The Water Council has added representatives of global engineering firms Ramboll and Arcadis and international beverage company Molson Coors to its Board of Directors, further rounding out its leadership expertise.
Karen Dettmer is acting director of water resources at Danish firm Ramboll, managing the water resources division in the Americas. She recently served as the managing director for infrastructure implementation at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. She spent 15 years serving the City of Milwaukee, most recently as commissioner of public works and superintendent of Milwaukee Water Works. She previously served on The Water Council’s Board from 2020 to 2022.
“I continue to be impressed with what The Water Council has accomplished as a water technology and stewardship cluster, and so I’m excited to rejoin the board of directors and bring my wide-ranging perspectives in government and private sector to their effort in solving some of the world’s most pressing water challenges,” Dettmer said.
Rachel Schneider joined Molson Coors Beverage Company in 2022 as vice president of sustainability and EHS (environmental, health and safety). Prior to joining Molson Coors, she was at Harley-Davidson for 12 years, leading sustainability efforts and driving business and strategic planning. Schneider made the switch to the corporate sustainability world after a 15-year legal career. She was an equity partner in the Environmental Law Group of Quarles & Brady LLP.
“Water is an essential ingredient across Molson Coors products, which is one of the many reasons we are committed to driving water use efficiency in our operations,” Schneider said. “I’m excited to join an organization that helps companies become better water stewards while also leading efforts to promote cutting-edge water technology.”
Ifetayo Venner is U.S. wastewater treatment practice leader and infrastructure sustainability leader at Dutch firm Arcadis, where she has been responsible for the management, planning, modeling, design and startup of municipal wastewater treatment and reuse facilities throughout the United States. She is immediate past president of the Water Environment Federation (WEF), an officer on the WEF Board of Trustees and a member of the One Water Council for the U.S. Water Alliance.
“It is an honor for me to join this distinguished group of business, academic and government executives committed to addressing critical water issues through improved technology and stewardship,” Venner said. “I look forward to using my leadership experience with national water associations such as the Water Environment Federation and my engineering expertise through Arcadis to help The Water Council continue to grow as a World Water Hub.”
“As we grow in our mission to advance freshwater technology and water stewardship as well as develop an NSF Resiliency Engine in Wisconsin for manufacturers and utilities, engineering is an increasingly important component of solutions,” said Scott Beightol, board chairman. “We also are pleased to have representation from Molson Coors, a historic Milwaukee company and a forward-thinking user of freshwater that was one of the founding companies of The Water Council. I am proud to add such accomplished engineering and corporate leaders to our board and look forward to their contributions.”
