Our Staff & Board

After graduating from the University of Texas, Adam went on to an award winning, seven year run with legendary Texas advertising agency GSD&M. In 2002, he co-founded the Butler brand development studio. His studio helps companies, nonprofits and civic institutions design communications that steward, protect and promote the natural world.

He is a founding board member of Farmshare Austin and the Frio Valley Cycling Extension, and serves on the Shield Ranch Wild for Good Committee. Adam is married with three sons and lives in Austin, Texas. 

Linda Christie earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Texas Tech University, graduating summa cum laude, and received her Juris Doctor from the University of Texas School of Law. She practiced law in private practice from 1983 to 2005, concentrating on real estate, banking, and oil and gas law. She also served as Associate General Counsel for Harris Methodist Health System and Cook Children’s Medical Center, specializing in managed care.

In 2005, Linda joined the Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD) as Government Affairs Director, where she served until 2025. In that role, she was responsible for monitoring and managing state and federal legislation, regulations, and policies affecting the District’s mission. She was an active member of the National Water Resources Association and the National Waterways Conference, working closely with industry leaders, federal agencies, and members of Congress on water policy initiatives. She was instrumental in advancing federal legislation that strengthened water supply policy through several Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) authorizations.

Kira is the founder and CEO of Adaptive Water, whose mission is to accelerate Texas's transition toward water sustainability. Adaptive designs, builds, and operates facility-scale systems that enable commercial and industrial sites to capture, treat, and reuse underutilized water sources like rainwater, graywater, and AC condensate. By eliminating dependence on potable water for applications that don't require it, these systems lower costs and strengthen long-term water security while easing pressure on shared resources.  

Alongside her work in water infrastructure, Kira is also an active steward of Texas's biological heritage. She cultivates native plants to support biodiversity, with a focus on species that are endemic, threatened, or endangered, and supplies them to habitat restoration projects across Central Texas in partnership with organizations like TreeFolks and Central Texas Seed Savers.

Elizabeth Fazio Hale serves as the CEO/General Manager of the Gulf Coast Authority (GCA), where she oversees wastewater treatment and water reuse systems serving industrial and municipal partners across Texas. She has extensive experience in water policy, infrastructure funding, and utility management.

Prior to joining GCA, Liz served as ED/CEO of Riverbend Water Resources District in Northeast Texas, leading regional water planning across three counties.  She also served as Director for Natural Resources in the Texas House of Representatives under Chairman Allan Ritter, where she helped develop the State Water Implementation Fund (and Revenue) for Texas (SWIFT) /(SWIRFT) and oversaw the passage of hundreds of pieces of legislation impacting Texas water resources.

Liz serves on the boards of the Texas Lyceum, Texas Conservation Fund, Texas Water Association (TWA) and associated Risk Management Fund (TWARMF), the Texas Water Foundation, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), and Texas Water Trade.

Liz is a dual-degree graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and holds her Juris Doctorate and LL.M. in Taxation from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. She enjoys traveling and spending time with her family.

Kinnan Golemon is an environmental, energy and natural resources lawyer and lobbyist in Austin, Texas. For over three decades, Golemon was a Partner with Brown McCarroll, LLP, where he was the senior member of the environmental team. From 1992 to 2006, he served as General Counsel for the Texas Chemical Council, the association representing the approximate 80 chemical manufacturing operations in Texas.

In 2008, he was a founder of the State Bar of Texas Environmental and Natural Resources Law Section and he held numerous leadership positions during a 30-plus year tenure in the American Bar Associate (ABA) Section of Environment, Energy and Resources (SEER) Law. In 2008, Kennon was inducted as an initial Fellow in the American College of Environmental Lawyers (ACOEL). He presently serves on the Executive Council of the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Center for Energy, Law and Business at The University of Texas at Austin. Golemon served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1961-69, which included tours in Cuba, Okinawa, Taiwan and Vietnam.

John Hall is the President and CEO of the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), a research hub providing independent analysis on energy, air, water, and resilience issues to shape scientific solutions for a sustainable and equitable future. He has been a thought leader and practitioner on the impacts of energy on air quality, the environment, communities, and climate for the past thirty years. His policy and research expertise include environmental justice, clean energy, climate resilience, and emerging technologies that reduce air and climate pollution while supporting economic growth and job creation.

Before joining HARC, John chaired the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC), the predecessor agency to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Hall left a lasting mark on TCEQ by implementing the Mickey Leland Environmental Internship Program. He also served in leadership roles at Environmental Defense Fund, focusing on clean energy efforts in ten of the largest states, and vehicle electrification initiatives in Texas.

Elizabeth Jensen is a board member at Texas Water Trade.

Missy Mandell is a seasoned policy and business consultant and political strategist with more than 40 years in governmental relations, public policy development, alliance building, community networking, and issues management in both the public and private sectors.

In 2008 she founded Mandell and Associates, a strategic consulting firm based in Austin, Texas. Mandell currently works with electric and water utilities, and with clients in energy and environmental industries to create successful business development strategies that range from policy development and legislative advocacy to communications and public outreach campaigns. Mandell graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. She has been involved in many community activities in Central Texas, including Friends of the Children, the American Heart Association, and the Center Child Protection. She and her husband have three children.

Dr. Joe D. May is Chancellor Emeritus of Dallas College and a leader in educational transformation. In Dallas, Dr. May’s leadership was pivotal in unifying seven distinct colleges into a singular institution, and his vision gave birth to the Dallas County Promise Program, a significant stride towards democratizing education and providing enhanced support to students navigating the complexities of higher education financing. 

Dr. May served as a Fulbright Scholar in Russia and contributed to various international and non-profit organizations, such as the Global Citizenship Alliance. His tenure at the Louisiana Community and Technical College System was characterized by rebuilding a system that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated, securing essential funding, expanding instructional pathway offerings and nurturing international partnerships. 

Dr. May’s commitment to equitable educational policies and student success led to his role in establishing organizations like Rebuilding America’s Middle Class (RAMC) and advocating for community colleges and their diverse body of students. He was inducted into the Community College Hall of Fame in 2023, recognizing his dedication and transformative contributions to higher education. Dr. May’s career stands as a testament to the power of education as a catalyst for individual and community transformation, and his legacy continues to resonate, creating pathways of academic excellence and community empowerment.

Gregory Salinas, a board member at Texas Water Trade, specializes in municipal finance law and is a partner at the law firm of McCall, Parkhurst & Horton L.L.P. A partner in the Austin office, Gregory Salinas currently focuses on most areas of municipal finance for various political subdivisions in Texas and New Mexico. 

Representative clients include: the Lower Colorado River Authority, the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, the Texas Municipal Power Agency,Texas Department of Transportation, the Calhoun Port Authority, the Port of Port Arthur Navigation District, Gulf Coast Authority, school districts and other political subdivisions.

Stephen Tatum Jr. is a water lawyer who currently serves as the General Counsel and head of Government Affairs for the Tarrant Regional Water District. Stephen returned to his native Fort Worth after twelve years in Austin working for and representing the State of Texas. He served as Deputy Commissioner to Commissioner Toby Baker at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and as an Assistant Attorney General under Attorney General Greg Abbott. At Cantey Hanger, he advised clients on state and federal environmental, energy, government, and regulatory matters. From 2020 to 2021, he served as Chief of Staff for EPA Region 6 in Dallas,Texas. 

In his role as the chief executive officer, Ward oversees the largest river authority and wholesale provider of wastewater treatment services in Texas with jurisdiction spanning over 18,000 square miles. With the support of over 500 employees, Ward is responsible for the operation and maintenance of four water treatment facilities, five wastewater treatment facilities and the dam and recreation facilities at Lake Livingston, the primary water source for the City of Houston.

Ward previously served as executive administrator and other capacities at the Texas Water Development Board from 1987 to 2011.   

Ward is active in several organizations. He is a member of the American Society of Engineers Industry Leaders Council. He serves as a member of the Region H Water Planning Group, the Trinity and San Jacinto River Basins and Galveston Bay Basin and Bay Area Stakeholder Committee, and the Tarrant Regional Water District Customer Advisory Committee. He serves as a board and executive committee member of the North Texas Commission and on the Texas Water Association’s executive committee as chair of the Association’s River Authority Panel.

Molly, a seventh-generation Texan who returned to her home state in 2020, brings more than 20 years of experience advancing energy, water, and environmental stewardship across global technology infrastructure, public policy, and strategic partnerships. She most recently served as Vice President of Sustainability for Divcon, a provider of electrical and building management systems for data centers, where she led the company’s sustainability strategy and implementation.

Previously, Molly worked at Apple, where she developed global clean energy and water initiatives. She has held advisory roles on international clean energy and climate at the U.S. Department of State and served as Deputy Associate Director for Energy and Climate Change at the White House. She also worked as a research scientist in laboratories in Massachusetts and France.

Molly holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University in Applied Mathematics with Physical Chemistry and two master’s degrees from Duke University focused on energy and the environment. An athlete at heart, she leaps at any opportunity for an active adventure—especially swimming, cycling, and skiing on the Texas waters. 

Daniel Womack is the Global Lead for Carbon & Energy Policy for Dow. In his role at Dow, he works with internal and external resources to formulate corporate positions, approaches and messaging on issues and policies in collaboration with Dow’s subject matter experts and the government affairs advocacy team. Daniel translates emerging trends and societal developments into proactive, aggressive national and global strategies to maximize Dow’s opportunities and mitigate long-term risk to the company. 

Prior to joining Dow, Daniel held a variety of positions inside the Texas government, including policy positions with two different state Senators, and Chief of Staff to the Chairman of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Daniel was also Vice President of Government Affairs for the Texas Chemical Council (TCC). 

Daniel holds a bachelor’s degree in business from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. In his free time, Daniel collects vinyl records, is a huge baseball fan and an avid long-distance trail runner. He lives in Austin with his wife, Katie.

With more than three decades of environmental law, policy, and advocacy experience, Mary is a nationally respected environmental lawyer and non-profit program manager. She provides environmental analysis and advocacy services to non-profits, philanthropic foundations, and other organizations. Mary’s areas of expertise include water law and policy, ecosystem restoration law and policy, U.S./Mexico border environmental issues, strategy development, grant writing, strategic fundraising and non-profit management.  J.D. University of Texas; B.S. Chemical Engineering, University of Arizona.

Jay Kleberg is the founding executive director of the Gulf Trust, a conservation organization focused on providing Texas-based, science-backed solutions to some of the Gulf’s most pressing challenges. Prior to this role, Jay served as Associate Director for Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation, was a strategic consultant to the National Parks Service and The Peregrine Fund, and has co-produced and co-directed several award-winning documentary films. He holds an MBA from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin and BA from Williams College.

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Don serves as Executive Director of the Harte Charitable Foundation developing and managing their investments in the stewardship of the Gulf of Mexico.  Don also serves as Chair of Gulf of Tomorrow, a new tri-national marine conservation organization. Don previously led the Gulf of Maine Research Institute from start-up to internationally recognized climate change research and adaptation organization.

Sarah Rountree Schlessinger is the CEO of Texas Water Foundation (TWF), a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to lead Texas into a secure water future. TWF works in water policy by educating, convening, and supporting the next generation of water leaders. She previously worked in groundwater policy and regulation, and has experience with international nonprofits and disaster response. Sarah was a founding director of Texas Water Trade, served as an appointed member of the Water Conservation Advisory Council for ten years, and currently serves as a director of Gulf of Tomorrow and Open ET.

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