480 From Engineering Numbers to People, Power, and Policy with Sherine El‑Wattar
Release Date: 06/13/2026
488 Managing Legionella with confidence: A Conversation with Patsy Root
Scaling UP! H2O
“Our goal is not zero Legionella pneumophila bacteria. Our goal is zero cases.” – Patsy Root Legionella risk becomes harder to manage when building teams treat every detection as equivalent—or collect samples without first deciding what a positive result will trigger. , Senior Manager of Government Affairs at , explains how a clear water management program can replace uncertainty with defined responsibilities, routine monitoring, and proportionate action. Focus Testing on the Organism of Concern Patsy distinguishes between the broader...
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487 The 60‑Minute CFO: Tracy Bech on Making Business Finance Less Scary
Scaling UP! H2O
“Our gross profit margin is truly the battle we have to win in order to win all of the downstream wars.” - Tracy Bech Financial statements become useful when leaders can translate the numbers into decisions. , founder and author of , explains how business owners, managers, salespeople, and field professionals can develop financial fluency without becoming accountants. Turn Financial Data into a Meaningful Scorecard Tracy teaches finance through stories and relationships rather than isolated numbers. Revenue alone does not reveal whether a company is...
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486 Meter Optimization: Air in the water with Anthony Giudice
Scaling UP! H2O
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485 Questions from the Nation Around the World with Trace Blackmore, CWT
Scaling UP! H2O
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484 Risk, Resilience, and Water Security with Dr. Newsha Ajami
Scaling UP! H2O
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483 From Process Engineer to Process Architect: Alicia Butler‑Pierre on Making Work Flow
Scaling UP! H2O
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482 Preserving Our Industry’s Story – Paul Petersen and the Industrial Water Exhibit
Scaling UP! H2O
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481 From Waterfalls to SOPs: Building Better Utilities with Kalpna Solanki
Scaling UP! H2O
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480 From Engineering Numbers to People, Power, and Policy with Sherine El‑Wattar
Scaling UP! H2O
Industrial water professionals work with chemistry, equipment, permits, and performance targets every day. Yet every gallon also moves through a framework of policy decisions: who can withdraw water, how it may be used, what quality must be returned, and whose needs are considered when systems are designed. , a science network officer supporting the Working Group II Technical Support Unit, brings an engineering foundation and a human-centered perspective to those questions. Her work focuses on climate impacts, adaptation, vulnerability, and risk while helping...
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479 Water Treatment: The Next Generation - Hustle Culture Meets Emotional Literacy with Tiffany Wentz‑Root
Scaling UP! H2O
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Industrial water professionals work with chemistry, equipment, permits, and performance targets every day. Yet every gallon also moves through a framework of policy decisions: who can withdraw water, how it may be used, what quality must be returned, and whose needs are considered when systems are designed.
Sherine El-Wattar, a science network officer supporting the IPCC Working Group II Technical Support Unit, brings an engineering foundation and a human-centered perspective to those questions. Her work focuses on climate impacts, adaptation, vulnerability, and risk while helping connect scientific assessments with communities and professional groups beyond the traditional research environment.
Water Systems Are Never Neutral
Pipelines, treatment plants, reuse programs, and flood-control infrastructure solve technical problems. However, Sherine encourages engineers and decision-makers to ask additional questions: Who benefits from the system? Who might be harmed? Whose assumptions are built into the equations? What local realities might the numbers overlook?
Her master’s research illustrates the importance of that lens. Sherine compared remote-sensing indicators of agricultural productivity with the day-to-day practices of farmers near Cairo. A digital map could classify land as productive or unproductive, but the view from the ground revealed practices shaped by long-term care for the soil and water. The lesson is not to dismiss data. It is to understand what the data may not capture.
Water Risk Depends on Context
Water scarcity, flooding, infrastructure resilience, and climate adaptation do not look the same in every region. Culture, institutions, belief systems, and lived experience shape how communities define risk and how they respond to water policy.
Sherine describes climate-related water risk through a straightforward frame: too much water or too little water. The solutions, however, require deeper attention to local conditions. A technically sound recommendation may still fall short if it overlooks the people affected by the decision.
Practical Steps for Water Professionals
For utilities, facilities, and water-sector businesses, Sherine recommends exploring water footprint concepts and water stewardship. She also emphasizes authentic connection: listen before trying to fix a problem, communicate without judgment, and build awareness through relationships.
Industrial water treaters already hold valuable knowledge. Sharing that expertise with operators, communities, policymakers, and professionals from other disciplines can improve the quality of future water decisions.
Listen to the full conversation above. Explore related episodes below. Stay engaged, keep learning, and continue scaling up your knowledge!
Timestamps
02:10 — Trace explains why water and policy are inseparable, even when daily work appears focused on equipment, chemistry, permits, and profitability.
05:10 — Upcoming industry events highlight opportunities to stay current on utility operations, infrastructure, compliance, data integration, and water-quality challenges.
08:50 — Sherine El-Wattar joins the conversation and clarifies the IPCC acronym before introducing her work in water governance and climate adaptation.
11:30 — Sherine reflects on the value of combining engineering problem-solving with water systems that serve society.
12:00 — Sherine describes her role supporting IPCC Working Group II and the two responsibilities she balances: science and networking.
14:10 — The discussion explores how expert reviewers can contribute perspectives from law, finance, health, youth organizations, Indigenous communities, and other fields.
15:30 — Sherine explains why communication must shift depending on whether the audience includes public communities or government representatives.
17:10 — Water is compared to language: local culture, institutions, and belief systems influence how risk and equity are understood.
19:50 — Sherine unpacks water as a story of people, power, and justice rather than only a network of pipes and treatment systems.
22:00 — A human-centric approach asks who benefits, who may be harmed, whose knowledge informs the system, and what the assumptions may cost.
24:40 — Sherine describes the Netherlands’ Delta Works as an example of infrastructure shaped by risk, institutional capacity, and long-term water management.
27:10 — Sherine shares how her master’s studies shifted her understanding of water from a technical discipline toward the science-policy interface.
29:40 — Her research compares remote-sensing indicators with farmers’ lived practices near Cairo, revealing the limits of relying on aggregated data alone.
33:30 — Trace and Sherine explore how professionals can respect culture and tradition while still supporting education and improvement.
35:50 — Sherine recommends water footprint concepts and water stewardship as practical starting points for organizations planning for climate adaptation.
38:20 — The conversation examines the mismatch between climate risk and the depth of current responses to too much or too little water.
41:50 — Sherine encourages professionals to connect water awareness with personal reflection, professional networks, and conversations that influence behavior
Connect with Sherine El-Wattar
Phone: +31646914589
Email: selwattar@gmail.com
Website: IPCC — Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
https://www.linkedin.com/company/ipcc/
LinkedIn: Sherine El-Wattar | LinkedIn
Quotes
“And I really liked how, you know, engineering is all about the numbers, solving problems, and finding a way to create a system that serves society.”
“I have been humbled enough to know you cannot force policymakers to think anything.”
“For us to balance these things, it's about, it starts with understanding.”
“I really hope I would live to see the day where taking care of water or being water conscious is the new trend.”
Guest Resources Mentioned
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: Working Group II
IPCC Working Group II: Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
IPCC: What Is an Expert Reviewer of IPCC Reports?
The Water Footprint Assessment Manual: Setting the Global Standard
Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) Standard
IHE Delft: Governance and Management Profile
The History of the Delta Works
FAO WaPOR: Remote Sensing for Water Productivity
A Million Little Pieces by James Frey (Author) Paperback
Scaling UP! H2O Resources Mentioned
AWT (Association of Water Technologies)
Scaling UP! H2O Academy video courses
What Is Water Footprint Assessment?
UNU Institute for Water, Environment and Health: Global Water Bankruptcy
2026 Events for Water Professionals
Check out our Scaling UP! H2O Events Calendar where we’ve listed every event Water Treaters should be aware of by clicking HERE.
