The Women Securing the Future of Global Water
Water security is rarely the result of a single breakthrough. It emerges from the intertwined work of scientists, engineers, policymakers and business leaders who each protect a different layer of the planet’s life‑support system. Five women — spanning microbiology, utility strategy, climate technology, governance and corporate coalition‑building — exemplify how diverse expertise can converge to keep water safe, accessible and resilient.
Joan Rose – Safeguarding Invisible Water Safety
Joan Rose, a professor of microbiology at Michigan State University, has spent decades tracking the microscopic threats that lurk in drinking water, wastewater and natural ecosystems. Her research underpins the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Ground Water Rule and informs global guidelines for monitoring pathogens such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia. According to the World Health Organization, unsafe water contributes to roughly 1.5 million preventable deaths each year, many linked to water‑borne disease outbreaks that Rose’s work helps detect before they spread.
Her approach combines field sampling, molecular diagnostics and risk‑assessment modelling, creating early‑warning systems that are now used in utilities from the Great Lakes to Southeast Asia. By focusing on the “invisible” safety of water, Rose reminds policymakers that access alone is insufficient — water must also be free of harmful microbes.
Khawla Al Mehairi – Integrating Water and Energy in Arid Regions
In the United Arab Emirates, where annual rainfall averages less than 100 mm, water security depends on energy‑intensive desalination. Khawla Al Mehairi, Vice President of Strategy and Government Communications at the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), has guided the utility toward a model that couples renewable energy with water production.
Under her leadership, DEWA’s Shams solar park — one of the largest single‑site solar installations in the world — supplies clean electricity to power reverse‑osmosis plants, cutting carbon emissions by an estimated 1.4 million tonnes of CO₂ annually. DEWA now delivers over 90 % of Dubai’s potable water, with a desalination capacity of roughly 470 million imperial gallons per day, while maintaining a service reliability rating above 99.9 %. Through DEWA International, Al Mehairi is exporting this integrated water‑energy framework to other water‑stressed regions, demonstrating that reliability and sustainability can advance together.
Edda Aradóttir – Linking Climate Stabilization to Water Security
Water availability is tightly bound to climate stability. Rising temperatures intensify evaporation, shift precipitation patterns and increase the frequency of floods and droughts that damage infrastructure. Edda Aradóttir, a leader in carbon mineralization at Iceland’s CarbFix project, tackles this challenge at its source: atmospheric CO₂.
CarbFix captures CO₂ emitted from the Hellisheidi geothermal power plant, dissolves it in water and injects the solution into basaltic formations where it rapidly reacts to form solid carbonate minerals. Over the past decade, the project has mineralized more than 70 000 tonnes of CO₂, turning a greenhouse gas into stable rock within two years — a timescale far shorter than natural geological processes. By reducing atmospheric CO₂, Aradóttir’s work helps mitigate the climate drivers that threaten water resources, illustrating how climate‑focused technologies can serve as indirect but vital water‑security measures.
Cecilia Tortajada – Rethinking Water Governance
Technology and infrastructure are only as effective as the institutions that manage them. Cecilia Tortajada, a senior research fellow at the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, studies the policies, financing mechanisms and regulatory frameworks that determine whether water systems succeed or fail.
Her comparative research across Asia, Latin America and the Middle East shows that utilities with strong governance experience up to 40 % less water loss from leaks and illegal connections, while weak institutions often see chronic shortages despite abundant supplies. Tortajada’s influential book, Water Governance: Principles and Practice, outlines how transparent tariffs, participatory planning and long‑term investment pipelines can align technical solutions with societal needs. Her work underscores that sustainable water security hinges on robust governance as much as on engineering prowess.
Maria Mendiluce – Scaling Solutions Through Business Coalitions
Even the best technologies and policies stall without sufficient capital and cross‑sector coordination. Maria Mendiluce, CEO of the We Mean Business Coalition, bridges this gap by mobilizing corporations, investors and governments to accelerate clean‑energy deployment — a critical enabler for water systems.
The coalition now represents over $15 trillion in combined market capital and has secured commitments exceeding $1 trillion for renewable energy and low‑carbon infrastructure. Because pumping, treating and desalinating water consumes roughly 15 % of global electricity, aligning the green‑energy transition with water‑sector upgrades yields dual benefits: lower emissions and more reliable water services. Mendiluce’s strategy of aligning finance, technology and policy exemplifies how systemic collaboration can scale solutions fast enough to meet rising demand.
Key Takeaways
- Water safety requires vigilance against invisible pathogens — Joan Rose’s microbiological surveillance provides the early‑warning foundation.
- In arid climates, coupling desalination with renewable energy, as DEWA does under Khawla Al Mehairi, cuts emissions while ensuring supply.
- Stabilizing the climate through carbon mineralization, exemplified by Edda Aradóttir’s CarbFix project, reduces long‑term pressure on water resources.
- Effective governance — highlighted by Cecilia Tortajada’s research — determines whether infrastructure translates into reliable service.
- Scaling impact demands coordinated finance and policy; Maria Mendiluce’s work with the We Mean
