Rene Coulomb

A strong advocate of the private sector Rene Coulomb has long campaigned against obstacles that would prevent private sector participation in the water industry. Coulomb is former vice president and one of the three founding members of the World Water Council – a pro-privatisation water think tank that has close ties to big business, global governing and financial institutions (the two other founding members are Abu-Zeid Mahmoud and Aly Shady. Coulomb has a far-reaching influence and clout in the global water industry. He is former director of ethics for Suez and sits on the steering committee of the Global Water Partnership (GWP) – an organisation that carries out the operational mandate of the World Water Council.<ref>Public Citizen (2005), Suez: A Corporate Profile, accessed 26 November 2008.