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Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Todd Votteler, talks with Dean Hendrickson, Curator of Ichthyology for the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas in Austin. Hendrickson is an ichthyologist and aquatic ecologist whose work has focused primarily on fishes and their habitats in arid North America (U.S. and México), generally with a strong link to conservation and endangered species. He is a Curator of the University of Texas' Fish Collection and his current work focuses on compilation of museum specimen-based fish occurrence records for Texas and adjacent areas.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Todd Votteler, talks with Emily Lewis, Director and Shareholder, and Co-Chair of the Natural Resources and Water Law Practice Group at Clyde Snow and Sessions, about the water issues facing Utah. Lewis assists clients in navigating complex water problems. She advises individual water right owners, water conservancy districts, municipalities, mining companies, and mutual shareholder irrigation companies. Her strategic projects practice extends to innovative policy work and specialty project management. She presently acts as the Utah Water Banking Project Manager and hosts Ripple Effect – A Podcast Putting Water in Context.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler interviews Gregory Ellis, Attornery at GM Ellis Law Firm P.C., about Texas groundwater markets. Ellis has been practicing water law and been involved in water issues for over three decades. As a law student, Ellis clerked for the Texas House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee, working on a variety of water legislation. After graduating from the University of Texas School of Law in 1988 and being admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 1989, Ellis worked as a legislative liaison for the Texas Water Commission. In 1992, Ellis moved to Houston to serve as General Counsel to the Harris-Galveston Coastal Subsidence District (now the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District). The Edwards Aquifer Authority hired Ellis as its first General Manager in 1997, a position he held until October 2004, when he left to start his solo law practice.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Todd Votteler, interviews Garry Merritt, CEO of the Great Springs Project, about his work to create a greenway of contiguous protected lands connecting the major springs of the Edwards Aquifer between Austin and San Antonio. Prior to joining Great Springs Project, Merritt served as General Counsel and Legislative Director of the Texas Association of Counties. He was also the County Judge for Real County. An avid river guide and mountain climber, he cares deeply about Texas and our beautiful Hill Country and conserving our natural resources for generations to come. Find out more about the Great Springs Project by going to the website (https://greatspringsproject.org/), or checking out #TrailTuesday on Instagram.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler interviews Dr. Emily Fairfax, an Assistant Professor of Environmental Science and Resource Management at California State University Channel Islands. Dr. Fairfax’s current research is focused on the ecohydrology of riparian areas, particularly those that have been impacted by beaver damming. She uses a combination of remote sensing and field work to understand how beaver activity can create drought and fire-resistant patches in the landscape under a changing climate. Her colleagues and students can vouch that when Dr. Fairfax says she can talk about beavers all day, she’s not kidding.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler interviews Perry Fowler, Executive Director of the Texas Water Infrastructure Network (https://txwin.org). As Executive Director, Fowler leads the organization’s efforts to build a strong, sustainable, and competitive Texas water infrastructure construction market through policy development, education, and advocacy. He is also the Principal of Fowler Group Texas, LLC, providing lobbying, government affairs, business consulting, association and coalition management services. A fifth generation Texas native, Fowler grew up in the Texas construction industry and has worked as an advocate for the construction industry at the international, national, state, and local level.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler interviews Kyle Garmany, Water and Agriculture Program Director for The Nature Conservancy Texas Chapter. In his role at The Nature Conservancy, Garmany is responsible for developing innovative strategies to alleviate water scarcity and protect the ecological integrity of the rivers, bays and estuaries of the state. His work includes the development of partnerships with agricultural producers to decrease water use and the execution of environmental water transactions to meet instream and environmental flow demands (https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/united-states/texas/stories-in-texas/tx-water-program/). Prior to his tenure with the Conservancy, he worked as a Hydrologist for State of Texas where he focused on the administration of water rights, and lead efforts to develop tools and strategies to develop environmental water transactions. Garmany studied Hydrology at Humboldt State University, and Water Resources at Texas State University.

Dr. Todd Votteler interviews Dr. Denielle Perry, a water resource geographer and Assistant Professor at Northern Arizona University in the School of Earth and Sustainability. Perry is the Director of the Free Flowing Rivers Lab (https://denielleperry.com/research/). In addition, she is one of the leaders of the River Field Studies Network (https://riverfieldstudies.com/), a community of practice that aims to advance undergraduate biology education and support healthy river ecosystems through inclusive, immersive, interdisciplinary field-based education.

Todd Votteler, Ph.D. talks with Mark Boyd, P.E., Ph.D., Principal Engineer at LCA Environmental and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Environmental and Civil Engineering at Southern Methodist University. Boyd recently served as chair of the Texas Section’s Infrastructure Report Card Committee for the Texas Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers. The Infrastructure Report Card serves an important role in raising public awareness and providing elected officials the necessary tools to support infrastructure funding. Honored as the 2010 Texas Engineer of the Year, Boyd has over 25 years of experience in civil and environmental engineering. To see a recent survey of the infrastructure needs of Texas water utilities click here: https://tinyurl.com/24s5j5y8

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Christina Babbitt, senior manager of the California Groundwater Program at Environmental Defense Fund. She is working to advance and scale groundwater sustainability policies and practices across California’s Central Valley and beyond. In these efforts, Babbitt works to build partnerships and collaboration among the agricultural community, NGOs, agencies and water districts. She also contributes technical expertise on water governance structure and design and is a member of the steering committee of the California Water Data Consortium. Babbitt's past research has focused on sustainable water resources management in stressed watersheds within the western U.S., Europe and eastern Africa.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Monte Mills, Associate Professor and Director of the Margery Hunter Brown Indian Law Clinic at the Alexander Blewett III School of Law at the University of Montana. Mills teaches a variety of Indian law courses and works with clinical students on a range of legal matters in the Indian Law Clinic. His research and writing focuses on the intersection of Federal Indian Law, Tribal sovereignty and natural resources. Recently, Mills coauthored “A Third Way: Decolonizing the Laws of Indigenous Cultural Protection,” which was published by Cambridge University Press. Prior to joining the University of Montana, Mills was the Director of the Legal Department for the Southern Ute Indian Tribe in Colorado. As Director of the Tribe's Legal Department, Monte represented and counseled the Tribe on a broad array of issues, including litigation in tribal, state and federal courts, legislative matters before the Colorado General Assembly and the United States Congress and internal tribal matters such as contracting, code-drafting and gaming issues.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Professor Abigail André, an environmental litigator with over a decade of experience enforcing the Clean Water Act. She recently joined the staff of Vermont Law Schools’ Environmental Advocacy Clinic after ten years of environmental litigation with the U.S. Department of Justice's Environmental Enforcement Section, where she led a diverse docket. From 2010 to 2016 Professor André helped litigate the case against BP and others arising from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, which led to the largest environmental damage settlement in U.S. history. Professor André received the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award in 2016 for her work on the Deepwater Horizon trial team. Professor André’s scholarly work focuses on how to expand the reach of the Clean Water Act and Oil Pollution Act regardless of regulatory and political uncertainty.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Dr. Rosario Sanchez, a senior research scientist for the Texas Water Resources Institute at Texas A&M University. Dr. Sanchez works on the Transboundary Aquifer Assessment Act Program to integrate research and data on transboundary aquifers between Mexico and Texas. Rosario is also the Executive Director of the Permanent Forum on Binational Waters.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Dr. Sharon B. Megdal, Director of The University of Arizona Water Resources Research Center, which is a Cooperative Extension center and a research unit in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Her work focuses on water policy and management, on which she writes and frequently speaks.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Mitch Tobin, Director of The Water Desk, which is an independent journalism initiative at the University of Colorado Boulder’s Center for Environmental Journalism that focuses on Western water issues and the Colorado River Basin. From 1998 to 2006, Tobin covered water, environmental, and other issues for the Napa Valley Register, Tucson Citizen, and Arizona Daily Star. His 2010 book, Endangered: Biodiversity on the Brink, examines the impact of the Endangered Species Act and won a gold medal in the Independent Book Publisher Awards.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Joe Underhill, Associate Professor of Political Science and Program Director of the River Semester (https://www.augsburg.edu/river/), Environmental Studies Program and Human Rights Forum at Augsburg University in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Dr. Underhill studied philosophy, history, literature, politics and environmental studies as an undergrad and received his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Michigan. He has been teaching and engaged in environmental politics for the last 30 years, from the Hudson River to San Francisco Bay and now on the Mississippi River. His goal is to increase our understanding of the causes and dynamics of current social and environmental problems and help with efforts to decrease our impact on the environment, increase social justice, and move towards a more sustainable economy.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Joshua Newton, an independent consultant and expert in global water political processes, governance and stakeholder engagement. Newton utilizes his knowledge of the international water community to help institutions develop their institutional strategies and drive political processes related to water. He is also the founder of Josh’s Water Jobs, connecting young professionals with job opportunities and promoting career development. This interview was recorded on April 24, 2020.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Dr. Ken Kramer and Jennifer Walker about the newly released Texas Water Conservation Scorecard 2020 Report, which provides an in-depth analysis and ranking of the water conservation efforts of more than 350 water utilities in Texas. Dr. Ken Kramer is the volunteer Water Resources Chair for the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club. He retired in 2012 after over 23 years as the first Lone Star Chapter Director and a previous seven years as a contract lobbyist for the Chapter. Kramer has served on numerous state and regional advisory bodies working on water and the environment. These include the Texas Water Conservation Advisory Council, the Environmental Flows Stakeholder Committees for two Texas bay/basin areas (Galveston Bay/Trinity and San Jacinto Basins and the Brazos Basin) and the Advisory Council for the Environmental Science Institute at The University of Texas at Austin. He has a B.A. in History from Texas Lutheran University, an M.A. in Political Science from Stephen F. Austin State University and a Ph.D. in Political Science from Rice University. Jennifer Walker is the Deputy Director for Texas Water Programs at the National Wildlife Federation. She has over 15 years experience focusing on statewide water policy issues with an emphasis on state and regional water planning, urban water management, and bay and estuary protection. Walker is Vice Chair of Austin's Water Forward Task Force, working to implement Austin’s groundbreaking 100-year water plan that is focused on deploying One Water solutions to meet future water needs. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Alliance for Water Efficiency, a stakeholder-based non-profit organization dedicated to the efficient and sustainable use of water. Jennifer has a B.S. in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology from the University of Texas at Austin.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief Dr. Todd Votteler talks with Joel Scata, Water and Climate Attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, about his recent article published in the Spring 2020 edition of the American Bar Association’s Environmental Law Magazine that outlines the need for a new federal flood protection standard to ensure federally-financed infrastructure is better prepared for and adapted to flooding exacerbated by climate change.  Scata works to develop federal and state policy solutions to address the impacts of climate change. In particular, he focuses on addressing sea level rise and extreme weather events, and their connection to flooding disasters.

Texas+Water Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Todd Votteler, talks with Dr. Katharine Hayhoe, Professor in the Public Administration program at Texas Tech University and Director of the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech, part of the Department of the Interior’s South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center. Dr. Hayhoe’s research focuses on developing and applying high-resolution climate projections to evaluate the future impacts of climate change on human society and the natural environment. She has published over 125 peer-reviewed abstracts and publications and served as lead author on key reports for the U.S. Global Change Research Program and the National Academy of Sciences, including the second, third and fourth U.S. National Climate Assessments and the 2017 Climate Science Special Report.