Fresh water is a vital resource for life on earth, and it plays an increasingly important role in developing technologies like AI, quantum computing, and the data centers on which both rely.
Managing access, use, and waste will only become more pressing as industry and communities continue to compete for water resources.
So it makes sense that the Great Lakes, which hold 20% of the world’s fresh surface water, are the site of our first Regional Regional Innovation Engine, funded by the National Science Foundation through the NSF Engines Program.
Today, we’re headed to Chicago to talk to Alaina Harkness of Great Lakes ReNEW about how this ecosystem is leading efforts across the Great Lakes region to bring stakeholders together, transition to a circular water economy, and protect and steward the Great Lakes for generations to come.
Alaina Harkness is the CEO of Chicago-based water innovation hub, Current, and the CEO and Principal Investigator of their NSF-funded Great Lakes Water Innovation Engine: Great Lakes ReNEW. She’s an entrepreneurial leader and lifelong Great Lakes resident who has spent her career seeking ways to build more inclusive economies and resilient communities. Outside the office, you can often find her on or near Lake Michigan, where she enjoys sailing, swimming, and birding in the parks near her South Side home.
Click here to listen to this episode on your favorite podcast player!
Listen to the full episode to hear:
- How conventional delivery and treatment systems have rendered water usage invisible to too many
- How developing water reuse systems benefits both the humans and the industry that rely on freshwater
- How Great Lakes ReNEW is building an extensive coalition to balance economic and environmental factors around water use in the region, develop new circular water technologies
- The challenges and opportunities of building the “blue economy” and how Great Lakes ReNEW will measure their impact and success