by Sami Stroud | Feb 12, 2026 | Utility Management, Wastewater, Workforce Development
Shannon Hazelton, at work in Winterset, IA and Point Hope, AK. When Shannon Hazelton entered the workforce, he never expected to spend nearly twenty years in wastewater. Yet his path—shaped by unexpected opportunities, tough environments, and a drive to keep...
by Sami Stroud | Feb 11, 2026 | Financial Management, Managerial & Financial Leadership, Utility Management, Workforce Development
The past few years have been water’s moment. Nationally, we’ve had a greater recognition of the importance of water: an understanding that water really is life, and we need to invest in it. More money than ever poured into various funding programs to allow water and...
by Sami Stroud | Feb 10, 2026 | Access to Wastewater Funding Sources, Access to Water Funding Sources, Access to Water/ Wastewater Funding Sources, Additional Support Organizations, Managerial & Financial Leadership, Small Water Systems
Staff at rural, small, and tribal (RST) water utilities often operate in remote, hard-to-reach areas, and face aging infrastructure with limited financial resources. These challenges threaten their core mission of providing safe, reliable, and affordable water...
by Sami Stroud | Feb 10, 2026 | Access to Wastewater Funding Sources, Access to Water Funding Sources, Access to Water/ Wastewater Funding Sources, Additional Support Organizations, Managerial & Financial Leadership, Partnerships, Utility Management, Workforce Development
Photo: Lawren Lu The “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) series, a joint effort between Quantified Ventures (QV) and the Environmental Finance Center Network (EFCN), has completed its first year of sessions. AMA sessions are a mix of themed session and office hours...
by Sami Stroud | Feb 10, 2026 | Financial Management, Managerial & Financial Leadership, Utility Management, Workforce Development
Similar to the roughly quarter of Americans living paycheck to paycheck, many water and wastewater systems operate without a safety net, using virtually all of its monthly revenue obtained from customer rates and fees to pay for that month’s expenses. If an emergency...
