PAUL O'CALLAGHAN

Water scientist, sustainability thought-leader and documentary producer, Paul O’Callaghan believes the global water crisis can be solved in his lifetime and he is on a mission to help make it happen. 

After being awarded a biochemistry degree, Paul’s first role was for the Body Shop working alongside the pioneering environmentalist Anita Roddick. Her vision for corporate sustainability was well ahead of its time and Paul worked on a “Living Machine” project designed to purify water naturally.

When volunteering for the World Wildlife Fund in Malaysia, Paul became interested in the relationships between forests and water. After successfully completing a Masters degree in Water Resource Management, he returned to Malaysia to work on a research project that investigated how deforestation was impacting water quality.

Paul’s next role was working for Atkins, one of the leading engineering management consultancies who are renowned for their pioneering approaches to projects. It was while working as an engineering consultant, that Paul first noticed how extraordinarily long it took to get water technologies to market, which gave him the initial idea for BlueTech Research.

BlueTech Research was co-founded by Paul in 2011, to support technological advancements in water management and help find the solutions needed to provide clean water and safe sanitation. The Intelligence Platform was created to improve the intelligence available on water technologies and their markets, making it easier to identify commercially viable innovation options. 

Paul’s latest project is a documentary called “Brave Blue World” which is designed to create more awareness about the solutions that already exist to solve the water crisis. He co-produced this ground-breaking film, which has attracted the involvement on-screen of A-list celebrities Matt Damon and Liam Neeson, as well as activist Jaden Smith. Paul has more recently interviewed Matt Damon at Davos 2020 and addressing a live audience of 15,000 people alongside Jaden Smith at Web Summit 2020 in Lisbon.

Paul now divides his time between the BlueTech Research offices in Vancouver and Cork. He works with global Fortune 500 corporates including L’Oréal, Microsoft and PepsiCo on their water strategy policies. He has also recently guest lectured at Harvard and Cambridge Universities.

Paul recently completed his PhD in Water Innovation at Wageningen University. In his free time, he is a keen pianist and enjoys kayaking, ocean swimming and free diving.