Marta Verde has more than 20 years of experience in the Environment sector focused mainly on water concessions. She has developed projects in more than ten countries: USA, Brazil, Mexico, Algeria, Tunisia, Oman and Spain, etc. Her experience has covered the entire scope of the concession bidding process, financing contracts negotiation and the execution management, which allowed her to reach a broad knowledge of the water sector needs. As GS Inima CEO, she leads the international consolidation through the opening of new markets and business activities as well as the consolidation of the water distribution and industrial water activity with big successes up to now.

Eng. Abdullah Alzowaid is the Deputy Governor for Production and Transmission affairs of Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) with more than 30 years of extensive experience in the desalination industry and technology. He graduated in Automation & Control from King Fahad University for Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM). Eng. Alzowaid is a member of the board of directors of Water & Electricity Regulatory Authority (WERA) of Saudi Arabia, a member of water supply & demands executive committee in the Ministry of Environments, Water and Irrigation (MEWA), Board Chairman of Shuaibah Water & Electricity Company (SWEC), Board Chairman of Shuaibah Expansion Project Company. Eng. Alzowaid joined SWCC since 1991. He is contributing with the decision maker of SWCC to pave the strategic direction and plans of SWCC future and water sector.

Carlos Cosín Fernández (Madrid, Spain) is currently the CEO of Almar Water Solutions. He is responsible for strategic management of the company, whose main investor is Abdul Latif Jameel, to implement and promote its activity in the water sector. Before that, he worked at Abengoa between 2005 and 2016, ending his career as Chairman and CEO of Abengoa Water, the water subsidiary of the group. Mr. Cosín also spent seven years (1997-2004) at Veolia Water Systems and before that he held several high-level positions, most notably the ownership of a private company that developed and designed heat exchangers. Mr. Cosín has a degree in Agricultural Engineering from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid.

Gonzalo Delacámara is an economist who works worldwide (in 80+ countries: European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East, Africa, Central and South Asia, having had legal residence in Chile, Colombia, Spain, Nicaragua, and the United Kingdom), specializing in the sustainable economic management of natural resources: climate, water, energy, atmospheric quality, oceans, biological diversity, and ecosystem services, etc., with an emphasis on their complex linkages with economic and social development patterns. Gonzalo works as an international advisor on sustainability and environmental policy for multilateral organizations such as the European Commission, to which he is a ‘water policy advisor’ (through its DG Environment, Clean Water Unit), the European Parliament (to which he also advises on climate change policy), various agencies and programs of the United Nations system (UN Water, ECLAC, UNESCO, FAO, WHO-PAHO, UNDP, etc.), the World Bank Group (including its 2030 Water Resources initiative Group, but also the World Bank itself or the International Finance Corporation, IFC), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). He is also a senior advisor and member of the OECD Water Governance Initiative. He has recently been elected a Board Member of Water Europe (formerly EU Water Supply and Sanitation Technology Platform), he is a member (first non-Dutch ever) of the Scientific Advisory Council of the Netherlands KWR institute on the integral water cycle, an appointed member of the Special Advisory Board of the International Desalination and Reuse Association (IDRA), and a member of the Mission Assembly on Healthy Oceans, Seas, Coastal, and Inland Waters of the European Union’s R&D&I framework programme (Horizon Europe). Likewise, he has also been appointed as a ‘visionary’ of the ‘Una Europa’ Future University Lab initiative, to reflect on the university of the future in Europe. He is a Senior Research Fellow and Head of the Department of Water Economics at the IMDEA Agua Institute (Institute for Advanced Studies of Madrid). Until January 2021, he was also the Academic Director of the Water Economy Forum, a public debate initiative he founded with the complicity of Nobel Prize Laureates in Economics and Peace, such as professors George A. Akerlof (USA), Jean Tirole (France) or Mohan Munasinghe (Sri Lanka). Gonzalo teaches at graduate level in different institutions. For example, he is a Senior Faculty Member of the Institute of Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC), which includes a digital design and manufacturing laboratory linked to MIT (FAB LAB BCN) and a professor at IE University and the School of Industrial Organization (EOI), where he was chosen in 2021 as the best teacher amongst 1,300+. He is also a mentor in international support programs for postgraduate researchers in Germany (Leibniz Institutes Association) or the United States (Techwomen), and co-author of a wide range of peer-reviewed scientific books and articles, as well as a keynote speaker at global events.

José Díaz-Caneja holds an MSc in Civil Engineering from Madrid Polytechnic University and an MBA from IESE Business School. With comprehensive experience in the infrastructure sector, in both publicly and privately financed projects, and after having worked in large infrastructure groups in Latin America and Spain, he joined ACCIONA Agua’s International Business Development Department in 2002. In 2007 he joined ForoPPP Infraestructuras – a private PPP institution – as Managing Director for a 4 year period, and in 2011 he joined ACCIONA Agua as Middle East and African Development Director, becoming Managing Director of ACCIONA Agua (ACCIONA Group’s Water Division) in January 2014. Since December 2023, Jose Díaz-Caneja is the CEO of ACCIONA Infrastructures. Additionally he has been a member of the EPEC Private Sector Forum, Professor at ESinfra (Nebrija University, Madrid) and at MEDIP Master (Madrid Polytechnic University).

Mr. Freedman lead global government affairs for SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions. Previously, he led global government affairs for GE’s water and nuclear business units. In addition, he led the development of GE’s global environmental sustainability initiative now called Ecomagination. Mr. Freedman also helped GE create a global water business by leading the acquisition of an NYSE-listed water company. He teaches a class on water at the University of Pennsylvania and has served six years on the advisory board of The Wharton School’s Institute for Global Environmental Leadership. He also serves on the board of directors for the WateReuse Association, where he chairs the Policy Committee. He is also currently a member of the IDRA Board of Directors. Mr Freedman’s education includes: The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (MBA in Finance), William and Mary Law School (JD), University of Virginia (BA).

Mr. Hatab holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the American University of Beirut and is a member of different UAE Business Associations. He has held several leadership positions across Future Pipe Group including Plant Management, Engineering and Technical as well as Marketing and Sales Management. He was instrumental in marketing Future Pipe Composite pipes in the MENA region by building up reference list with prestigious projects. His presence in Europe enforced the synergy between the European and Mid-Eastern Sales Teams and helped develop strong relationships with the European decision makers, the major European desalination companies and the various international lobbying Groups. He was quite active in introducing fiberglass pipes in desalination plants for different services, extending on the lifetime of the systems and achieving lower life cycle costs.

Dr. Hoon Hyung is the President of LG Water Solutions, the manufacturer of NanoH2O RO membranes. Since joining the company in 2015 as Vice President of Engineering and Technical Service, Dr. Hyung has provided technical and commercial leadership for a once a start-up company to become a leading RO membrane supplier. In recognition of his contribution to business growth, in 2021, Dr. Hyung has assumed the responsibility of managing the LG Water Solutions business division. Dr. Hyung is an accomplished senior business and technology leader with more than 20 years of professional experience in desalination and advanced water treatment. He has held technical and managerial titles within CDM Smith, GE Power and Water, Doosan Hydro Technology, and CSM for numerous desalination and water treatment projects. Dr. Hyung holds a B.S. and M.S. in Chemical Engineering from Seoul National University and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.

Mr. Jaroudi has been a member of the Future Pipe Group since 1995 with over 26 years’ experience in pipe system, specification development and its contribution to the industry. He is the Managing Director and Board Member of FPI-Qatar. He was a key contributor in the qualification, introducing Fiberglass in water and desalination industry and developing the market specifications for the different end-users in the region with the expertise in dealing with International EPIC Contractors /Consultants. His educational background includes a Mechanical Engineering Degree from the American University of Beirut. He presented and attended several international conferences, exhibitions and seminars and co-authored numerous case histories of unique projects and articles. He has been a board member of IDRA for over 10 years and is currently co-chair of Awards Committee and member of Site Selection Committee.

Jantje Johnson is a Dutch chemical engineer with more than 25 years’ experience in water treatment. She is the founder of OrangeBoat, which was established in 2009 and today provides consulting services for water treatment systems globally with an emphasis on membrane technologies. OrangeBoat’s scope of services includes design and operation support and the development of technical tools like Navigator and WayPoint. The company provides services for endusers, EPCs, membrane manufacturers, OEMs and operators. Jantje has an extensive background in membranes, systems, and water treatment chemicals. Her working career started at NIVOBA in the Netherlands where she was responsible for the design, engineering and start-up of solid/liquid separation equipment in food and waste water applications internationally. At Nalco (Europe and Americas), she was responsible for sales and technical support pertaining to the PermaCare membrane chemicals product line. She worked at DOW (Europe and North America) in its membrane division where she was responsible for DOW’s membrane software program (ROSA), RO/NF membrane development, quality and technical service. Jantje has developed technical tools that are used on a daily basis to design, to monitor and to maintain RO/NF systems. She has presented papers at international conferences and conducted workshops and trainings. She is also a peer reviewer for scientific journals.

Fady Juez is Managing Director of Metito Overseas Ltd. and has been working for the company since 1985. Fady is a charismatic global expert in the water industry thus making him integral to Metito’s overseas development initiatives. He is also a Director at the International Desalination and Reuse Association (IDRA). Prior to this, Fady worked with GE Power for four years, before joining Metito with a mandate to establish and develop the Metito business in the GCC. He then moved to Saudi Arabia as the head of contracting and was promoted shortly after to the position of Managing Director – Metito Overseas Ltd, before moving to the UAE. Fady’s major contribution to the group has been to head and lead the expansion programs of Metito’s business in the Middle East and South East Asia. In addition to this, Fady has promoted the Metito brand and developed high-level contacts with major international consultants and contractors, which has reflected positively on the business growth. His particular contribution was on the promotion and development of the concession business, and the management of joint ventures with leading international organizations. Fady graduated from the American University in Lebanon as a Mechanical Engineer in 1980.

Mr. Li founded Harbin ROPV Development Center (predecessor of Harbin ROPV Insustrial Co, Ltd) and has been the Chief Executive Officer of ROPV since 1999. He brings more than 35 years of experience in expanding composite materials applications for water industry. He completed many state projects with many published professional papers in China. He also obtains many design patents. In addition to his role as the CEO of ROPV, he serves on the board of Membrane Industry Association (MIAC) as a deputy secretary general. He also serves on China Desalination and Reuse Association as a vice president, and on National Technical Committee on Separation Membrane of Standardization Administration of China as a Committee member. Mr. Li holds a Bachelor’s degree in Composite Material from East China University of Science and Technology.

John H. Lienhard has been a professor at MIT for 35 years. His desalination research has included membrane distillation, reverse and forward osmosis, humidification-dehumidification, nanofiltration, electrodialysis, solvent extraction, brine management, low-carbon system, scaling/fouling, and thermodynamic efficiency. Lienhard is author of > 300 peer-reviewed publications. He holds > 40 US patents and pending applications. His research collaborations have reached Chile, China, India, Israel, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, and United Arab Emirates. Lienhard is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Society of Thermal and Fluid Engineers. He is a licensed Professional Engineer, and the author of several textbooks.

Mr. Imad Makhzoumi completed his undergraduate studies in Civil Engineering and Water Resource Management at the University of Southern California in the United States and holds a diploma in Business from McGill University in Canada. He is a member of the American Business Council in Dubai, a founding member of the Dubai Capital Club and he serves as Board member of the International Desalination and Reuse Association (IDRA). He is also Past President of IDRA and has served on numerous IDRA committees, and is a long-standing member of the Association.

Mr. Johnny Obeid has been the Vice President of Veolia Water Technologies in the Middle East subsidiary of Veolia Environment since September 2000, responsible for business development. Over the past 10 years, Mr. Obeid has managed some of the major projects in desalination (RO / Thermal) in the Middle East for Veolia and Sidem. Some of the major projects he was responsible for developing are Umm Al Quwain (UAE), Rabigh (KSA), Al Dur (Bahrain), SUR (Oman), Fujairah (UAE), Zour South (Kuwait), Sadara (KSA) and Shell (Qatar). His objective is to contribute in promoting the role and image of the desalination business in the Gulf region where desalination is a crucial element for the development of the region. Previously (from 1991 to 2000), Johnny worked with Philip Holzman International as area developer for the Indian West Indies. He has been a Director of the International Desalination and Reuse Association since October 2013. He obtained his BE in Civil Engineering (1982-1988) from the American University in Beirut, and an Executive Masters in Business Administration (2006) from INSEAD business school.

Mr. Oliva has been serving as the Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board of Directors of Fisia Italimpianti, a company belonging to the Webuild Group (formerly Salini Impregilo), since May 2012. In this position, he has overseen driving the company business in the transition phase from conventional to energy efficient technologies both in the desalination and in the water treatment. Prior to being entrusted the position of CEO, he has been CFO in Fisia for 12 years, altogether achieving more than twenty years of experience in the company. He has served in the Webuild Group for more than 35 years, holding various positions in an extensive international career which took him to work in Colombia, Turkey, United States and Pakistan. Mr. Oliva earned a degree cum laude in Economics and Business Administration from the University of Genoa and conducted several post degree specialization courses.

Mr. Miguel Angel Sanz was Director of Strategic Development for the Treatment Infrastructure Division of SUEZ International. He has 39 years of professional experience in desalination as well as in the drinking water and wastewater fields. He joined the Degrémont group in 1983, in Spain, leading the Proposal Department. From 1992 to 2002, he was Technical and Project Director for the Spanish subsidiary. From 2002 to 2006, he was Desalination Manager and Deputy Technical Director for Degrémont group. From 2006 to 2009, he was Director of Business Development in Degrémont Iberia, and from 2009 to 2014 he was Director of Development and Innovation of Degrémont, based in France. As of January1, 2015, Degrémont and all companies of the group became SUEZ. Working with SUEZ group, he has a stake in promoting innovation in the field of membrane desalination, and he has taken part in the design, build or operation of many brackish or seawater desalination plants worldwide. Mr. Sanz received his Industrial Engineer Masters degree in 1981 from Bilbao High Technical School of Engineers. Mr. Sanz has been a member of the IDRA Board of Directors since 2009 and served as IDRA President for the 2017-2019 Term. He has been Chairman of the 2017 Sao Paulo World Congress Technical Program Committee. In previous terms, he served as 2nd Vice President and on several committees including the Technical Programs Committee. He has been session co-chair in 7 IDRA World Congresses and a member of the Congress Technical Committee in the 5 IDRA World Congresses. In summary, he has participated as contributor, organizer, speaker or chairman in over 40 events organised or supported by IDRA in the last years. He is also active among IDRA’s affiliate organizations: being from 2008 in the Board of Directors of Spanish Desalination and Reuse Association AEDyR, where he has been Vice President for four years, and for eight years a member of the Board of Directors of the European Desalination Society (EDS). He is also a member of other desalination or water associations: CaribDA, ALADyR, AEAS, IWA and WEF. In addition, he has published more than 50 papers on desalination and water treatment, over 20 in IDRA congresses or conferences.

Devesh Sharma is the Chief Executive Officer of Aquatech International – a global leader in water purification technology for industrial and infrastructure markets. Established in 1981, Aquatech helps some of the world’s most recognized companies solve their water scarcity challenges by providing solutions and services in desalination, wastewater reuse and zero liquid discharge. Devesh has been with Aquatech since 1997 and he has worked in virtually every facet of the company from commissioning, process engineering, project management, and business development. In recent years, he has overseen the company’s growth in the services and project development sector, striving to deliver high reliability and lowest cost water in key water scarce markets around the world. Devesh holds a degree in Chemical Engineering and Industrial Management from Carnegie Mellon University, and an MBA from INSEAD. He is on the Board of Directors for the American Middle East Institute and has served on the Board of Directors of the International Desalination.

Alejandro Sturniolo is the Global Head of Water Reuse & Strategic Partnerships of H2O Innovation. Mr. Alejandro Sturniolo started at Unitek as a trainee in 1998 in Buenos Aires Argentina. In 1999, he began working as a Application Engineer and became Business Development Director for LatAm (2003-2013). From 2013 to 2017, he was Vice-president of Sales and Marketing in RWL Water South America. From 2017 to 2020 he was Vice-president of Sales and Marketing in Fluence Corporation South America. He has authored and co-authored more than 30 international publications. He has been a member of the IDRA Board of Directors since 2017 and served as IDRA 2nd Vice-president during the Term 2019-2021. He also served as Director of the Latin American Association of Desalination and Reuse (ALADyR) for the term 2016-2018, Vice President of ALADyR for the term 2018-2022 and Vice President of the Association of Desalination and Water Reuse Argentina (ADRA) from 2012 to 2016. Mr. Sturniolo is a Chemical Engineer with a degree from the Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina. He also received certification in a post-graduation course in Strategic Marketing at the Universidad Belgrano in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Neuroscience for Business at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Unites States.

Gavin van Tonder is Head of NEOM’s Water sector. He is responsible for developing a greenfield water infrastructure, implementing leading-edge, high-recovery desalination and brine-effluent treatment technologies for zero liquid discharge in a sustainable manner. In addition, he is leading plans for the creation of a smart water distribution and transmission network. Gavin has 20 years of industry experience, holding senior positions with water utilities and companies around the globe, providing innovative solutions, systems and products to enhance their performance and efficiency. Prior to joining NEOM, Gavin worked at Itron, one of the world’s largest suppliers of standard and smart water technologies and systems​, where he started in the water industry in 2001 as Asia Pacific Vice President. In 2010, he was transferred to Itron HQ in France as the Global Marketing and Systems Vice President for the Water & Heat Division; and, in 2013, he became President of the Water Division, responsible for the global strategy, management and growth of the sector based in France and then Austin, Texas. Gavin has started factories, facilities and water infrastructure from the ground up in China, India, Indonesia, Australia, Malaysia and Mexico. He presently serves on water technology company advisory boards in Europe and the Americas; and has also served on boards in China, Indonesia, India and Australia. Gavin holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc) in Chemical Engineering from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

Victor Verbeek is the Head of Technical Development, Asia Pacific, and the Australia & New Zealand General Manager for Toray Membrane, an organization that has developed membranes for water treatment since 1968 and has built decades of experience in R&D, manufacturing and application development for reverse osmosis (RO), nanofiltration (NF), ultrafiltration (UF), microfiltration (MF), and membrane bioreactor (MBR) technologies. Victor has over twenty years of experience in the application of Desalination and Advanced Water Treatment technologies and has been an active member of the IDRA since 2000. He has been with Toray since 2006 where he started in the role of Global Business Development Manager (Major Projects)/ Applications Engineer in the United States. In 2009 he then took the role of General Manager for Toray Membrane Australia (ANZ). Prior to Toray, Victor’s career included Project Manager & Sales Engineer for Calder AG (now a Flowserve company) in Switzerland; Research, Development & Project and Sales Engineer with DWEER Technology Ltd. (Licensed to Calder AG) and prior to his post graduate work, spent a year working at DesalCo Ltd, as Research & Development Engineer alongside past IDRA President Dr. W. T. Andrews in the area of seawater reverse osmosis energy efficiency and plant optimization. A graduate from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, Victor holds a first class Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering (MEng.) and a Masters Post-Graduate Degree in Science by Research (MSc. by Research). He was awarded the IDRA’s Channabasappa Memorial Scholarship in 2001, and an IDRA Presidential award in 2009 for his instrumental role in founding the IDRA’s Young Leaders Program, the IDRA-YLP. He has been on the Board of Directors of the International Desalination and Reuse Association since 2019.