We are a Swiss non-profit association specialised in improving business practices in water and sanitation through training and awareness-raising so as to increase the sector’s integrity and sustainability.
We work with a wide range of partners across the fields of water, sanitation and entrepreneurship and are backed by a think tank of renowned experts and specialists.
At cewas, we build and strengthen the capacities needed to develop and implement sustainable solutions for the water and sanitation sector. We see challenges as opportunities and believe that in every unsustainable practice such as water pollution, overexploitation or corruption, lies a possibility to take action
We are a team of practitioners dedicated to linking business practices with sustainability in the water sector. We make things happen!
Co-Director
johannes.heeb@cewas.org | Tel. +41 (0)79 366 68 50
Dr. phil. II in Geography, Johannes Heeb has over 25 years of professional experience in sustainable sanitation and water management, regional development and ecological engineering. In his positions as chairman of the executive board of seecon international, associate director of regiosuisse, co-founder of the International Ecological Engineering Society (IEES) and as a lecturer at the University of Basel and Lucerne, he is a leader in combining business competence with sustainable water, sanitation and resource management. Drawing from his long experience, Johannes links cewas with an international, high-level network of experts and partners and is strongly involved in the coaching activities of the cewas start-up programme.
Co-Director
michael.kropac@cewas.org | Tel. +41 (0)78 872 67 44
Michael studied geography, business management and social and environmental sciences. After founding the NGO “Ecosan Services Foundation” with local partners in Pune, India, he joined seecon international and is today senior partner and is its CFO. Michael has more than 10 years of experience as a consultant in developing innovation projects in the international water sector and beyond. Michael facilitates and leads the cewas start-up programme and is the head coach.
Project manager, trainer and manager of the Start-up Programme
tandiwe.erlmann@cewas.org | Tel. +41 (0)76 528 68 70
Tandiwe holds a Master of Arts and Science (MA/MSc) in Sustainable Development and a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in International Management. Tandiwe has established competencies in eco-innovation and social entrepreneurship, business development and management, impact modelling, integrity management and sustainability assessment. She brings this expertise and experiences from long-term stays in Southern Africa, North & Latin America and Central Asia to the interdisciplinary and international projects of cewas. She is responsible for managing the Start-up Programme and supports various water sector organisations in implementing integrity management strategies.
Project manager and trainer
martin.wafler@cewas.org | Tel. +43 (0)664-4508313
Martin Wafler holds a MSc in Land and Water Management and Engineering. He is an expert in mainstreaming ecologically sound and socially acceptable water and wastewater concepts. His experience includes the conceptualisation and implementation of sustainable wastewater management and reuse concepts in India, the development of training materials, and the preparation, facilitation, delivery and follow-up of participatory training courses and workshops in Africa, South Asia and South East Asia. He works as trainer and facilitator during the cewas start-up programme (lectures on sustainable sanitation and water management) and supervises case study projects.
Project manager and trainer
leonellha.barreto-dillon@cewas.org | Tel. +41 (0)79 511 02 54
Leonellha Barreto Dillon graduated as a Chemical Engineer in Caracas, Venezuela. After pursuing a Master in Environmental Engineering at the Hamburg University of Technology, she gathered further knowledge and experience when she worked as Project Developer and Project Manager at the TTZ Bremerhaven, where she was responsible for the European Commission’s Funding Programmes. After pursuing her MBA, she is now responsible for training and coaching in the field of entrepreneurship and business strategy development at cewas.
Project manager and trainer
sarah.achermann@cewas.org | Tel. +41 (0)76 341 72 70
Sarah Achermann (MSc.), studied Geography, Ecology and Political Science. Her area of expertise includes Integrated Water Resource Management, community-based climate change adaptation, sustainable land management and intgrity management. She co-developed the integrity management toolbox and is involved in a number of integrity training activities.
Project leader cewas middle east
lillian.volat@cewas.org | Tel. +970 (0)598 358 637
Lillian studied International Relations and Environmental Politics at the University of Lingnan in Hong Kong. She has worked as a WASH project officer for various NGO’s in the Middle East focusing on sustainable sanitation and agriculture development. She is responsible for the start-up programme cewas middle east.
Project manager and trainer
janek.hermannfriede@cewas.org | Tel. +49 (0)163 8776308
Janek is an environmental engineer with a post-graduate degree in international development cooperation. He has more than 10 years of work experience in water governance, private sector engagement and sustainable water management practices. Janek has worked on numerous projects in Latin America, Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. He develops, trains and facilitates bottom-up solutions for key management, integrity and governance challenges in the water sector.
Project manager and trainer
carmen.fernandez@cewas.org | Tel. +49 +49 (0)157 58311224
PhD. in Life Science, MSc in Biology. Carmen is specialized in designing and implementing participatory approaches to enhance capacity development, strategy development and empowerment of local institutions in international environmental projects. At cewas, she participates in the development and implementation of training approaches related to strategy development and integrity management.
President
Thomas is co-chair of the Swiss Water Partnership. He is a former senior water policy advisor of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and has 20 years of experience in development cooperation in the water sector in Africa and Latin America, with a strong focus on irrigation and integrated water resources management. Thomas is president of cewas since June 2015.
Honorary President
Roland works as a water and sanitation consultant and is a former member of the directory board of EAWAG. He is honorary president of cewas and dedicates himself to supporting and initiating progress in water and sanitation management.
Vice- president and member of the board
Sebastian is managing director of
PLANVAL AG and regiosuisse, the national platform of the New Regional Policy (NRP) in Switzerland. His special focus lies on impact-oriented regional development, knowledge management and project development.
Member of the Board
Patrik is owner and board member of PLANING AG and managing director of IPSO ECO AG. He is specialised in environmental impact studies as well as in projects relating to mobility concepts, gravel mining and disposal site planning.