Jonathan McKeown, Chief Executive Officer, Mekong Water Solutions

Jonathan brings significant experience across water policy and resource management, international and NGO expertise, government liaison, and organisational leadership, to name a few.

As the Chief Executive Officer for Mekong Water Solutions, an eWater Limited branch office in Cambodia in partnership with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Jonathan will be leading a team to provide sustainable and inclusive services, advice and capabilities in water resource management and sustainable irrigation. Jonathan will work with governments, development partners, private sector, and institutions, to strengthen water management in the Mekong Region.

Jonathan has held many distinguished roles over his 30-year career, including Chief Executive of the Australian Water Association, Managing Director of Patria Partners Limited, Non-Executive Director of Eastern States Pty Ltd and Tote Tasmania Pty Ltd, and Executive General Manager of SAGRIC International Pty Ltd (now Coffey International).

Sarah Ransom, General Manager, Australian Water Partnership

Sarah is a former Australian diplomat with a background in international development with DFAT, AusAID, the Asian Development Bank and in the UN system.

As General Manager of the Australian Water Partnership, Sarah leads a multidisciplinary team managing two DFAT grants focussed on supporting climate resilient sustainable water resource management across the Indo-Pacific region.  She engages with AWP’s network of partners across Australia, the region and the globe to support Australia’s role in the critical issues of water for development.

Sarah has a deep connection with Asia, having had postings in Laos and Vietnam and lived in China and Taiwan as a Mandarin-language student. Her technical background is in managing programs on governance, gender and community and civil society engagement, and she has advised government on peacebuilding, human rights and development policy. Sarah is a lawyer by training but a partnership and collaboration specialist by vocation.

Sarah balances her role with AWP with raising her two young sons and loves bushwalking near her home on beautiful Ngunnawal Country in Canberra, Australia.

Damien Pearson is committed to the application of technology to solve water management challenges.

Damien’s career to-date has focused on technologies to improve water use efficiencies within irrigation areas in the Murray-Darling Basin, the Americas, Central Asia, Northern Africa and Europe. Damien is a systems engineer by training with extensive career experience in hydraulic modelling, software development, embedded systems development, and network distributed measurement and control technologies.

Prior to joining eWater, Damien served for 23-years in a range of roles within Australian water technology company Rubicon Water. Damien’s roles spanned R&D, product development, management of Rubicon’s North American operations and subsequent management of global business development. Damien’s experience includes the implementation of some of the world’s largest integrated control and measurement solutions to precisely manage agricultural water supply networks. This career history has provided Damien with extensive experience in the challenges faced by water users and management authorities, and the provision of tools to facilitate the improved management of water systems.

Michael Wilson, Group Chief Executive, eWater Limited

Michael commenced as Group Chief Executive of eWater Limited in January 2022, having previously served as Chief Executive of the Australian Water Partnership. Michael joined eWater following a 25-year career in international development, national security and sustainable development policy, including as head of the Australian aid program in mainland southeast Asia (2011–14) based in
Hanoi, Vietnam. He then headed practices within the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade working on political governance; water resource management, sanitation and hygiene; and the effective delivery of development assistance in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.

Michael has also worked in the private sector, including as a partner at global development company Palladium International, in management consultancy and as a principal consultant with a global human resources firm.

Michael has worked on development cooperation strategies and programming across Asia, the Pacific and the Middle East. As Coordinator on Gender Equality in the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), he designed and oversaw new initiatives and performance standards aimed at driving gender equity, women’s economic empowerment and women in leadership objectives across the Australian aid program.

Earlier in his career, Michael headed the International Section of the former federal Department of the Environment and Heritage, was a Principal Policy Adviser at the Australian Federal Police, and worked as a policy adviser to federal Ministers in the environment, trade and arts portfolios.

Michael holds a BA (Hons) in Political Science from the Australian National University and an MSc in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Stephen Cory is the Chief Operating Officer and Company Secretary of eWater Limited.

Stephen, who holds an MBA is a qualified CPA with a Bachelor of Commerce from James Cook University, Cairns Campus. He has more than 20 years of experience and knowledge in financial control, quality assurance and management systems.

Stephen’s background includes a range of senior executive management positions and roles reporting to a board within Corporate Services, Financial Control, Venue Management and Vocational Education and Training predominately within the not for profit sector.

Stephen’s strengths include strategic advice, governance support, change management, commercial leadership, internal control, risk management, management reporting assurance, communication and presentation.