Catalyst Collab: Jennifer Tabanico | Make Water Work 052

On this Catalyst Collab episode, Isaac Pellerin and Chelsea Boozer (Rogue Water Lab) sit down with Jennifer Tabanico, President of Action Research and a Catalyst 2026 guide, who has spent more than 20 years using behavioral science to help water and environmental organizations change what people actually do. From a childhood in Arizona where water felt invisible, to wanting to train Shamu, to a career in conservation psychology, Jennifer shares how water found her and why education and awareness alone rarely move the needle.

In this episode:

• How did water find Jennifer? From SeaWorld dreams to conservation psychology

• Where education and awareness campaigns fall short, and what community-based social marketing does differently

• Why every behavior has its own barriers and motivators, and why one message can’t fit all

• “Check After You Mow”: how nighttime observations and a lawnmower hang tag cut sprinkler runoff

• Where low-budget, low-capacity utilities can start: get out of the boardroom and talk to people

• Reaching “the middle” instead of only hearing from your biggest fans and loudest critics

• What to do when one angry call or social post threatens to derail a good program

• Using social norms and community data to drive participation

• A preview of Jennifer’s hands-on session at Catalyst 2026, where guests became behavioral scientists for an afternoon

Learn more about Jennifer and her work:

Action Research: https://actionresearch-inc.com/

Spark Behavior Change: https://sparkbehaviorchange.com

Fostering Sustainable Behavior (4th edition, 2025), co-authored by Jennifer

Learn more about Catalyst: https://roguewaterlab.org/events/catalyst-2026/

Make Water Work is a 120Water podcast celebrating the people innovating and serving in the water industry. Subscribe for more conversations with the leaders, communicators, and innovators shaping the future of water.

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