Keynote Speakers

Dr. Kerry Schott - Managing Director, Sydney Water, Australia

Kerry is a member of the Infrastructure Australia Advisory Board and Chairman of the Water Services Association of Australia. She was previously a Deputy Secretary, NSW Treasury. Kerry spent 15 years as an investment banker. She was a Managing Director of Deutsche Bank and Executive Vice President of Bankers Trust Australia. She has worked as an economic policy adviser with the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Commonwealth Government and as an academic at University College London and at Oxford University. Kerry was Chairman of the NSW Environment Protection Authority and the NSW Film and Television Office, a director of the Film Finance Corporation Limited and director of Australian Airlines Limited before its merger with Qantas. She has been a member of the Corporations and Securities Panel and a Trade Practices Commissioner.

Mary Ann Dickinson - Executive Director Alliance for Water Efficiency

Mary Ann Dickinson is Executive Director of North America's only organisation promoting water efficiency programs and practices and providing assistance to water utilities in their planning for sustainable water resource management. Based in Chicago, the new non-profit organisation is funded by grants and memberships. Prior to that, she was Executive Director of California Urban Water Conservation Council - the first statewide professional conservation organization, composed of over 400 water supply agencies, environmental organizations, and professional firms. Her past management experience includes the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority, and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. A graduate of the University of Connecticut with a degree in environmental and natural resources planning, she has authored numerous technical papers and publications on water conservation, land use planning, and natural resources management, and has co-produced two films which have aired on public television and community cable stations. She is past President of the Lake Arrowhead Community Services District Board, is a Trustee and past Chair of the American Water Works Association Water Conservation Division, is a member of the International Water Association Efficient Operations and Management Specialist Group and a member of the Water Loss Task Force. She has presented numerous papers on water conservation in Spain, France, Australia, Chile, Jordan, Italy, China, Korea, South Africa, Canada, and all across the United States.

Tony Kelly - Managing Director Yarra Valley Water

Tony, a civil engineer, has spent nearly 30 years in the water industry with extensive experience in planning, design and construction roles as well as key roles in strategic planning. As a strategic planner he has been involved in major utility reforms including water authority mergers, corporatisation, pricing, and contracting out. Since joining Yarra Valley Water Ltd at its inception in 1995, Tony has held four General Manager positions covering engineering, billing, marketing and business strategy. Tony was appointed Managing Director of Yarra Valley Water in January 2003. Tony chairs WaterAid Australia, an international charity that aims to provide clean, safe drinking water and sanitation services to developing countries. He is also Chairman of savewater Alliance, a not for profit alliance promoting water conservation. Tony chaired the Victorian Water industry Association's Sustainability Task Group which produced the Triple Bottom Line Reporting Guidelines for the water industry in 2002, played an important role in producing the Greenhouse Gas Guidelines for the Victorian water industry in 2006 and established an annual sustainability seminar and a training course in sustainability in partnership with RMIT.

Robyn McLeod – Commissioner Water Security

Robyn McLeod is South Australia’s first full-time Commissioner for Water Security.  Since her appointment in November 2008, Robyn has successfully developed and launched Water for Good – a plan to ensure South Australia’s water future to 2050.  With an extensive background in water management, Robyn’s previous roles include Director of KPMG’s National Water Group, Water Industry Advisor to the Government of Tasmania and Lead Advisor to the Western Australian Department of Water in water institutional and regulatory reform. Robyn also managed an extensive water investment portfolio for the Victorian Government including the corporatisation of the Snowy Hydro scheme, and other major projects including the Wimmera Mallee Pipeline.

Tim Waldron – Chief Executive Officer Wide Bay Water

Tim is presently Chief Executive Officer of Wide Bay Water Corporation in Australia and is recognised as one of Australia’s expert on water loss control.  At the Vienna World Water Congress in September 2008 he was appointed as Chairman of the International Water Association Water Loss Task Force. Tim has 38 years experience in the water and wastewater industry.  Born and educated in England, Tim worked for North West Water U.K. for over 20 years including 10 years as the Water Supply Manager of the City of Preston servicing a population of approximately 1.2 million people. His specialist knowledge in water demand management gained at North West Water led to his secondments as the United Nations Technical Representative for the U.N.D.P. and the World Health Organisation. Over 20 countries have been able to reduce their water demand following Tim’s influence on their government policies and actions.

Sue Murphy - Chief Executive Officer, Water Corporation, Australia

Sue graduated as a Civil Engineer from the University of Western Australia in 1979. After winning a Clough Scholarship as an undergraduate, she joined Clough Engineering in 1980 commencing what would be a 25 year career in that organisation. Twelve years in the field as a site engineer and project manager led to corporate roles with a focus on human resources, safety and engineering design management and her appointment in 1998 as the first woman on the board of the Clough Engineering Ltd. In 2004 Sue joined the Water Corporation of Western Australia as General Manager Business Services. In late 2006, Sue took over the role of General Manager of Planning and Infrastructure, the part of the Corporation responsible for delivery of capital projects and long and short term planning. On 6 November 2008, Sue was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Water Corporation. Sue is the Deputy Chairman of the Rottnest Island Authority and a Board Member of the Water Services Association of Australia. She was the 2000 national winner of the Telstra Businesswoman of the Year in the private sector category. Sue has three school aged daughters, two small dogs and one busy husband..

Carol Howe - Project Manager of SWITCH (Sustainable Water Management Improves Tomorrow's Cities Health)

Carol Howe is Project Manager of SWITCH (Sustainable Water Management Improves Tomorrow's Cities Health), a global action-research programme led by UNESCO-IHE in The Netherlands. Working with 33 global partners and local "Learning Alliances" in 12 cities (Accra, Alexandria, Beijing, Birmingham, Belo Horizonte, Chongqing, Cali, Hamburg, Lima, Lodz, Tel Aviv, Zaragoza) SWITCH is attempting to catalyse change in the "City of the Future" to more sustainable urban water management through a combination of research, demonstrations, training and knowledge exchange. Before joining SWITCH Carol was Director of CSIRO's Future Cities Program, a Board Member of the CRC for Water Quality and Treatment, Manager of Strategic Planning for Sydney Water and a Principal Planner with MWH Consulting on the CALFED Bay-Delta Programme. She is on the Management Committee of IWA Climate Change and Adaptation specialist group and is Coordinator of the Global CityWater Summit to be held in Delft in October 2009.

Tony Gregg - Consultant

Tony Gregg is currently an independent water resources consultant. From 2007-2009, Tony worked on the USAID-funded Water Demand Management Project in Amman, Jordan.  Mr. Gregg was the Water Conservation Division Manager for the Austin Water Utility (Texas, USA) from 1990-2007.  He previously worked for 10 years for the Texas Water Development Board and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.  Mr. Gregg has a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.  Tony Gregg has twenty-nine years of experience in water resource and efficiency program planning and implementation.  Mr. Gregg has participated in the development of legislation and the rulemaking process for federal, state and local standards on water efficiency. Mr. Gregg is a past chair of the American Water Works Association’s Water Conservation Division and Texas Section AWWA Water Conservation and Reuse Division.   He has presented numerous papers on water efficiency at both national and international conferences.