In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Nicole Brown, Growth Lead for Water at GFT and co-founder of the Black Water Professionals Alliance. Nicole shares how water “found” her through a love of math, science, and problem solving, and how a high school hydrology class opened her eyes to water as the building block of life.

Nicole talks about the science of water, but also the social side she discovered later in her career: how water shapes cities, health, mental well-being, and community identity. She shares stories from public meetings, church pulpits, and neighborhood conversations that show why utilities cannot just “trust us, we’ve got it,” and must instead communicate openly about everything from boil advisories to PFAS and lead.

She also unpacks the vision behind the Black Water Professionals Alliance, the importance of representation in the sector, and why her word for the year is “abundance.” Nicole’s contagious optimism, honesty about her journey as a Black woman in water, and practical advice for mentoring and storytelling will leave you encouraged to see water, and your role in it, a little differently.

• Water is more than pipes and pumps. Nicole explains how water underpins life, science, mental health, cities, and economies, and why understanding its full impact changes how we care for it.

• Communication builds or breaks trust. From boil advisories to PFAS, if utilities do not manage the message, fear fills the gap. Clear, honest, human-centered communication is a core part of the job.

• Engineers cannot just say “trust us.” Technical expertise is not enough. Communities need explanations, empathy, and space to ask hard questions about their water.

• Representation changes the conversation. Nicole co-founded the Black Water Professionals Alliance to build community, create professional opportunities, and better engage communities that have historically been left out.

• Abundance is a mindset and a strategy. Nicole rejects scarcity thinking and focuses on connection, sharing resources, and seeing the “wave” created when people pool their energy and ideas.

• Positivity is powerful leadership. Her natural optimism is backed by intention and practice. She chooses to look for joy, learn from setbacks, and use negative experiences as fuel rather than limits.

• Stories open doors for new talent. By sharing honest career stories, water professionals can help young and emerging leaders see themselves in the sector and understand the many paths into it.

• Everyone has a role in stewardship. Whether you work at a utility, in tech, on a board, or in a neighborhood, you can help protect water, tell its story, and invite others into the work.