Women of Water 2015 Year in Review

Thank you for your ongoing support and interest in Women of Water. Below is a brief summary of the 2014-2015 year. It includes an overview of the events of the past year. 

As of June 30, 2015 Women of Water (WoW) has 35 members—both male and female—from the private and public sectors.  We have also received donations from the following organizations:   Waterford Systems, WEAU and MWH.  These donated funds, in partnership with your membership dues, make‐up our operating budget.  Thank you to all of our members and supporting organizations for your support!     

Below is a recap of how your Women of Water membership funds were used and highlights from the year. In 2014‐2015 we held a number of events ranging from educational to social: 

• Lunch and Tour of the Central Valley Water Reclamation Facility from Tom Holstrom 
• Lunch and Presentation on Water Projects as Women’s Empowerment Projects in Developing Countries by Christina Osborn and Jessica Penetar at Utah Department of Environmental Quality 
• Spring Social at Sage’s Café!    
• Lunch and Presentation on the Utah Women in the Economy Commission by Representative Jennifer Seelig at MWH 
• Lunch and Presentation on Salary Negotiation by Julie Swaner at the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District Conservation Garden 
• Workshop on How to Give Effective Presentations by Renette Anderson at the Utah Department of Environmental Quality 
• Lunch and Presentation on Women and Leadership in Utah: Challenges and Opportunities from Dr. Susan Madsen at WesTech Engineering                                                                                 

Dr. Madsen's Presentation

We have held a number of these events in conjunction with the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE).    

Other Events WoW participated in: 

• WTS invited Women of Water to present with them to the Utah Women in the Economy Commission at the Utah Capitol.  We testified before the commission on the goals of our organization and the state of women in the water and wastewater industries.  The commission found our testimony very helpful as they look to find ways to encourage women to join and stay in the workforce in Utah. 
• We also volunteered at the Expanding Your Horizons event held in early March at Salt Lake Community College.  Nearly 60 middle and high school aged girls attended our workshop on water titled Down the Drain and Back Again. 

Upcoming events: 

• Summer Social: Potluck dinner and movie at the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District’s Conservation Gardens.  We’ll be showing the movie the Princess Bride and we’ll have root beer floats and popcorn.  Please bring a dish to share.  This is a free event.  Bring your families!  Look for more details here, and RSVP here! 
• Lunch and presentation on Engineers Without Borders Projects on August 13th.  More details in this blog post! RSVP here.

There have been dozens of insightful blog pots on our website over the past year at http://utahwomenofwater.blogspot.com.  These ranged from invitations to our events to advertising volunteer opportunities to posts about relevant topics like Sheryl Sandberg’s book Lean In.    
We also received a 501c3 designation from the IRS and are now considered a non‐profit organization and we can solicit tax‐deductible donations. 

Membership in WoW expired on June 30, 2015.  We hope you will renew!  Professional memberships are available for $35 and student memberships are $15.  We keep our costs as low as possible in order to allow as many people as possible to join.  Contact Rachael Peavler to renew your membership at Rachael.Peavler@mwhglobal.com.  The membership form is attached. 

Thank you for your support.  We look forward to another great year of events and activities! 

Sincerely, 
Christina Osborn 
Women of Water President