Board of Directors
The Board of Director for the Colorado Energy Water Consortium is composed of stakeholders
from industry, government, academics, agriculture and environmental groups.
Chair, Barbara Kirkmeyer – Weld County Commissioner
Barbara Kirkmeyer is currently a Weld County Commissioner. She is serving as Chairwoman of the Board and is in her third term as a County Commissioner. Among her many activities as a County Commissioner, she has oversight responsibilities for the Weld County Smart Energy Project and the Weld County Niobrara Work Group. Barbara previously worked in the Owens Administration, serving on the Governor’s Cabinet as the acting Executive Director for the Colorado Department of Local Affairs. Barbara is a graduate from the University of Colorado, receiving a bachelor’s degree and a teaching certificate. She co-owned and operated a small business with her sister for 15 years.
Vice-Chair, Bill Bellamy – Vice President, CH2M HILL
Dr. Bellamy is a Fellow and Senior Vice President of Water Technologies at CH2M HILL, providing leadership and direction for the water business and worldwide application of sustainable water systems. Dr. Bellamy has led hundreds of studies, designs, and construction activities for water, reuse, and reclamation facilities, has served on national EPA and university advisory boards and councils, and has authored or co-authored more than 100 papers and presentations addressing various aspects of policy and water technologies. Dr. Bellamy earned a 2010 CH2M HILL Frontline Leadership Excellence Award, which recognizes outstanding frontline managers who meet best practices in coaching and development, employee engagement, communication and leadership, as nominated by individuals or teams who work for the manager.
Secretary, Reagan Waskom – Director of the Colorado Water Institute
Reagan Waskom currently serves as the Director of the Colorado Water Institute and as Director of the Colorado State University Water Center. Dr. Waskom is a member of the Department of Soil & Crop Sciences faculty with a joint appointment to the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at CSU. In addition, Reagan currently serves as the Regional Director of the USDA-CSREES Integrated Water Program. Reagan received his BS and MS degrees from Texas A&M University and his PhD from Colorado State University.
Treasurer, Ken Knox – Senior Advisor and Environmental Engineer, Noble Energy
Ken Knox is a Senior Advisor for Noble Energy and is responsible for strategic planning and management of their comprehensive full life-cycle water program. Ken has extensive experience in water resources planning, engineering, and management activities for a variety of public and private interests throughout the United States and international community. He is a former Chief Deputy State Engineer in Colorado and served as the Compact Coordinator and Engineer Advisor for the nine Interstate River Compacts that Colorado is a party to and was also responsible for water supply, water rights administration, litigation, and engineering functions. He received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University. Dr. Knox is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Denver and teaches graduate-level classes in environmental policy, management, and finances.
Don Ament – Colorado Agriculture Commissioner (retired)
Don Ament was born and raised in northeastern Colorado, and still farms there today. As a young man, he joined the Colorado Young Farmers Educational Association and participated in a spokesperson contest. He won the state title and went on to use those skills in the political arena, serving first on the local school board, then 12 years in the Colorado General Assembly, chairing the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Energy Committee along with the Capital Development Committee. Most recently, Don served as the Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture for eight years as part of Governor Bill Owens’ administration.
Tom Iseman – Program Director, Western Governors Association
Tom Iseman is the Program Director for the Water Policy at the Western Governors Association, where he works on water supply, drought, and climate issues for the 19 Western States and 3 U.S. Flag Pacific Islands. Prior to joining WGA, Tom worked water resource issues for the U.S. Department of the Interior and The Nature Conservancy. Tom has extensive experiences in statewide and regional water supply planning, including Colorado’s Statewide Water Supply Initiative, the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program, and FERC Hydropower Relicensing. Tom grew up in Englewood, CO, and received a BA in History from Princeton University (focusing on Western Water Issues) and an MS from the University of Michigan in Aquatic Ecology.
John Sanderson – The Nature Conservancy
John Sanderson did his undergrad in aeronautical engineering while he realized his true calling was the great outdoors. He then did a post-college stint in the Peace Corps working for on a forest program. He received his masters in Botany from the University of Vermont. Now armed with a Ph.D. in ecology from Colorado State University, Sanderson co-directs the Center for Conservation Science and Strategy, while also managing the water program and providing science support for the Conservancy’s Colorado chapter. He works on a range of issues from conservation planning to development of environmental flow guidelines for streams and rivers.
Bryan Willson – Director of the Colorado State Energy and Engines Conversion Lab
Dr. Bryan Willson is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Colorado State University (CSU) and has worked for over 25 years to develop large-scale solutions for global energy needs. He serves as Director of CSUs Clean Energy Supercluster (www.Energy.ColoState.edu), an academic unit of over 150 diverse faculty members working to develop and disseminate clean energy solutions. He is co-founder of Solix Biofuels (www.SolixBiofuels.com), a developer of large-scale production systems for algae-based biofuel, and Envirofit International (www.Envirofit.org), a global company distributing clean energy solutions in the developing world. He is Founder and Director of CSUs Engines and Energy Conversion Laboratory (www.EECL.ColoState.edu ), a large and diverse energy solutions laboratory.