“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.” – Henry Ford
August marked my six-month milestone as the executive director of WCDA. During that time, I have learned a great deal about our organization and the essential elements of its nearly 20 years of success. Perhaps most important among them is WCDA’s strong organizational culture of collaboration and contribution. Characterized in the above quote from Henry Ford, the ability of WCDA members to work together to develop resources that advance the practice of water collaborative delivery is truly a hallmark of our success.
What I have observed during the past six months is nothing new for WCDA. Throughout WCDA’s history, the organization has served collaborative delivery professionals by tackling our sector’s most pervasive challenges head on. This approach has resulted in significant advances in industry best practices across the WCDA’s primary pillars of education, research, and advocacy. Thank you to all members and stakeholders who have contributed, and continue to contribute, their time and expertise to addressing the water collaborative delivery challenges of today—and the future.
Looking toward that future, our June association meeting was reflective of WCDA’s recent growth, with significant representation from first-time attendees and new professionals. This growth provides the organization with an even greater diversity of perspectives and contributions from which to draw in the future as collaborative delivery methods continue to evolve. Our increasing diversity is a strength that allows everyone, and the sector as a whole, to learn from each other and benefit from our collective expertise.
It has been a busy summer for WCDA, as members and staff participated in a variety of industry events including the Water Environment Federation/WateReuse Association Industrial Water Solutions Conference and the NACWA Utility Leadership Conference. Thank you to everyone who contributed to WCDA’s sessions and activities at these, and other, industry events. We look forward to participating in AWWA’s Water Infrastructure Conference and WEFTEC later this fall. We hope to see many of you there.
As always, please feel free to reach out anytime, and I look forward to seeing many of you at WCDA’s September association meeting in Buford, Georgia, in a few weeks.
Thank you for your commitment to WCDA and for all you do to support our sector!
Barb Martin
Letter from the Executive Director
