam safety, water rights and utility rates.

As a member of the Senior Executive Service, she holds the highest career rank in the Federal government. In 2015, she was awarded the Federal Laboratory Consortium’s “Laboratory Director of the Year” and the Cincinnati area YWCA Career Woman of Achievement award.