Staff

Sara Allen is the Membership and Development Associate at the US Water Alliance. She has over six years of experience in fund development and grants management in the diverse settings of philanthropy, Bay Area affordable housing sector, and rural Rwanda. Prior to her work at family and community foundations, she served in the Peace Corps in Rwanda as a community health worker and as an AmeriCorps volunteer at Habitat for Humanity in Oakland, CA. She enjoys finding linkages between social justice, environmental conservation, and climate resilience. She holds a B.A. in Environmental Policy and Urban Planning from Western Washington University. She enjoys exploring and appreciating city parks, and drinking the Bay’s delicious tap water.

Kara Butler is a Program Associate at the US Water Alliance. She was brought on to support the Alliance in preparation for the One Water Summit in 2018 and has continued to work closely with the program directors on a number of issues at their Oakland office. Prior to joining the Alliance, Kara worked in data analysis and partnerships in the private sector. She has a background in client relations and project coordination and has over six years of experience in providing administrative support to startup, non-profit and small businesses. Kara grew up in Croatia (known for its Adriatic coast and the river Sava – one of the longest rivers in Europe) and studied Art History after moving to the California Bay Area. She enjoys camping and birdwatching in California’s national parks and forests.

Abigail Gardner serves as the Communications Director for the Value of Water Campaign and the US Water Alliance. She handles press requests and media relations on behalf of the Campaign and the Alliance.

For more than a decade, Abigail has worked with communications and media at the intersection of politics, campaigns, and advocacy. Prior to her work with Value of Water and the Alliance, Abigail was a Vice President at SKDKnickerbocker, where she served as a communications consultant for several political candidates, issue advocacy campaigns, and clients in need of crisis-management. During her time at SKDK, she developed a specialty in the transportation and infrastructure space.  She also served in the official office of Congressman Dan Maffei (D-NY) and Governor Eliot Spitzer and worked on several political campaigns before joining SKDKnickerbocker. Abigail is a graduate of the University of Virginia and a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a city famous for its three rivers.

Sarah Huckins is a Program Associate as the US Water Alliance, supporting The Value of Water Campaign and the Alliance’s policy work. In addition to her role at the Alliance, Sarah is pursuing a Master’s in Strategic Communication at American University’s School of Communication. Prior to joining the Alliance, Sarah served as Partnership Manager for Island Press in Washington D.C. She also previously worked as Environmental Coordinator for Patagonia D.C. and spent time in Amman, Jordan working with EcoPeace Middle East to promote environmental stewardship and regional cooperation as a part of Patagonia’s Environmental Internship Program.

Katy Lackey is a Program Manager at the US Water Alliance. She works on initiatives for One Water leadership, equity in climate resilience, onsite non-potable water systems, and agriculture-municipal partnerships. Katy has seven years of experience leading research and programming in the water sector. Prior to joining the Alliance, Katy was a Research Manager for The Water Research Foundation. Her portfolio covered One Water, cross-sector collaboration, extreme events, green infrastructure, decentralized systems, and sustainable energy management. In DC, Katy also served on the Executive Board of the Women’s Aquatic Network (WAN) for four years. Katy holds a M.A. in Natural Resources and Sustainable Development from the United Nation’s University for Peace in Costa Rica, as well as an M.A. in International Affairs from American University’s School for International Service in Washington, DC. A Colorado-native, she loves hiking and is in constant awe of the interconnections and beauty of all our water resources.

Jeremy Madsen is the US Water Alliance’s Vice President, Programs. In his role, Jeremy has overall strategic and operational responsibility over the Alliance’s programmatic efforts. Over the course of two decades, Jeremy has developed an expertise in enabling nonprofit organizations and programs to maximize impact to advance environmental sustainability, social equity, and economic vitality. He has worked on a host of issues including clean energy, housing, transportation, and open space conservation. Prior to joining the Alliance, Jeremy was a Program Director at the Energy Foundation where his primary responsibility was strategic grantmaking and operational guidance to a network of organizations focused on engaging leading businesses in clean energy and climate policy in key US states. Jeremy also spent a decade as CEO of Greenbelt Alliance, a nationally renowned organization focused protecting the iconic natural and agricultural landscapes of the San Francisco Bay area and promoting the right development in the right places across the metropolitan region.

Jeremy holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from George Washington University and an M.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of Oregon. Jeremy lives in the island community of Alameda, California with his wife and two children. During his free time, you can often find him on a soccer field with a bunch of men who struggle to act their age. 

Karen Rodriguez is the Vice President for Finance & Operations at the US Water Alliance. She has spent the last 20 years serving various nonprofit organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area in a similar capacity. Prior to joining the Alliance, Karen served as Controller for CollegeSpring, Director of Finance & Administration for Amazon Watch, and Chief Financial Officer for California Humanities. She enjoys helping intrepid nonprofit organizations create and maintain systems that enable them to more efficiently fulfill their missions. She holds a B.A. in International Relations from San Francisco State University, and avidly enjoys traveling and singing when she can.

Emily Simonson is the Senior Manager for Strategy and Special Projects at the US Water Alliance. She is responsible for supporting the CEO on high-priority strategic initiatives, philanthropic engagement, and organizational positioning and planning. Emily also coordinates staff engaged on the Alliance’s Equitable Water Future portfolio. She was formerly responsible for coordinating and implementing the Value of Water Campaign, an initiative focused on building the public and political will to invest in water infrastructure.

Emily became passionate about the role water plays in social and environmental prosperity while working in Ghana for Global Brigades, a community development nonprofit. She was responsible for mobilizing students to build rainwater harvesters and deliver hygiene education workshops in rural communities without access to piped water and sanitation services. She graduated from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University with Master’s degrees in Public Administration and International Relations after a brief stint as an intern with the United Nations in Switzerland. Before coming to the US Water Alliance, Emily spent two years at EPA as an ORISE Fellow with the Urban Waters Program where she took on conference planning, strategic communications, and initiatives to increase government's ability to provide an integrated approach when working side by side with communities to restore their waterways and promote economic and social prosperity. Off the clock, Emily will use any excuse to get outside and especially likes frisbee, biking, paddling, and hiking with friends. 

Gina is an independent consultant in the water and environment sectors, with a 25-year career in the water industry. A former US Water Alliance Board member, she led water marketing, sales, and strategy at CH2M (now Jacobs) and now operates Lakeview Strategic Services, a certified woman-owned business in Chicago. She is a mindfulness meditation teacher-in-training and is passionate about reforming systems and policies to build racial equity. The primary author of the Alliance’s One Water for America Policy Framework, Gina was also a key contributor to the Michigan governor’s Water Advisory Task Force Final Report on the Flint water crisis in 2016. She has co-authored other water industry publications such as AWWA’s Avoiding Rate Shock: Making the Case for Water Rates.