 Jim Ryan
Agua Solutions International, S.A.
President/Founder
Jim Ryan began his career in the water industry upon graduating from Stanford University and beginning work at ADS (American Digital Systems, Inc.). ADS was a NASA ‘spin-off’ technology company formed by the German scientist responsible for telemetry on the Gemini & Apollo projects. ADS designed, built and operated networks of remote mini-computers with sensors to provide local governments and municipalities with real time environmental and hydrological data (analysis of rainfall, storm water, waste water, industrial effluent and river flows) in order to aid the design of appropriate water treatment facilities.
By pursuing his twin passions for water and the latest technological advancements, Jim quickly rose to the position of President of the company’s multi-million dollar Long Term Water Monitoring Division, the company’s largest and most profitable group.
This early focus upon water and the environment was the basis for Jim’s work in the legislative, regulatory and commercial aspects of providing water and energy supplies to large multi-national industrial clients such as Alcoa, GE, Pfizer, Ford Motor, Pepsi, Smucker’s Foods, Reynolds Metals, Dana Corporation, Timken Steel, Rohm & Haas Chemical, Sun Oil and British Petroleum.
The lure of Europe’s newly emerging competitive utility markets prompted Jim to establish one of Europe’s very first private utility supply & consultancy companies in 1992. After nine years of working in Europe, and having sold the successful company to a large utility conglomerate, Jim left London in 2001 to visit Costa Rica for a week’s holiday (sunshine!). However, instead of returning to London, Jim stayed to explore the region’s diverse flora & fauna and enjoy its natural beauty...and while experiencing his first dry season recognized the challenge and opportunity to introduce sustainable water supply technologies to the region in the forms of Rain Water Harvesting, advanced purification systems, etc.
Before forming Agua Solutions International, Jim had lived and worked in the USA, UK, Italy, Hungary, aboard a sailboat and most recently in Costa Rica & Nicaragua. He has also completed projects in Australia, Sweden, Norway, Russia (Siberia) and Poland, besides traveling much of the world in search of new sailing, scuba diving or windsurfing experiences. Jim now resides in Liberia, Costa Rica where Agua Solutions International’s Central American offices are based.
Jim is a member of ARCSA (The North American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association) and the International Rainwater Harvesting Alliance (IRHA), which includes the Blue Schools Programme.
Terry Ryan Kane D.V.M., M.S.
Development Director – Energy & Humanitarian Projects
Terry grew up in Nebraska and Colorado and like her brother, Jim, learned to love the prairie wind and the mountain waters. She learned to fly airplanes in that windy region of the country and now pilots her own small plane.
Her education in the sciences, and her curiosity, have taken her to many regions of the world. She received her undergraduate degrees in Biology and Chemistry in New York City, earned a Master’s of Science in Ecology from the University of Illinois in Chicago and went on to receive her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana. This has led to many conservation projects in such places as Africa, Mexico, and Central America, including work with marine mammals and sea turtles. She also works and trains in disaster medicine, living and working in austere or even hazardous environments.
This aspect of Public Health has helped focus her interest in disease prevention and availability of safe water for people and animals. Having worked for almost two months in New Orleans immediately after Hurricane Katrina struck, Terry knows first hand the challenges which arise when water scarcity and natural disaster combine.
Her experience with aviation (instrument rating with USA & Costa Rica licenses) has combined her love of wind and weather with the global need for sustainable energy. When her brother founded Agua Solutions and ASI Power & Telemetry, combining renewable water and energy resources, she decided to pitch in and help.
Terry has 5 grown sons who like to travel with her and all of them are bilingual. She is still learning.
 Hubert Morris Grainger
Project Engineer
Hubert Morris (aka "Kimo") grew up in Heredia, Costa Rica, where he always enjoyed the outdoors and exploring nature’s wonders.
Hubert graduated with a degree in Agricultural Engineering from the University of Costa Rica (UCR). During the pursuit of his degree, he performed studies in the areas of hydrology and the hydraulics of floods, work that concluded with two scholarly publications. Since concluding that research Hubert has been invited to teach hydrology courses at the Technology Institute of Costa Rica (Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica) and at the Federal College of Engineers & Architects (Colegio Federado de Ingenieros y Arquitectos).
After University, Hubert worked for Durman Esquivel where he had responsibility for the design of water pumping and distribution systems, and the selection of materials. He has also served as project manager for various residential developments, sports facilities and commercial projects around the country.
His leadership skills come in part from his own striving for continuous improvement and also through community involvement with organizations like the Institute for the Human Development (Instituto para el Desarrollo Humano) and national level participation in the Boy Scout movement.
Hubert has two great passions; the first is water issues related to conserving our natural environment. The second involves his mentoring young people to improve their conditions through effort and study. The first of these passions brought Hubert into contact with Agua Solutions where he now works as a Project Engineer.
In his free time Hubert likes to explore rural roads on his mountain bike, to hike in the mountains or to enjoy time just talking with good friends.
 Sonia Patricia Villegas Jiménez
Customer Service & Water Testing Program Manager
Sonia grew up in Guanacaste where she has had the good fortune to be surrounded by the region’s great natural beauty including its rivers, beaches and mountains. It was while Sonia was a young girl that her concern for preserving natural resources started, especially water. She vividly recalls seeing a futuristic announcement on TV that warned of the potential for scarce and polluted water resources in the coming years….and how disturbing that prospect seemed to her as a young girl.
Sonia’s studies took her to San Jose where she graduated as a Bilingual Office Worker and Private Accountant. She has always loved languages and people, so fluency in English provided opportunities to work in multi-lingual environments like the Marketing Department of Saret Airport & Free Trade Zone, at PoleStar Clinic, at Sabila Industrial (a subsidiary of Carrington Labs) where her responsibilities included conducting training courses in the USA to the company’s native English speakers…and now at Agua Solutions.
Sonia works as the Administrative Coordinator for Agua Solutions. She enjoys the opportunity to assist clients to achieve sustainable solutions and promote conservation principles. Amongst her varied responsibilities is “conducting traffic”…i.e. to coordinate the schedules of the Agua Solutions growing staff. It is often her friendly voice you will hear when you call our Liberia office to obtain information or to schedule an appointment.
Sonia’s personal interests reflect her love of people and nature. She shares the outdoors with her children and family during camping trips and visits to the family farm. She sings in a choir, enjoys reading, and having fun with her friends.
Sonia says: “The things I value most in life are people, their ideas, honesty, and team spirit”.
 Pamela Gómez Obando
Administrative Assistant
Pamela was born and raised in Cartago. She began her education there and showed an early inclination for mathematics. She graduated initially as a private accountant.
However, she has always loved the natural environment, learning about living organisms, their biology and physiology. Her interests in science, nature and the environment led her to further her science education. She attended the Technology Institute of Costa Rica to study biotechnology and pursue a new career path.
While pursuing her science education in biotechnology she participated in many projects. One interesting study was to investigate a bacteria, Bacillus thuringiensis. This bacteria was isolated from the larvae of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito responsible for Dengue Fever transmission. This research focused on utilizing this bacteria as a larvicide to control this mosquitoe’s reproduction and reduce the spread of this terrible disease.
Also, during a part of 2006, she worked in Language Line Services as a “Costumer Service Interpreter”, which gave her a chance to refine her language skills.
Currently she lives in Liberia where she enjoys sharing her time with her family, traveling to new places and reading.
 Ivan Morales
Web Developer
Ivan never planned to be a web developer; it just happened. His interest in web design started while a student at Texas A&M University. While working toward a degree in Computer Engineering, he found he could supplement his income working as a freelance web designer. With his background in programming, he started right in and has never looked back. He now has over 7 years of web design and development experience.
Ivan first met Jim Ryan and Agua Solutions through a mutual friend. His interest in Jim’s idea and philosophy was immediate and he wanted to use his expertise to help advance the work of water conservation and sustainable energy.
Ivan has always admired art and is an accomplished classical guitar player. His love of graphical arts, coupled with his fluency in over 15 programming languages, has transformed his web developing technique into what we see today.
Agua Solutions International, S.A.
Apdo #384-5000
Liberia, Costa Rica
Ph: 506/ 665 6161
E:mail: jim@aguasolutions.com
Web: www.aguasolutions.com
We all drink rainwater….some of us just prefer to do so before it hits the ground!
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