Value for Members Remains Top WEF Priority

By Bill Bertera, WEF Executive Director

WEF is in the best financial shape of its long history...still, we expect our operations--and our members--to be significantly affected by the recession. Like utilities and companies across the country, and indeed, around the world, we will be doing business differently to meet tough economic challenges. For the record, one thing won’t change, and that’s our focus on delivering top quality training and education for water quality professionals.

WEF will continue to provide the best possible value for stretched member dollars even as we adjust current spending. It’s the Federation’s job to help you protect public health and the environment, and we are adapting our programs to meet your needs and resources.

We understand that travel is more difficult for many of our members, so we are putting new emphasis on distance learning technologies like free webcasts. Budgets for education and training are strained...we are adding more free content to our websites in response. Resources for innovation are strapped...we are emphasizing cutting-edge material and technologies in our educational offerings, including WEFTEC, our specialty conferences and our seminars. And of course, we continue to focus on providing our members with the latest information on new funding for wastewater projects, a big topic at next week’s 2009 National Clean Water Policy Forum sponsored by WEF and NACWA.

This is a hard time for both the public and private sector, and WEF is here to make it a little less so. Already there are signs that the recession may be softening, but we have a long way to go yet. Together we will get there.

Please take a moment to let us know what you think and what else WEF could do to be of more help still.

Show Me the Green Infrastructure

By Paul Freedman, 2008-2009 President-Elect of WEF

The other day I was having a discussion about the current stimulus bill and potential set asides for green practices, when a thought hit me: are we as a profession and as individuals really walking the talk, or merely looking for handouts? Put another way, have we fully embraced a new mentality about adopting green practices or are we just being politically correct to win federal money?

I am happy to say, that WEF as an organization and as a professional association talks the talk, and walks the walk. WEF has a Community of Practice on Sustainability with more than 100 members and has provided professionals with hundreds of presentations, papers, and articles on related topics including a specialty conference on sustainability in 2008 and another planned for 2010; we’ve also been quite active in legislative and regulatory affairs advocating for green practices. Beyond all this, WEF is demonstrating our commitment through implementation of our WEFeco program which is aimed at reducing the organization’s carbon footprint through individual and organizational actions, and will ultimately help other organizations go green with similar efforts. This has included everything from reducing our energy usage and paper usage to recycling and even installing a green roof and terrace(come by and admire it or read about it in the April issue of Highlights.

So especially in light of upcoming Earth Day celebrations, I am proud to be part of an organization that is advocating and embracing green practices. As experts and stewards of the water environment, we do have an obligation to lead, by voice and by example. And who is more qualified to lead efforts to redesign water and land-use infrastructure for communities that are greener, better for the environment and more livable and sustainable? What are you doing, both as a part of your organization and as an individual? I challenge you to take a moment and share an example of what you or your company or organization is doing in the way of green practices or more specifically, infrastructure. Thanks in advance for your post and your commitment to a cleaner, greener environment.