Patrick Cairo

 Patrick Cairo has over 45 years of experience in the water industry working in both the public and private sector. Patrick retired from SUEZ in 2016, a multinational water and waste company, where he was Senior Vice President of Corporate Development responsible for acquisitions of utilities, P3 projects and all other growth activities in North America. Previously, he was based in Paris and served as SUEZ’s Corporate Director for Global Technology and Innovation. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania with a BS and MS in Engineering, Patrick started his professional career with the Philadelphia Water Department and he served as Deputy Commissioner and COO in charge of operation and engineering services. He managed the upgrading and expansion of Philadelphia’s three large wastewater treatment plants and biosolids management facility which vastly improved the quality of the Delaware River. Mr. Cairo has considerable experience in structuring, financing and managing large water and wastewater projects in North America, Europe and the Developing World. Patrick is on the GWA executive team and co-chairs the fundraising committee. He has started his own management consulting company and serves on a number of advisory boards for non-profits and water organizations. During his career he published over 80 papers on water management and technology innovations and won several industry awards.