When Will Sarni introduces himself, he leads with a declaration: “I am a fearless optimist.” That attitude shaped his keynote at the VicWater 2025 Annual Conference, where he argued that solving water’s greatest challenges will require unreasonable people, catalytic communities, and an appetite for experimentation.
Tracing his journey from hydrogeologist to global advisor, Sarni reflected on moments that shaped his career—including a pivotal conversation in Melbourne 25 years ago that steered him toward a focus on climate and sustainability strategy. Along the way, he embraced the idea that water is a “wicked problem”: a challenge too complex to define neatly, where outcomes are judged not as right or wrong but as better or worse. For Sarni, that means water solutions can’t come from one sector alone. They must be built through diverse stakeholders, from entrepreneurs who “move fast and break things” to utilities and public agencies that bring scale and legitimacy.
Sarni used examples to illustrate how partnerships are evolving. He praised AB InBev’s 100+ Accelerator, which now includes Coca-Cola, Unilever, and Danone, as proof that multinationals can collaborate with startups to address systemic challenges. He also highlighted Microsoft’s collaboration with Thames Water and UK startup Fido Tech, where leak detection savings counted toward Microsoft’s water replenishment targets. These catalytic communities, he argued, succeed because money changes hands and value is created—not just declarations of collective action.
Reports from WWF and GlobeScan framed his outlook. One showed that water underpins 60 per cent of the global economy. Another found that only six per cent of experts think current sustainability models are working, while 56 per cent call for a radical overhaul.
“Corporate credibility is at 14%,” Sarni noted, arguing that companies must move beyond compliance or “replenish” strategies to embrace their handprint: using their influence, products and supply chains to drive awareness and change.
Innovation, he suggested, is no longer just about technology but about culture. Digital transformation, decentralised systems like Hydraloop, and nature-based solutions all hold promise, but only if leaders create organisations that are willing to learn, collaborate, and adapt. He warned that digital disruption often fails not because of the tech but because leadership and culture aren’t ready.
In the Q&A, Sarni emphasised the need to frame opportunities, not just risks. “If you go into a conversation talking about risk, it’s a real yawn,” he said. By quantifying the business value of water and asking leaders to imagine what would happen if they lost access to it, he has found more traction. He also called for utilities to embrace their role as enablers of public policy, using water’s visceral connection to people and place to build coalitions.
Asked to name the water sector’s biggest wicked problems, Sarni pointed to equity and access, along with ecosystem health and biodiversity loss. Both, he said, demand bold funding, new business models, and a recognition that water is not just an economic input but a common good.
Closing with William Gibson’s famous line, “the future is already here, it’s just not evenly distributed,” Sarni urged delegates to make the future of water more equitable, resilient and inspiring. For him, optimism isn’t naïve; it’s a strategy.