2024 Wayne N. Aspinall Water Leader of the Year Awarded to - Doug Kemper
For Immediate Release: August 20, 2024
Douglas Kemper awarded prestigious 2024 Aspinall Award
Presented by the Colorado Water Congress
Colorado Springs – Aug. 20, 2024- The Colorado Water Congress awarded Douglas Kemper, a life-long advocate of Colorado water issues, the 2024 Wayne N. Aspinall “Water Leader of the Year’ Award.
The Aspinall Award is given annually in recognition of a career of service and contribution to Colorado’s water community. It is awarded to a person who has dedicated a significant part of his or her career to the advancement of the state and its programs to protect, develop and preserve the state’s water resources.
It is tradition for the Aspinall Award to be presented at CWC’s annual event. This year, the previous Aspinall Award winners decided to honor Mr. Kemper with this award at his last CWC conference preceding his upcoming retirement this fall.
About Douglas Kemper
Doug Kemper is the longtime Executive Director of the Colorado Water Congress, where he has worked tirelessly to convene the Colorado water community to find shared solutions since 2005. Active involvement with the CWC spans most of his career, including leadership positions on the CWC Board of Directors.
Prior to leading at CWC, he spent nearly 20 years directly planning, developing, and operating the raw water supply system at Aurora Water. His proficiencies include water policy development, surface and ground water resources management, and collaborative negotiations. Doug has used his extensive skillset to create ripple effects in the Colorado water community that will reverberate long after his upcoming retirement this fall.
Through his position as Executive Director of the Colorado Water Congress, Doug has also supported Colorado’s strong involvement in the National Water Resources Association. In his recent years, Doug has served as the State Executive’s Chair for 4 years and served as the Vice Chair for many years before that. He has increased the State Executives’ activity and their working relationships with one another.
Doug has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Civil/Water Resources Engineering. His Master’s work focused on agricultural irrigation efficiency and water quality studies. His is a Colorado registered Professional Engineer.
About the Wayne N. Aspinall Award
The Colorado Water Congress presents the prestigious Wayne N. Aspinall Award annually to a Coloradan who has long demonstrated courage, dedication, knowledge and leadership in the development, protection and preservation of Colorado water - those attributes possessed by Mr. Aspinall. The late Wayne Aspinall, a lawyer and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, remains one of the most influential water leaders in Colorado history.
2025 Wayne N. Aspinall Award Nominations Accepted Through August 31
The Colorado Water Congress presents the prestigious Wayne N. Aspinall “Water Leader of the Year” Award annually to an individual Coloradan who has long demonstrated courage, dedication, knowledge and strong leadership in the development, protection and preservation of Colorado water.
Honorees reflect those attributes so clearly possessed by the award’s namesake, Wayne N. Aspinall. The late Mr. Aspinall, a lawyer and former longtime member of the U. S. House of Representatives, remains one of the most influential water leaders in Colorado history.
Colorado Water Congress Board Vacancies Application Deadline September 2
The Water Congress is governed by a Board comprised of members who reflect the diverse geographic and professional interests of the water community. The Water Congress Board has 32 voting members and 4 non-voting ex-officio members. The Board is organized in Divisions - one of which represents specific river basins in Colorado. We now have two Board vacancies - representing the Arkansas and Upper Colorado River Basins.
The Arkansas River Basin has been represented by Jim Broderick - recently retired Executive Director of the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District and Aspinall Water Leader of the Year Award Winner. The Upper Colorado River Basin (above the confluence of Colorado and Roaring Fork Rivers) has been represented by Linn Brooks - recently retired General Manager of the Eagle River Water and Sanitation District and Immediate Past President of the Water Congress.
The Board's primary responsibility is to provide oversight on Water Congress activities and stewardship of Water Congress assets, including staff, financial resources, and organizational reputation and integrity. We are grateful to Jim and Llinn for their many years of outstanding service to the Water Congress.
If you are interested in applying for either Board vacancy and reside in either the Arkansas or Upper Colorado River Basins, you are invited to apply for the Board. Applications are reviewed by our Nominating Committee (past 5 Water Congress Board Presidents), who submit their recommendations to the Board for selection. The deadline for receipt of applications is September 2. Click the button below for more information and the application form.
NWRA - Executive Vice President
NWRA is operated and managed under a professional services agreement with Water Strategies LLC, an independent lobbying and association management firm. We are seeking a distinguished high‑profile individual to serve as the next NWRA Executive Vice President (EVP) on a full-time basis. The primary point of contact with NWRA for the EVP is the President of NWRA. The individual must have a working knowledge of western water supply and development issues and an established federal or congressional resume. Serving as part of an existing association management team and at the behest of the NWRA Board of Directors, the EVP’s responsibilities are broad and include representing NWRA’s interests before Congress and the federal agencies, the media, other organizations and the public.
Women and other changes in water
August 19, 2024
Women in water? Younger people with voices? Doug Kemper has seen those and other changes during his 40 years in Colorado water
by Allen Best
Women will be among the attendees at the Colorado Water Congress annual summer conference this week, and relatively speaking, lots of them.
It wasn’t always so, says Doug Kemper, the executive director for the organization, Colorado’s largest group dedicated to convening discussions about water issues.
Kemper, who is moving on in September after 20 years managing the Water Congress, recalls that when he got involved in Colorado water matters about 40 years ago, water meetings were very different. Young people were expected to sit in the back and listen, to pay their dues.
Women in Water Scholarship Fund
The Women in Water Scholarship Fund encourages young women to pursue fulfilling careers developing, managing and conserving water. This annual scholarship has been increased to $7,500 annually by the WIW Board of Directors. It is awarded to a woman pursuing an undergraduate degree in preparation for a career in any element of water resources, including water law, communications, community and government relations, or engineering.
Who We Are
The Colorado Water Congress is a unifying membership association of Colorado’s water community established to provide opportunities for Colorado water professionals to use, improve and enhance their knowledge, talents, skills, and energies to discuss and address the many and varied challenges associated with the best management of the State’s water resources.
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Colorado Water Congress is the
of Colorado's Water Community
Through member forums and committees, the Colorado Water Congress provides strong leadership and thoughtful action to serve Colorado’s needs to manage, protect, conserve, and develop our most valuable natural resource. We host year-round events ranging in size from the state’s preeminent water industry convention to more intimate local events. All our events engender collaboration, networking, and professional development.
The Colorado Water Congress serves as the leading voice of our state’s water community, shaping beneficial regulations and legislation. As a membership and advocacy organization, we provide an open forum for members to share information, form positions, and provide leadership on key water resource issues for the state’s water community. Directed by the work of our Committees, the Colorado Water Congress advocates on behalf of our members to state and national policy makers.