Dean Amhaus was not always a champion of the city of Milwaukee and southeastern Wisconsin. A Cudahy native, he left Wisconsin in the mid-‘70s to attend college, spending time in both Washington D.C. and New York City.
“I left, like a lot of people at that time, because I didn’t see a lot of opportunity,” said Amhaus. “It was a place that wasn’t on my radar and didn’t make me feel like I wanted to be here.”
He eventually returned to Wisconsin to run the sesquicentennial commission, which worked to raise funds for Wisconsin’s 150th birthday, in 1998. This piqued his interest in the idea of promoting a place.
From there, he spent two years as president of the organization Forward Wisconsin. In 2001, he began his work with Spirit of Milwaukee, a nonprofit started by Midwest Express Airlines dedicated to changing Milwaukee’s public image through a revamped branding effort.
Around the time he had returned to the Milwaukee area, Amhaus began noticing a series of positive changes in the city.
“When I was growing up here in the Milwaukee area, things were so bad I would say there were fish in the water, but they floated to the top,” said Amhaus. “There was no downtown. It was empty. By the late ‘90s, things were starting to happen. There was just a different energy.”
While working with Spirit of Milwaukee, Amhaus helped create a Milwaukee logo, which prominently features the image of the Milwaukee Art Museum, and was part of efforts to form the economic development group Milwaukee 7. While working with the Milwaukee 7, Amhaus gained his first exposure to the water technology industry.
“How do you differentiate yourself from everyplace else? I really thought (water technology) could be something that could do that. It’s selling and promoting Milwaukee as this incredible gem around water. It’s here, but we never celebrated it.
“Lots of cities talk about how they have professional sports teams and culture and good education, but so what? Everybody has that. You need to have something that makes you different from the rest of the pack,” said Amhaus, who received the Regional Spirit Award at the BizTimes Media Innovation + Entrepreneurship Forum in November.
He joined The Water Council as president and chief executive officer in 2010. The nonprofit is dedicated to solving global water challenges by supporting innovations in water technology, advancing water stewardship and promoting Milwaukee’s natural water resources. The end goal is to establish the Milwaukee region as a world hub for water-related research, education and economic development.
While the public might not be familiar with the daily work of The Water Council, Amhaus said the organization’s efforts certainly impact them. The nonprofit is constantly examining new technologies that can improve quality of life. Last year, a South Korean company, called Tomorrow Water, piloted its technology locally after The Water Council introduced it to the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
Tomorrow Water’s technology processes wastewater in just six minutes; the pilot at MMSD’s South Shore facility showed positive results in helping to reduce sewer overflows in the Milwaukee area.
The Water Council’s latest project involves creating a regional innovation engine here in southeastern Wisconsin focused on climate issues. The organization in May was awarded a $1 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation to plan a regional innovation engine that will address water and energy resilience for manufacturers and utilities.
Amhaus believes the NSF Engines grant catapults The Water Council’s efforts to a higher level. Now that a leadership team has been selected to run the Resiliency Innovation Engine, the group is working to select the subject matter that will guide the program. Speaking with manufacturers and educational institutions regarding the problems they face every day will continue to be guiding work for its leadership team.
“We’ve got to move past our friends and family to reach a broader audience and that is happening,” said Amhaus. “We are having discussions with organizations and businesses that we never had in the past. It’s opening up doors every day.”
He said one of the most gratifying outcomes from his efforts in championing the city has been seeing other organizations share their support. He pointed to how the Milwaukee Bucks’ blue City Edition uniforms acknowledge water, and how community celebrations like Harbor Fest have become regular occurrences.
“People marvel and they’re absolutely jealous of our beaches and the waterfront. When they see the vibrancy of what’s going on along the river, it does surprise people as well,” said Amhaus. “It’s those things we take for granted, but a lot of other places don’t have that.”
Watch video below to hear Amhaus’ comments at the BizTimes Media Innovation + Entrepreneurship Forum.
