This post is all about what we did on our visit but I have also written posts specifically on WaterAid and Thames Water, the things I learned during the day, as well as the research I did in preparation for it.
WaterAid
Our day at WaterAid began with a welcome by Paula Laird, Director of Finance and IT, who spoke with us about the importance of partnership in WaterAid and about the recent Climate Change Summit 2020, that WaterAid were there to ensure people were at the heart of the conversation. Next was Caitlin Sherrard, Partnerships Officer, who delivered an introduction into the partnership between water utilities and WaterAid, including all the great work they do together. The next talk was my favourite of the day. Ceaser Kimbugwe, Project Manager SusWASH, spoke with us about the challenges faced by Uganda and how WaterAid has helped the situation. I have written a lot about this in my WaterAid research post.
After lunch we had three more talks. Al-hassan Adam, International Coordinator and Sam Taylor, Engagement Officer, spoke with us about ending water poverty, with the global mobilisation campaign #ClaimYourWaterRights. This campaign aims to awaken people to the injustice of their situation and spur them to claim their human rights to safe water and sanitation. Then we had a conference call with Vinny Casey, Senior WASH Manager, who gave us an introduction to their Country Programme Work. Finally, there was a presentation on WaterAid's corporate partnerships by Rachel Pirovano, Senior Business Development Manager. This was something I found surprisingly interesting and I had never thought about before.
Overall I really enjoyed the visit to WaterAid. It was something completely different to visiting a water utility and it made me proud to think about the great work my company does for WaterAid. It is so clear that they do so much more than drilling new boreholes. It was a really inspirational trip. I am already completing the WaterAid March for Water with a target to walk 248km in March but would like to become a WaterAid speaker when my PhD is complete and I have some more time.
Thames Water
Kim Rodwell, Environmental Protection Advisor and fellow Rising Star, organised for us to have a visit to Thames Water in Reading with a focus around Operational Events.
The day began with a welcome from Richard Aylard, Thames Water Sustainability Director, who gave us an overview of some of the specific challenges Thames Water has compared to other UK water utilities, which sparked the idea for my Thames Water research post. Next Sam Glenton, Performance and Risk Analyst, spoke with us about performance, risk and optimisation, specifically focused around a selection of GIS tools and models named I³, information, insight and intervention, to better map networks. After, Rachel Cunningham, Wastewater R&D Innovation Manager, spoke with us about the cutting edge innovation projects in sewage networks and then we had a presentation on catchments and catchment management by Helena Soteriou, Environmental Engagement Lead Advisor.
After lunch we had an interactive session, a conference call on personal development by Michelle Bury, Talent Development Consultant. Michelle asked us to list our contacts and who introduced us. Then to jot down who you have introduced them to. This was to determine the type of networker you are. It made me realise I don't introduce a lot of people to others!
Finally we went to the Thames Water Customer Service Centre and the Waste Operations Control Centre for a tour of these facilities. Did you know that the Thames Water Customer Service Centre receive 2000-3000 calls every day!
The day was very focused around operational events in sewer networks, which is not my current area of work, but it was really interesting to see the water industry with a different perspective. One thing that surprised me was the tour of the service centre and control centre. It really made me want to visit them in my own company to see how they work and if they are different to Thames, something that I have never been motivated to do before.
