The Salty Water Podcast

The $Water Moonshot: XPRIZE Takes on Global Water Scarcity | Salty Water Podcast What if the next major breakthrough in desalination comes from a global competition designed to spark a technological moonshot? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast, host Eric Jankel sits down with Lauren Greenlee, Executive Vice President for Food, Water, and Waste at XPRIZE, to explore one of the most ambitiou...

Water is one of the most critical resources on the planet. But what happens when the water is so contaminated, so saline, so difficult to treat that most technologies simply can’t handle it? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast, host Eric Jankel sits down with Anurag Bajpayee, co-founder and CEO of Gradiant, one of the fastest-growing companies in the global water industry. What started as r...

Salty Water Podcast | California Needs Desalination — So What’s Holding It Back? California has 840 miles of coastline, a growing population of 40 million people, and increasing pressure on traditional water sources like the Colorado River. So why isn’t seawater desalination scaling faster? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast, host Eric Jankel sits down with Mark Donovan, one of the leading...

In Part 2 of this conversation on the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, Christopher Gasson, owner and publisher of Global Water Intelligence, returns to explore how artificial intelligence, infrastructure demand, and geopolitical conflict are reshaping the global water industry. Building on Part 1, this episode goes deeper into the forces driving change across desalination, water reuse, and la...

The Hidden Forces Behind the Global Water Industry | Salty Water Podcast (Part 1) What’s really driving the global water industry behind the scenes? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, we sit down with Christopher Gasson, owner and publisher of Global Water Intelligence, to unpack the forces shaping water, desalination, and reuse around the world. This is Part 1 of a two-p...

Is America overlooking its most scalable water solution? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, we explore why industrial water reuse may be the most under-leveraged strategy for strengthening U.S. water resilience. Industry in the United States uses nearly four times more water than municipalities. Yet most federal incentives focus on municipal reuse. What would happen if po...

The Hidden Trillion-Dollar Secret in Seawater | Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel Is seawater just a source of drinking water… or is it one of the largest untapped mineral resources on Earth? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, internationally recognized desalination expert Nikolay Voutchkov explains why brine — long considered waste — may actually hold a trillion-dolla...

What does it really take to build water independence? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, we sit down with Lisa Henthorn, a chemical engineer whose career spans Chevron, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, global desalination leadership at CH2M Hill, and executive roles in produced water and circular water innovation. From early research and development to large-scale seawater...

What does it take to double the value of a water company in less than four years? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, Eric sits down with Henry Charrabé, CEO of Seven Seas Water, to unpack one of the most compelling growth and value creation stories in the global water sector. When Henry stepped into the CEO role, Seven Seas Water was valued at approximately $500 million....

What Do People Still Get Wrong About Desalination Technology? Lessons from 40 Years Inside Desalination and Membrane Technology Desalination is often misunderstood. It is called too expensive, too energy intensive, or unrealistic at scale. But much of what people believe about desalination technology is outdated, incomplete, or based on early failures rather than decades of real-world progress. In...

Why does a technology we think of as “modern” actually date back thousands of years? In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, we explore why desalination is one of humanity’s oldest technologies, and how turning seawater into fresh water has shaped civilizations, public health, and the modern world. This podcast episode features author and engineer Emilio Gabbrielli, whose book...

Water is invisible, until it is not. In this episode of the Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel, host Eric Jankel sits down with Harry Cohen, Hillsborough County Commissioner and Chairman of Tampa Bay Water, to uncover the hidden infrastructure that quietly supports daily life for more than 2.6 million people across the Tampa Bay region. From hurricanes and drought cycles to rapid population grow...

Salty Water Podcast with Eric Jankel is for decision-makers, innovators, and leaders shaping the future of water. Each episode features in-depth conversations with experts across desalination, water reuse, water infrastructure, and water technology, offering practical insight into what is working, what is changing, and what is coming next, without hype, just real experience. Hosted by Eric Jankel,...