In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Anne Mushow, CEO of Subeca, to explore how smart metering, IoT, and new business models are transforming water utilities.

Anne shares her journey from electrical engineering to leading one of the most innovative startups in water tech, and breaks down how Subeca is helping utilities modernize without massive capital investment. The conversation dives into Amazon Sidewalk, metering-as-a-service, and why flexibility and interoperability are key to unlocking digital transformation across 40,000+ small utilities in the U.S.

What you’ll learn:

• Why most water utilities still rely on decades-old technology

• How Subeca is making legacy infrastructure “smart” with plug-and-play IoT

• The role of Amazon Sidewalk in reducing infrastructure costs

• What “metering as a service” means for utilities and ratepayers

• Why small and rural utilities are the biggest opportunity in water

• How better data can improve efficiency, leak detection, and sustainability

• The importance of interoperability and partnerships in water innovation

Key moments:

00:00 The future of metering and disruption in water

03:00 Anne’s journey into the water industry

05:30 What Subeca does and the problem it solves

10:00 Amazon Sidewalk and the power of existing infrastructure

15:00 How Subeca is different from traditional smart metering

21:00 Metering as a service and new utility business models

24:00 Building a startup in the water sector

31:00 The future of water data and global expansion

About the guest:

Anne Mushow is the CEO of Subeca, a smart water metering company focused on making digital transformation accessible for utilities of all sizes. With experience at Sensus and Amazon Web Services, she brings deep expertise in metering, infrastructure, and scalable technology solutions.

Subscribe for more conversations with leaders shaping the future of water, climate, and infrastructure.

#WaterTech #SmartCities #IoT #ClimateTech #Infrastructure #MakeWaterWork #WaterInnovation

What does it take to actually scale innovation in water?

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Simon Olivier, leader of Cycle H2O, an impact fund focused on accelerating water technology.

Simon shares the personal moment that pulled him into the water space...and how it led to building a venture fund designed to solve one of the industry’s biggest challenges: getting real solutions to scale.

The conversation dives into what makes water different from other industries, why progress can feel slow, and how the right combination of capital, partnerships, and strategy can unlock faster adoption.

They also explore:

• Why Simon invests in “aspirin, not vitamins” — solving urgent, critical problems

• The role of strategic investors in helping startups scale beyond just funding

• Why water innovation is lagging — and how other industries offer a roadmap forward

• The growing importance of water security, reuse, and decentralized systems

• How data centers, energy, and manufacturing are quietly reshaping water demand

• What separates successful founders — and the mistakes to avoid early

Simon also highlights emerging technologies in areas like real-time water monitoring and PFAS treatment, and shares why Canada is becoming a global hub for water innovation.

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Glenn Barnes to unpack one of the biggest challenges facing the water industry today: affordability.

Glenn brings deep expertise from his work helping utilities navigate funding, rates, and long-term infrastructure planning. This conversation goes beyond the headlines to explain why water rates are rising, why small communities face outsized challenges, and what needs to change to build resilient systems for the future.

What you’ll learn:

• Why water utilities are not funded by taxes and how the “enterprise fund” model works

• The hidden history of federal grants that kept rates artificially low for decades

• Why small and rural communities face the toughest financial challenges

• The real reason water rates are rising faster than other utilities

• How programs like SRF and USDA loans actually work (and where they fall short)

• The growing infrastructure funding gap and what it means for public health

• Why asset management, regionalization, and consolidation are becoming critical

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Chris Miller, Vice President of Digital Services at USALCO and founder of Fontus Blue, to unpack the journey from academic research to startup success and acquisition.

Chris shares how a job in a university water lab led to a PhD, a company, and ultimately a platform helping utilities navigate one of the toughest challenges in water: balancing compliance, chemistry, and operational complexity.

In this episode, we cover:

• The origin story of Fontus Blue and why it matters

• How water utilities balance disinfection and harmful byproducts

• Why “optimization” really means managing trade-offs

• Lessons learned from building and scaling a water tech startup

• What founders need to know about partnerships and acquisition timing

• The growing complexity of water regulations and what comes next

• Why supporting operators is critical to the future of water

Whether you're a water professional, entrepreneur, or simply curious about how safe drinking water actually gets delivered, this episode breaks down the science, strategy, and human side of the industry.

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Lia Clark, Community Support Director at Water Finance Exchange and founder of Engineer With Empathy.

Lia shares her journey into water, from an orphanage service trip in China to working on some of the toughest water infrastructure challenges in underserved communities across Texas.

This conversation dives into:

• Why most small water systems struggle to access funding

• The reality behind state and federal infrastructure dollars

• Why water utilities must operate more like businesses

• The hidden barrier: trust, not just pipes and funding

• How “Engineer With Empathy” is reshaping how engineers work with communities

Key Takeaways:

• Most U.S. water systems serve fewer than 10,000 people and lack resources

• Funding exists, but access and complexity are major barriers

• Empathy and trust-building are critical to successful projects

• Sustainable water systems require financial literacy and long-term planning

#WaterInfrastructure #WaterFinance #Engineering #Empathy #Utilities #MakeWaterWork #WaterLeadership

In this episode of Make Water Work, we sit down with Shellie Chard, former Water Quality Division Director at the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, to explore how policy, leadership, and long-term thinking shape the future of water.

With a 34-year career in environmental regulation, Shellie shares hard-earned insights on how water policy actually gets made, why trust in water systems is declining, and what it will take to manage our most critical resource moving forward.

From navigating complex regulations to balancing public perception with scientific reality, this conversation is a must-listen for anyone working in or curious about the water sector.

In this episode, we cover:

• How water found Shellie and shaped her career

• The evolution of water policy over the past three decades

• Why trust in water systems is eroding and how to rebuild it

• The real challenges regulators face behind the scenes

• How policy, politics, and public perception intersect

• Why water management is the defining challenge of our future

• The importance of education and long-term thinking in solving water issues

What does real leadership in water look like?

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Greg Wukasch to talk about leadership, community trust, communication, and the future of the water industry. Greg shares how water found him, why utilities need to stop being afraid of public engagement, and what it takes to lead with curiosity, empathy, and humanity.

From his early days at the San Antonio Water System to helping build the Catalyst community, Greg reflects on how experienced leaders can pour into the next generation, why trust is a utility’s true license to operate, and how water can be a powerful unifier in divided times.

This conversation is for water professionals, utility leaders, communicators, young professionals, and anyone interested in the future of infrastructure, public trust, and community-centered leadership.

In this episode, we cover:

• Greg Wukasch’s journey into the water industry

• Leadership lessons from nearly 30 years in water

• Why communication and public engagement matter in utilities

• How Catalyst is building a movement for water communicators

• The importance of trust, empathy, and human-centered leadership

• Greg’s take on AI, innovation, and the next generation of water professionals

• Why the future of water leadership must better reflect the communities we serve

AI runs on water. But how much? And what does that mean for the future?

In this episode of the Make Water Work Podcast, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Peter Yolles (Echo River Capital) and Clara Drysdale (Stanford University) to break down the findings from the new Data Center Innovation Report.

As artificial intelligence and cloud computing explode, data centers are becoming one of the fastest-growing drivers of water and energy demand in the world. Cooling the chips that power AI requires enormous amounts of water — and the industry is racing to find more sustainable solutions.

This conversation explores:

• Why AI and data centers are creating a massive new demand for water

• The technologies being developed to cool data centers more efficiently

• The surprising connection between energy, water, and AI infrastructure

• Innovations like atmospheric water capture, advanced membranes, and closed-loop cooling

• Why communities are raising concerns about data center water use

• How better measurement, transparency, and policy could shape the future

Peter and Clara also share insights into where the next generation of water technology startups will emerge as AI infrastructure continues to scale globally.