Dr Jo Burgess, Director & CEO – Science | Strategy | Adoption

Jo is Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Tech Ascend, where she leads the Foundation’s mission to accelerate the adoption of climate and water resilience technologies globally. She is responsible for overall strategy, programme development, and partnerships, ensuring Tech Ascend’s work targets the structural barriers that prevent proven emerging technologies from scaling.

Jo also leads the Foundation’s flagship programme, the Trial Reservoirs Initiative. Under her leadership, the Initiative has demonstrated a credible pathway from trial / demonstration to adoption, achieving international recognition including the Innovation in Decarbonising award at WEX Global 2022 and endorsement from the G20.

A Distinguished Fellow of the International Water Association (IWA) and former Honorary Professor at the University of Cape Town, Jo brings experience spanning academia, government, and the private sector. She also brings significant executive and governance experience, having served as Chair of the Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA) and is a board member of ROCKBlue, an international NGO focused on sustainable water and sanitation.

Dr Piers Clark, Director – Systems | Utilities | Capital

Piers is a Director of the Tech Ascend Foundation and brings leadership experience across regulated utilities, infrastructure delivery, and investment. He is the founder of Isle Group, a global consultancy partnering across the water system to accelerate the water environmental transition.

He has held senior executive roles including Commercial Director at Thames Water and Managing Director of Global Water Development Partners, a private equity fund backed by Blackstone. Earlier in his career, he led large multidisciplinary teams delivering engineering consultancy and operational services across water, energy, and environmental infrastructure, giving him deep insight into how innovation interacts with real-world assets and regulation.

Piers has a long track record of designing mechanisms that connect technology developers with end-users and capital. In 2006, he helped establish the Technology Approval Group, an early review and validation model that has since supported more than $1 billion in investment in water-related cleantech. This experience underpins the Foundation’s focus on system-level change rather than supporting technology uptake in isolation.

He currently serves as a board director for several water technology companies and brings deep expertise in asset management, commercialisation, and scaling innovation within highly regulated environments.

Ryan Evans, Chief Financial Officer – Financial stewardship | Risk oversight | Mission Alignment

Ryan is the Chief Financial Officer of the Tech Ascend Foundation and brings senior financial leadership and governance experience rooted in the global water sector. A professionally qualified accountant, he previously served as CFO of Isle Group, working closely with the board and executive team to shape the water consultancy’s vision, culture and strategy.

His experience spans board-level decision-making, financial stewardship, and oversight in complex, innovation-led environments, including organisations working to support the adoption of new technologies.

Alongside Tech Ascend, Ryan leads Cadence Accounting Limited, providing CFO services to growing public-benefit organisations. At the Foundation, he ensures financial integrity, accountability, and disciplined stewardship in support of long-term impact.