Director of International Development

Job description

Rainmaker is pioneering a modern precipitation enhancement cloud seeding system to solve water scarcity. We develop and incorporate radar validation, weather-resistant UAS, and numerical weather modeling to make water abundant. As Rainmaker’s Director of International Development, you will be the bridge between Rainmaker’s International Team and the U.S. federal government. You will own our engagement with the Department of State by building the programs, partnerships, and funding pathways that pair American precipitation enhancement technology with the water security needs of partner nations. Water scarcity is a geopolitical problem before it is a technical one. Rainmaker’s goal is to make American cloud seeding the technology partner nations turn to, and this role is how we get there in Washington. This position is based in Washington, DC and works as an embedded member of the International Team. - **State Department Engagement:** Own Rainmaker’s relationship with the Department of State end to end, including regional and functional bureaus, embassies and country teams, and the offices that shape science, environment, energy, and technology diplomacy. Build durable relationships with senior career and political leadership. - **Program Development & Funding:** Work alongside the International Team and our international partners to develop programs, then identify and secure the federal vehicles to fund them. These include foreign assistance mechanisms, development finance, export promotion, science and technology cooperation agreements, and multilateral channels. Own proposal development, submission, and follow-through. - **Congressional Engagement:** Support Rainmaker’s relationships with the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations Committees, and with their accompanying appropriations subcommittees. Develop legislative proposals and appropriations language, and prepare member- and staff-level briefing materials that make the case for cloud seeding as an instrument of American foreign policy. - **Federal Liaison:** Serve as the International Team’s primary interface with the U.S. government. Translate partner-country requirements into terms federal stakeholders can act on, and translate federal policy shifts into guidance the International Team can plan around. Coordinate closely with Rainmaker’s Federal Affairs team so that international and domestic engagement reinforce one another. - **Coalition & Community Building:** Represent Rainmaker across Washington’s international affairs community, including NGOs, coalitions, and industry associations. Build the network of validators and allies that gives Rainmaker standing on these issues. - **Geopolitical Analysis:** Track foreign cloud seeding and weather modification programs, the strategic implications of foreign leadership in this space, and the water security dynamics shaping partner-country demand. - **Partner Government Engagement:** Support the International Team’s engagement with foreign ministries, water and agriculture authorities, and multilateral institutions. Prepare principals for bilateral meetings, delegations, and site visits, and coordinate the U.S. government stakeholders involved. - **Cross-Functional Coordination:** Partner with the Global Head of Business Development, Head of International, Federal Affairs, technical teams, regulatory, communications, legal, and finance to align international strategy with company priorities — including export control, sanctions, anti-corruption, and disclosure obligations attached to international work. - **Delegations & Demonstrations:** Organize visits and field demonstrations for foreign officials, embassy staff, State Department leadership, and Congressional delegations, building first-hand understanding of what the technology does and where it fits. ### Qualifications - 10+ years of experience in foreign policy, international affairs, or international government relations, including time in the Department of State, the National Security Council, a Congressional foreign policy or foreign operations role, a development or export finance institution, an international organization, or the international affairs function of a comparable company. - Demonstrated command of geopolitics and how technology, resources, and strategic competition intersect, with the judgment to make that case credibly to both policymakers and commercial partners. - Working fluency in the emerging technology policy landscape, including autonomous systems, export controls, technology transfer, and the way emerging technologies are negotiated in bilateral and multilateral settings. - Track record of developing international programs and securing government funding for them, including familiarity with foreign assistance appropriations and the mechanics of federal grant and cooperative agreement processes. - Current relationships across the State Department, the Congressional foreign policy committees, and the Washington international affairs community. - Experience working directly with foreign government counterparts, embassies, and international partners, with the cultural and protocol judgment that requires. - Familiarity with the compliance landscape governing international engagement, such as FARA, LDA, ITAR/EAR, FCPA, and sanctions regimes. - Ability to operate as both a strategist and a hands-on operator in a fast-paced startup environment, comfortable building a function from the ground up. - Bachelor’s degree required. Foreign language proficiency and active or recent security clearance eligibility are a bonus. - Must be based in DC with willingness and ability to travel domestically and internationally for Hill engagement, agency meetings, partner-country visits, coalition work, and project site demonstrations.