Water Europe warmly welcomes its new Executive Committee elected on the 29th of October during the virtual meeting of the Water Europe Board members.
The Executive Committee’s role is to support and guide the Water Europe President and the Executive Director in the execution of their tasks. According to the new governance adopted at the general meeting in June 2020, the Water Europe Executive Committee consists of the Water Europe President, the Executive Director and five Vice-Presidents who are in charge of different portfolios according to the main priorities of Water Europe.
The five appointed Vice-Presidents are Hans Goossens as first Vice-President (VP), Marie-Renée de Roubin as VP for Finance, Chrysi Laspidou as VP for Technology and Research, Wim van Vierssen as VP for Innovation and David Martin as VP for Advocacy. The five Vice-Presidents shared with us their thoughts on their new roles.
Hans Goossens, first Vice President “I am very happy and honored to be elected as 1st vice-president of Water Europe. Water is of vital importance for all, literally – for the individual as well as for the society. In the awakening from the global pandemic and in the middle of a climate storm, our mission to build a Water-Smart Society is relevant now more than ever. I look forward to further strengthening Water Europe as an inclusive organization of committed members covering the whole spectrum of the water ecosystem in order to make our vision come true!”
Chrysi Laspidou, Vice President for Technology and Research “A Water-Smart Society will only be achieved through open-minded people working together. Our progress is rarely hindered by technologies; it is usually limited by silo thinking, rigid mindsets, single-sided participation, resistance to change and lack of collaboration. As the VP of Technology and Research, I want to counter all that by promoting and investing in diversity, gender balance, people, innovation, nexus thinking, stakeholder engagement and co-creating of our water solutions, so that the whole water ecosystem thrives and dominates.”
David Martin, Vice President for Advocacy “Water is Life – Together, we will create a Water-Smart Society where water scarcity and pollution are avoided. Together, we will recognize the true value of water. Our ecosystems will thrive contributing to biodiversity and climate resilience. We are determined and enthusiast as Water is Life.”
Marie-Renée de Roubin, Vice President for Finance “I am very happy to pursue my task as a treasurer for Water Europe. The association has done well in spite of the sanitary crisis. Diversifying the sources of income by offering more services to our members and other stakeholders, will allow our financial stability to be pursued. ”
Wim van Vierssen, Vice President for Innovation “As Vice President Innovation I intend to focus on the vertical cluster with Water-oriented Living Labs (WoLLs) as the preferred operational knowledge management model. In addition, I am responsible for the International Water Dialogues (IWDs) that will be conducted with countries and regions outside of Europe based on this model. I foresee a focus on Europe’s neighboring countries in North Africa and the Middle East, specific markets from a commercial point of view and space for developing relationships with parties that show us how water sustainability can be successfully implemented. ”
