About WaterNow Alliance

Water Leaders. Resilient Solutions.
OUR MISSIONWHO WE ARE

WaterNow Alliance is a network of local water leaders advancing sustainable, affordable, equitable, and climate resilient water strategies in their communities.

Our Mission.

WaterNow works to advance transformation in the urban water sector to accelerate the widespread adoption of equitable, climate resilient and environmentally sustainable water management strategies. We do this as a national network for local water leaders and decision makers, empowering them with the technical assistance, resources, and tools they need to implement innovative One Water drinking water, stormwater, and wastewater solutions in their communities.

WaterNow is a catalyst for change, and an architect for solutions. We identify and overcome financial and legal barriers to innovation. We provide a forum for collaborative action, and a network for local leaders to learn from each other. We provide capacity to communities to bring sustainable water management approaches to scale.

Our Focus: Unlocking the Power of Water Leaders

Local decision makers hold the keys to our water future. In fact, 95% or more of water infrastructure spending occurs at the community level, and 87% of people nationwide are served by public water utilities. While Federal and State agencies have a vital role – the policies, strategies and priorities established by local leaders have the power to fundamentally shift how we think about and use water.

WaterNow Alliance catalyzes action by:

  • ENGAGING our network of decision-makers and connecting them to ideas, resources and one another.
  • CHAMPIONING a sustainable water future by eliminating barriers and advancing solutions through our policy work.
  • DEMONSTRATING success by showcasing strategies that work and that communities can replicate and scale.
  • DELIVERING value for our members with an effective, well-run organization that leverages a diverse portfolio of funding.

View all the WaterNow Alliance Members.

%

of water infrastructure spending occurs at the community level

SPEAKING THE LANGUAGE

WaterNow Alliance definitions

Sustainability n.

Providing safe, healthy, and affordable water services for people while preserving the integrity of water resources and the environment for future generations

Resilience n.

The ability to anticipate, prepare for, and adapt to changing conditions and withstand, respond to, and recover rapidly from disruptions.

One Water exp.

Treating all water in communities – drinking water, stormwater, wastewater – as part of a unified and integrated system.

 

Equity n.

Equity is the fair and inclusive distribution of economic, political, social, and natural resources and opportunities to improve the livelihood of individuals and the overall health of society. Water equity means universal access to secure, affordable, safe, and healthy drinking water, and wastewater and stormwater management services. Equitable water infrastructure investment should support the long-term sustainability of our waterways, water systems, and utilities.

 

ALLIANCE STAFF

LEADERSHIP COUNCIL

RESEARCH ASSOCIATES

ADVISORY BOARD

Adam Davis | Partner, Ecosystem Investment Partners (EIP)
Adam Davis | Partner, Ecosystem Investment Partners (EIP)
Adam is Director of Research, Policy & New Markets for EIP, a private equity firm that invests in conservation and restoration actions nationwide.  A longtime expert in Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) and sustainability policy, Adam also cofounded the Ecosystem Marketplace, a global information service about conservation incentives, and was President of Solano Partners, Inc., a consulting firm focused on conservation finance issues.
Alan Viterbi | President/CEO, Liquid Environmental Solutions
Alan is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Liquid Environmental Solutions, a comprehensive provider of non-hazardous liquid and organic waste collection, transportation, treatment and recycling services.  Alan was the Mayor of West Hollywood, California, and a member of the City Council from 1984 to 1988.  He has also served on various public agency boards, including as Chairman of Los Angeles County Sanitation District 4.
Brad Udall | Professor, Colorado State University Colorado Water Institute
Brad’s expertise includes hydrology and related policy issues of the American West. He has researched water problems on all major Southwestern US rivers including the Rio Grande, Colorado, Sacramento-San Joaquin and Klamath, and has spent 6 months in Australia studying their recent water reforms.  He has provided congressional testimony, input to several National Academy of Science panels, and has given hundreds of talks on climate change impacts.  Brad was formerly the Director of the Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and Environment at the University of Colorado Law School, Director of the CU-NOAA Western Water Assessment and a consulting engineer and principal with Hydrosphere Resource Consultants.
Cameron Diehl | Executive Director, Utah League of Cities and Towns

Cameron Diehl became the Executive Director on October 16, 2017. Cameron studied political science at the University of Utah, was the Editor of the Hinckley Institute Journal of Politics, and later graduated from the University of Colorado School of Law. He started his career at ULCT as a legislative intern and returned to ULCT in 2010. During his time at ULCT, he has also been an administrative assistant, policy analyst, attorney, and Director of Government Relations. He previously worked for the Boys and Girls Club in Salt Lake City and coached basketball and football at Justice (CO), Fairview (CO), and Murray (UT) High Schools. He is an avid University of Utah fan; his paternal grandparents had their first date during the Utah State-Utah game on Thanksgiving Day in 1944 and Cameron and his family have been fixtures at Utah football games ever since. Meanwhile, his maternal grandparents met at BYU and his grandfather was later the mayor of Glenns Ferry, Idaho for 24 years. Cameron is a Murray native where he was a member of the Murray City Youth Council and attended ULCT Local Officials Day. Cameron and his wife Rachel are the proud parents of Annelise, who visited three national parks with her parents before she was four months old. Ask him anything about local government, Utah history, Utah football, Jazz basketball, or politics.

Clifford Gerber | Partner, Norton Rose Fullbright LLP
Sidley Austin is one of the largest law firms in the world with 1,700 attorneys in 19 offices around the globe.  Clifford is a nationally recognized expert in tax-exempt financing and oversees Sidley’s Tax Practice with respect to state and local bond financings on the West Coast.  He has been recognized in the Best Lawyers in America in Public Finance and Municipal Law. Clifford is President-Elect of the National Association of Bond Lawyers.
Dave Richins | President/CEO, United Food Bank
Richins has worked in nonprofit, government and corporate roles. Most recently, he served as a Mesa City Councilmember for District 1, completing two terms. He also worked for Resolution Copper, working with the Government and Community Affairs team performing outreach and education to Congress, the Arizona Legislature and local government. In that capacity, he also worked with local nonprofit organizations to help build their capacity to better serve the community. Richins helped start the West Mesa Community Development Corporation and served as its first Executive Director. He also helped launch the Sun Corridor Legacy Program at the Sonoran Institute, a think tank on western policy issues. Richins holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sustainable Community Development with a minor in Leadership from Prescott College.
David Aladjem | Partner, Downey Brand LLP
David regularly serves as counsel for agricultural and urban water users in complex multiparty water negotiations throughout California. David has served as Chair of the American Bar Association's Water Resources Committee, and Chair of the American Bar Association's Annual Water Law Conference. He is a recipient of ACWA’s 2009 Excellence in Water Leadership Award.
David Sunding | Professor, College of Natural Resources, UC Berkeley
David is a national expert in resource economics, regulation, technological change, applied econometrics, risk and public finance.  He is a co-director of UC Berkeley’s Water Center, and served as a senior economist on President Clinton’s Council of Economic Advisers. He has served on National Research Council panels, and testifies on environmental and resource issues, damages, valuation, cost allocation and resource planning.
George Hawkins | Founder and President, Moonshot LLC
George S. Hawkins just retired as General Manager of the DC Water and Sewer Authority. He now runs Moonshot, is also a lawyer, college professor and environmentalist. He has worked in the environmental industry, as a corporate lawyer and as a regulator.
Jad Daley | President and CEO, American Forests
Jad coordinates TPL’s development of climate-smart cities through green infrastructure and strategic “resilient landscape” conservation targeted to climate change mitigation and adaptation.   He also leads the organization’s development of forest carbon projects for voluntary and compliance carbon markets, and serves on the public-private national council to guide the work of the federal Landscape Conservation Cooperatives.
James H. Gibbs | Principal, Sperry Capital
James has over 35 years of experience in public finance and investment banking, and currently leads Sperry’s renewable energy projects initiative.  He was previously the California Regional Manager of Public Finance for Lehman Brothers, specializing in transactions for water and sewer utilities, general government and public power agencies.
Jill Kauffman Johnson | Head of Global Development, Corbion
Jill is responsibility for global marketing, sustainability, regulatory affairs, and government relations for Corbion's algae ingredients business. She was previously a Principal and Managing Director with California Environmental Associates, a leading environmental consulting firm, where she founded the Sustainable Business Practice to help clients green supply chains, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. Prior to joining CEA, Jill was the Director of the Pacific Coast Office of the Ocean Conservancy.
Johanna Wald | Senior Counselor, Natural Resources Defense Council (ret.)
Johanna is an icon in the environmental community and one of the nation's leading advocates for sustainable management of public lands.  Most recently, she led NRDC's effort to facilitate appropriate development of renewable energy project sites in the West.  The recipient of numerous awards and honors, Johanna also serves as a member of San Francisco's Commission on the Environment.
Jonathan Parfey | Executive Director, Climate Resolve
Before founding Climate Resolve, Jonathan Parfrey served as a commissioner at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (2008-2013). Jonathan is also the immediate past-president of the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters. He is a founder and Vice Chair of CicLAvia, the popular street event, as well as the founder of the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability, and the statewide Alliance of Regional Collaboratives for Climate Adaptation. He served as director of the GREEN LA Coalition (2007-2011), and as the Los Angeles director of Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization Physicians for Social Responsibility (1994 to 2007). Prior to that, Jonathan founded and directed the Orange County Catholic Worker (1987-1993). He was appointed to Governor Schwarzenegger’s Environmental Policy Team in 2003.
Kevin Powell | Director, Emerging Building Technologies, U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)
Kevin has worked on sustainable building issues for GSA since 2005 and was previously the Executive Director for the Center for the Built Environment at UC Berkeley.   An architect by training, Kevin manages a portfolio of over twenty green proving ground projects, focusing on innovative building technologies, tools, and practices.
Phyllis Faber | Biologist and Educator
Phyllis is one of the nation's preeminent wetland field biologists for more than four decades. She was a co-editor of the University of California Press's California Natural History Guides, and a Fellow of the California Native Plant Society where she edited the Society's journal, Fremontia, for many years. Phyllis served as one of the first California Coastal Commissioners and a founder of the Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT) which has protected over 40% of the County's farmland through conservation easements.
Randall Sosnick | President/CEO, NEXT Lighting Corp.
Randall is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of NEXT Lighting Corp., a manufacturer of energy-efficient solid-state lighting products. He was formerly President of Silver Fox Development Corp., an international sustainable real-estate development company. Randall was also a co-founder of Amplitude Software Corp. and Digital Foundry Inc. and Director of European Legal and Business Affairs at NEXT Computer, Inc. Randall received degrees in law and business from UC Berkeley.
Richard Sykes | Director of Natural Resources, EBMUD (ret.)
Robert Wilkinson | Adjunct Professor, Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, UC Santa Barbara

Robert’s research and teaching is focused on water and energy policy, climate change, and issues of environmental policy. He serves on the public advisory committee for the California Water Plan,  has represented the University of California on the Governor's Task Force on Desalination. He has advised the California Energy Commission and U.S. EPA on climate research, and has served as coordinator for the climate impacts assessment of the California Region for the U.S. Global Change Research Program and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

OUR HISTORY

WaterNow was founded in 2014 by Cynthia Koehler, Audrey Finci and Kathleen Moazed. As an elected board member of her local water district and longtime water policy expert in California, Cynthia identified the need for an organization that connected local leaders interested in sustainable water solutions and provided support to accelerate their adoption. Pooling their collective backgrounds in policy, business, law and government, Audrey, Kathleen and Cynthia envisioned a dynamic new model to catalyze change and implement sustainable water solutions at the community level.

WaterNow Alliance was formed with the support of our partners including the National League of Cities and Walton Family Foundation.

ABOUT MULTIPLIER

WaterNow is a project of the Multiplier, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization which helps us protect and foster a healthy, sustainable, resilient, and equitable world.  Because we save tens of thousands of dollars per year by working with the Multiplier, we can focus more of our time, energy and resources on programming, making your donations stretch farther and work harder.  All contributions are tax deductible.