Sharlene Leurig is the Texas Regional Director at WestWater Research. Sharlene founded the Texas office for WestWater in 2025, bringing 15 years’ experience in water infrastructure finance, utility business model adaptation and water markets.

Prior to joining WestWater Research, Sharlene supported development of the water reuse market in Texas through her advisory firm, Fluid Advisors. Her clients included Water as a Service (WaaS) companies serving the residential, commercial and industrial sectors. From 2018 to 2024, she served as founding CEO of Texas Water Trade (TWT), which has purchased billions of gallons of water for environmental flows across the Texas Gulf Coast and catalyzed market transactions for groundwater storage and decentralized water solutions statewide. During her tenure at TWT, she served as founding Board Chair and Interim CEO of Vida Water, a service provider giving Texas families access to water filtration that fits their budget and their need for convenience.

Sharlene brings to WestWater Research her deep experience in long-range supply planning, project finance and water transactions. She served as Chair of the Austin Water Forward Task Force, guiding development of Austin’s 100-year supply plan, and has supported development of policies to implement the plan through numerous leadership transitions. At TWT and previously as Project Director for the Texas Environmental Flows Initiative, she has assisted river authorities, water districts, local governments, municipal, industrial and agricultural water users to develop water transactions and infrastructure investments that secure water for people and nature.

Sharlene has been a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Entrepreneur and an MIT-USGS Science Impact Collaborative Fellow. She holds a BA in Physics and English from Washington University in St. Louis and a Master’s in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Areas of Expertise

• Water Supply Planning
• Water Infrastructure Finance
• Water Resource Economics
• Water Policy & Law
• Water Transactions
• Water As A Service

Education

• Masters in City Planning, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2007
• B.A., Physics & English, Washington University in St. Louis, 2002

Experience

• Founding CEO, Texas Water Trade, 2019 – 2024
• Project Director, Texas Environmental Flows Initiative, 2016-2018
• Water Program Director, Ceres, 2010-2016
• Insurance Program Manager, Ceres, 2007-2010
• Patent Examiner, US Patent and Trademark Office, 2002-2005