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WEF Appoints Ralph Exton as New Executive Director

WEF Appoints Ralph Exton as New Executive Director

Washington, D.C. (June 11, 2024) – The Water Environment Federation (WEF) is pleased to welcome Ralph Erik Exton as its next Executive Director. His first day in the role will be July 15, 2024.

Exton brings decades of water sector expertise and strategic leadership experience to the position, most recently as Grundfos’s Water Utility Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. Prior to that he worked at Suez, where he served as Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Commercial Officer, and Chief Digital Officer. He has also held the Chief Marketing Officer position at Veolia and GE Water & Process Technologies.  

Exton earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Pennsylvania State University. In addition to his professional accomplishments, he is an active volunteer in the water sector. His activities include serving on The Water Tower’s Board of Trustees, the Advisory Board of BlueTech Research, Judging and Advisory Member of Imagine H20, and as Co-Founder and Board Director of Partnering for Impact (P4I). Exton has been WEF’s Treasurer of the Board of Trustees and a member of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Board Committee. Additionally, he has been a speaker at leading industry events for more than a decade. 

About the Water Environment Federation 

The Water Environment Federation (WEF) is a not-for-profit technical and educational organization of more than 30,000 individual members and 75 affiliated Member Associations representing water quality professionals around the world. Established in 1928, WEF’s mission is to inspire the water community in pursuit of human and environmental well-being. WEF’s goals are to attract and develop a passionate workforce, cultivate a purpose-driven community to sustainably solve water challenges for all, and lead the transformation to the circular water economy.

For more information, visit wef.org.

About Sterling Martin Associates 

Sterling Martin Associates (SMA) is a leading specialty national search firm conducting chief executive-level searches for associations and nonprofit organizations. SMA has built an outstanding reputation by providing impeccable service to its clients and by placing exceptional talent in associations and nonprofits. Based primarily in Washington, DC, SMA has offices in New York, Chicago, Orange County, CA, and Portland, OR.

Since founding the firm in 2006 with a mission to combine his search expertise with nonprofit board experience, David Martin now leads a highly experienced and diverse team, combining in-depth client analysis with the latest search technologies to create effective, personalized searches. Since the day he founded the firm, David has personally taken a leadership role with every search, for every client.