Phoenix, AZ – Debbie Mursch is the newest winner of NHA’s Dr. Kenneth Henwood Award, an accolade given to a water power industry veteran who has displayed dedication, persistence, enthusiasm, ingenuity and more throughout a long and storied career. Mursch was announced as the winner at this year’s Clean Currents Conference and Trade Show by last year’s winner, Herbie Johnson.
Mursch (center) is presented her award from NHA’s President and CEO, Malcolm Woolf, (left) and 2025 Henwood Awardee, Herbie Johnson (right).
An engineer by training, Mursch boasts a career in hydropower business development and operations fields that span multiple organizations and leadership roles. They include Alstom, where she occupied the role of Vice President of Strategy, Planning and Acquisitions; Vice President at Waukesha Electric Transformer; and GE Vernova, where she served as the Director of Markets, Strategy and Development of Hydropower. Her peers note that her broad range of knowledge of hydropower and other energy sources paired with her intuitive understanding of energy’s community-scale impact make her an ideal leader to shepherd successful projects to completion.
Within the water power community, Mursch has been a force. Working and advancing in a time when there were fewer women in the field gave her a determination not only to succeed, but to make a difference and to open the door for other women in water power. She shared this mentoring, expertise, and leadership to many women currently making waves in the industry, who credit her with much of their accomplishments.
Mursch has been a changemaker not only for women, but for all. These contributions remain pivotal in NHA, where she served on the Board of Directors and helped grow the organization. As a board member, she was an early advocate for NHA to host its own annual conference, which ultimately became Clean Currents.
She also supported the Department of Energy, where she helped review the very first edition of the Hydropower Market Report; the Northwest Hydroelectric Association; the Hydropower Foundation; Women in Hydropower mentoring; and elsewhere.
Mursch has also excelled in “plain speaking” and “fair dealing,” which is a top consideration for Henwood Award nominees. Throughout her career, Mursch built trust by saying what she meant and standing by it. That includes speaking up to senior leaders and powerful stakeholders when it was necessary to get answers and stand by her views. That fearless spirit earned her tremendous respect from a broad array of energy leaders in the hydropower sector. This year’s panel of judges, tasked with selecting a winner among a strong list of nominees, recognized that grit, as well as her years of accomplishments, as worthy of this esteemed award.
“Debbie Mursch remains a name that instantly commands respect and admiration in every corner of our industry,” said NHA President and CEO, Malcolm Woolf. “She hasn’t just worked in hydropower. She’s helped shape it, as a vanguard for women in the industry, a mentor for future generations, and in other countless roles. For decades she’s given her time, her voice, and her credibility to making sure this industry is understood and respected, inspiring others in the process to do the same. I am honored to present her with this year’s Henwood Award and commend the judging panel for their selection.”
Debbie is happily retired and divides her time between Wisconsin and Arizona. But she hasn’t lost her enthusiasm for hydropower. On her first vacation post-retirement, she booked a cruise along the Columbia River, where she toured the waterway’s locks and dams.
