About Us
For infrastructure developers, technology providers, and investors seeking a partner in growth.
WaterConnect is a project development company dedicated to creating opportunities for construction-stage investment in climate resilient water and sanitation infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries. We bring early-stage financing and technical expertise to complement local partners, develop new infrastructure, and deploy technology that will impact water access, quality, and scarcity, and in turn build climate resilience for households and watersheds.
Founded by award-winning nonprofit organization, Water.org, WaterConnect is built on decades of experience investing in water and sanitation.
Our Team
Board of Managers
Gary White | Co-founder and CEO, Water.org, WaterEquity, WaterConnect
Gary White is an observer, an innovator, and a passionate problem-solver. He has created solutions that have empowered millions of people in need with access to safe water and sanitation.
Gary is the CEO and Co-founder of Water.org, WaterEquity, and now WaterConnect, three organizations dedicated to empowering people in developing nations to gain access to safe water and sanitation. Gary developed Water.org’s WaterCredit solution, creating new financing options for poor populations to meet their water supply and sanitation needs. He also developed WaterEquity, an impact investment manager dedicated to ending the global water crisis with an exclusive focus on mobilizing private investments in water and sanitation throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Bringing more than 30 years of experience to work on solving the global water and sanitation crisis, Gary is a leading advisor in the water and sanitation space, counseling organizations such as the IKEA Foundation, Inditex, Reckitt, AB InBev, Amazon Web Services, the Water Resilience Coalition, and Bank of America on responses to the global water crisis. He is also a founding board member of the Millennium Water Alliance and Water Advocates.
Alongside co-founder Matt Damon, Gary has been recognized through TIME magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most influential people and the Forbes 400 Lifetime Achievement Award for Social Entrepreneurship. Gary has also been named to the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Water and selected as Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneur and a Skoll Foundation Social Entrepreneur.
Gary’s educational credentials include three degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Missouri University of Science & Technology.
Vedika Bhandarkar | President & Chief Operating Officer, Water.org
As President and Chief Operating Officer of Water.org, Vedika is responsible for the oversight of the global organization, ensuring our overall effectiveness and comprehensive achievement of strategic, financial, and annual operational goals. She works closely with the CEO, the executive team, the Board of Directions, and the President of WaterEquity, and a broad range of other stakeholders to champion the vision of Water.org. She previously served as Water.org’s Chief Operating Officer, Chief Global Impact Officer and the Managing Director, India.
Vedika has more than 25 years of experience building teams and businesses with Indian and international financial institutions. She worked with J.P. Morgan for over 12 years, where she served as the Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking.
Vedika serves as an Independent Director on the boards of several companies. She also serves as a board member of the Jai Vakeel Foundation, an institution focused on children and adults with intellectual disabilities. In 2022, she was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Vedica Women's Alliance in recognition of her outstanding achievements and exemplary leadership.
Paul O’Connell | President & CEO, WaterEquity
Paul O’Connell is the President and CEO of WaterEquity LLC, an asset manager dedicated to expanding access to water and sanitation in emerging markets. Paul manages the overall operations of WaterEquity.
Prior to joining WaterEquity in 2019, Paul spent over 20 years as President and Managing Partner of FDO Partners, LLC, managing currency and equity portfolios for sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and other institutional investors.
Paul has deep experience in the research and practice of international finance. He has published a variety of academic articles on exchange rate behavior, international capital flows, and labor migration. He served on the Editorial Board of the Emerging Markets Review and the Review Board for the Research Foundation of the CFA Institute and has spoken at TED about the potential of capital markets to fund sustainable development goals. From 2016–2022, he served on the Board of Water.org. From 2010–2016, he was Chair of the Board of the US arm of Gavi, a global alliance dedicated to expanding vaccine availability in developing countries.
An Irish native, Paul received a B.A. in Economics from Trinity College, Dublin and an A.M. and Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University.
Catherine Colyer | Chief Operating Officer, WaterEquity
Catherine Colyer provides operational and compliance oversight of WaterEquity’s business and its funds. She manages teams that are collectively responsible for maintaining WaterEquity’s status as a Registered Investment Adviser with the SEC, domestic and international regulatory compliance, fund management, operational strategy, corporate governance, HR, and systems. Catherine brings to her role 25 years of experience in regulatory compliance, financial services, fair lending, and balancing business and legal objectives.
Catherine’s prior work experience includes working as a lawyer in an international law firm, a consultant in an international accounting firm, and overseeing compliance for a nationwide mortgage lender.
Catherine received a Bachelor of Arts with honors in Political Science and English from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law.
Leadership
John Moyer | President
As President of WaterConnect, John Moyer leads all aspects of the business to successfully develop climate resilient water and sanitation infrastructure projects and catalyze investment in the sector.
Previously, John led Water.org’s market entry into Southeast Asia before serving as a founding employee and the CIO of Water.org's asset management arm, WaterEquity.
John brings to the role 20 years of experience in the financial services, impact investment, and water and sanitation sectors, with emphasis on financing underserved markets.
John received his Bachelor of Arts in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University and holds a Master of International Economics and Development from Johns Hopkins University.
Pieter Tobing | Chief Infrastructure Development Officer
Pieter Tobing leads a global team of infrastructure project developers with the task of originating, developing and cultivating opportunities for investment in the water and sanitation sector.
Pieter has over 30 years of experience in water utility infrastructure investments and operations in Southeast Asia, MENA, Africa, Europe and Latin America. He has experience in full-cycle infrastructure development – from early stage to commercial operations – gained through significant involvement with various high-profile pioneering public-private-partnership schemes, structuring deals, raising project finance and managing partnerships with multiple stakeholders. Within utility operations, he is a subject matter expert in utility asset management and capital expenditure programming.
Pieter holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) from Parahyangan University in Indonesia and a Master of Science in Construction Economics and Management from the Bartlett School of Graduate Studies, University College London, United Kingdom.
Staff
Bing Rhodes | Director, Infrastructure Development
Bing oversees WaterConnect’s global infrastructure project development. She is responsible for identifying and nurturing investment opportunities and providing advisory services for infrastructure projects.
Bing has over 16 years of experience in project development, bid management, operations, and technical services in the water and sanitation sector. Before joining WaterConnect, she worked with Water.org, Mowah, and Manila Water, where she headed market and opportunity screening, risk assessment, and bid/proposal development for small to large-scale water and wastewater infrastructure projects in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. She also oversaw the project delivery performance of multi-million dollar capital expenditure projects and provided technical leadership to enhance the quality, efficiency, and innovation of water and wastewater operations.
Bing holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering and a Master's degree in Environment and Natural Resources Management from the University of the Philippines.
Christine D’sa | Director, Market Intelligence & Communications
Christine leads the assessment of policy environments and market trends and manages the design of business development strategies and WaterConnect products to reach target partners.
Christine brings over 12 years of experience in urban development related advisory work with a keen focus on water supply and sanitation infrastructure. Prior to joining WaterConnect she was Head of Infrastructure Policy and Regulation with the Infrastructure Services team at Water.org. Before this, she spent over a decade with the Urban Practice at CRISIL Ltd. working across several countries in Asia and Africa on water and sanitation related laws and regulations, flagship national urban development missions, institutional and regulatory reform, city development planning, PPPs in urban infrastructure, land value capture, municipal finance, affordable housing, and urban economics.
Christine holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in International Housing and Urban Development from IHS, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, a Master of Arts in Habitat Policy and Practice from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Political Science and Sociology from St. Joseph’s College of Arts and Science, Bangalore.
Konstant Bruinette | Regional Director, Africa
Konstant oversees WaterConnect’s project development initiatives and infrastructure services in the Africa region and is tasked with identifying opportunities for project development and fostering partnerships with technology-based solution providers.
Konstant has more than 20 years of professional experience in the complete value chain of water infrastructure development from project conceptualization, project preparation and the financing of the project implementation phase, gained through his career with leading infrastructure developers in the region, including the Development Bank of Southern Africa and the Bigen Group.
Konstant holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil), and a Master of Engineering (Technology and Engineering Management) from the University of Pretoria, as well as an MBA from the University of Stellenbosch.
Sanjit John | Regional Director, Central and South Asia
Sanjit oversees WaterConnect’s project development initiatives and infrastructure services in the Central and South Asia region and is tasked with identifying opportunities for project development and fostering partnerships with technology-based solution providers.
With 17 years of experience in both EPC and O&M project sales as well as global business development, Sanjit brings a wealth of market expertise to WaterConnect.
He has worked with Thermax Ltd., VA Tech Wabag Ltd., and Holtec International, gaining valuable insights across the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia. Sanjit's extensive experience in the municipal and industrial water sectors allows him to effectively manage complex projects.
He holds a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from Pune University and a Post Graduate degree in Business Administration from Symbiosis International University.
Hugo Contreras | Regional Director, Latin America and the Caribbean
Hugo oversees WaterConnect’s project development initiatives and infrastructure services in the Latin America and the Caribbean region and is tasked with identifying opportunities for project development and fostering partnerships with technology-based solution providers.
He brings more than 25 years of experience in business development and strategy, policy design and operations in the water, sanitation, and environmental sectors.
Prior to joining WaterConnect, Hugo led The Nature Conservancy’s water security strategy for LATAM, where he was instrumental in the growth of the Latin American Water Funds Partnership. Earlier in his career, he served as the Business Development and Institutional Relations Director for Bal-Ondeo, a joint venture between the Bal Group and Suez Environment, where he was pivotal in establishing the company as a top private water operator in Mexico. Prior to that, Hugo led the environment and good government practice at Thesis Consultores and held roles as Chief of Staff for the Under Ministry for Planning and Director for Natural Resource Economics at the Ministry of Environment in Mexico.
Hugo holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from ITAM, Mexico, and a Master of Science in Environmental and Natural Resource Economics from UCL, London. He also has diplomas in Management and Environmental Economics from Cambridge University, the IPADE, Berkeley University and the World Bank.