Summit on Infrastructure

Michael B. Hancock is Denver's 45th mayor. During his time in office, Mayor Hancock and his administration have eliminated the city’s budget deficit, fostered a diverse economy and restored much needed services that were lost during the recession. With a drive toward increasing opportunity for every resident, he has prioritized innovative solutions to investing in the city’s children and youth; increasing mobility options, affordable housing and services for the homeless; supporting economic mobility, entrepreneurs and small businesses; and making government work smarter for residents.

George Hawkins launched his leadership and innovation-focused consulting business Moonshot LLC after stepping down as CEO and General Manager of DC Water, where he served for eleven years, including several as a Board member.
During his tenure, he became well known across the water sector for transforming DC Water into an innovative, customer-driven enterprise, while tripling its investment in clean water. DC Water’s innovations ranged from award winning Green Infrastructure and a $500 million investment in clean energy, to creative social media campaigns and patents for new treatment technologies that require less energy and chemicals but achieve better results. DC Water issued the nation’s first century bond, world’s first environmental impact bond, and spearheaded programs to support low income customers and provide meaningful job opportunities for District residents.

George retains an advisory role with DC Water and its non-profit Blue Drop spin-off, which markets products and services developed by the utility. He also serves on the National Infrastructure Advisory Council, which provides advice to the White House on infrastructure policy. George is an Executive in Residence for XPV Water Partners, the only private equity firm that focuses exclusively on supporting new and innovative water technologies. George also is on the Board of Directors of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which ensures the reliability of the bulk electric grid.

George is a popular speaker and story-teller on water, infrastructure and environmental issues and seeks every opportunity to interact with both C-suite leaders and front-line personnel. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Princeton University and Cum Laude from Harvard Law School and has taught environmental law and policy for the Princeton Environmental Institute since 1999. He has been the recipient of numerous awards for leadership and public service, including Governing Magazine’s Public Official of the Year in 2015 and the US Water Prize in 2016.

Mark Stodola is the mayor of Little Rock, Arkansas, and president of the National League of Cities (NLC), the largest organization representing America’s cities and their leaders. As president of NLC, Stodola advocates on behalf of more than 19,000 cities and towns, focusing on the critical issues of infrastructure, public safety, economic development and preparing cities for the future of work.

Stodola has served as mayor of Little Rock since January 2007. During his tenure, he has helped prioritize public safety as the city’s foremost obligation with a focus on various quality of life projects impacting economic development and tourism. Stodola has been key in promoting the revitalization of Little Rock’s Main Street where the “Creative Corridor” plan as well as the location of the city’s state-of-the-art Technology Park has resulted in over $150 million in private sector development thus far. He has partnered to bring over $1.3 billion in new capital investment to the city resulting in over 7,000 new jobs since taking office while also championing investment in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods.