Utah Watershed Resilience Manager

Job description

This is a remote position that may be based in Utah or Colorado. Candidates based in Utah's Greater Salt Lake region (e.g., Salt Lake City, Ogden, Logan, Park City, Heber City, or Provo) are strongly preferred. About the Program WRI’s U.S. Forests and Water program, part of the global Cities4Forests initiative, works to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire, restore degraded forests, and protect watersheds across the U.S. The program focuses on designing, implementing, financing, and scaling projects with local partners to build disaster resilience, strengthen water security, protect and enhance infrastructure, create jobs and recreation opportunities, and boost rural prosperity. In Utah, WRI has served as a strategic partner for the U.S. Forest Service, water and electric utilities, state agencies, conservation organizations, academia, and local governments for nearly a decade and has worked to improve watershed health and reduce wildfire risk across the Great Salt Lake Basin. A key component of this work is the Utah Resilience Fund, an innovative fund that brings together public, private, and philanthropic funding to scale watershed restoration and long-term resilience. Additional information on the U.S. project portfolio can be found here. Job Highlight The Utah Watershed Resilience Manager will help lead the growth and implementation of WRI's watershed restoration portfolio in Utah, working at the intersection of forest restoration, water security, infrastructure protection, and innovative conservation finance. This role combines strategic partnership expansion, project management, fundraising, and conservation finance to advance the Utah Resilience Fund as a nationally recognized model for watershed resilience. Working closely with WRI's Research & Project Development Manager, Utah Watershed Coordinator, and the broader U.S. Forests and Water team, the Manager will lead complex multi-partner initiatives, expand strategic partnerships, advance innovative financing strategies, support Utah’s long-term scaling strategy, and help secure new funding opportunities. The successful candidate is an entrepreneurial self-starter who enjoys building relationships, coordinating diverse stakeholders, and translating ambitious ideas into measurable outcomes. They will be equally comfortable leading meetings with partners, managing complex project workstreams, contributing to fundraising and strategic planning, and ensuring projects move from concept to implementation. This position offers the opportunity to help shape one of the country's leading watershed resilience partnerships while contributing to innovative approaches that can be replicated across the western United States. What You Will Do Portfolio Management & Coordination (40%) · Lead the implementation of C4F's watershed resilience strategy for the Great Salt Lake Basin and help scale lessons across Utah and other western states. · Serve as the primary coordinator and relationship manager for Utah partners, including utilities, state and federal agencies, Tribes, NGOs, universities, consultants, and local governments. · Help move restoration projects from concept to implementation by coordinating work plans, deliverables, funding strategies, and partner engagement. · Represent WRI in regional collaboratives, steering committees, and partner meetings. Conservation Finance & Beneficiary Engagement (40%) · Identify and cultivate relationships with current and potential beneficiaries and investors, including water and power utilities, municipalities, corporations, the recreation industry, healthcare organizations, property and health insurers, and other stakeholders to fund forest and watershed resilience. · Support development and/or contextualization of innovative conservation finance strategies (e.g., Forest Resilience Bonds, revolving loans, endowments, green bonds, and other local revenue streams) that generate sustainable funding for watershed restoration and wildfire risk reduction in Utah. · Help articulate the economic, ecological, and community benefits of forest and watershed investments by translating technical analyses into compelling materials for utility executives, corporations, funders, and decision-makers. · Support the development of project budgets, work plans, agreements, monitoring, and reporting frameworks. Fundraising, Writing & Communications (20%) · Lead the drafting of grant proposals and funding applications to support the work in Utah. · Develop and steward opportunities and relationships with current and prospective donors. · Represent WRI and the Utah Resilience Fund at conferences, workshops, utility meetings, and stakeholder events. · Develop presentations, reports, case studies, and communications materials highlighting project impacts and lessons learned. · Support peer learning among Utah partners and national watershed initiatives. · Support efforts to position Utah as a national leader in watershed resilience and conservation finance. · Contribute to publications, blogs, webinars, and other outreach activities that share best practices and elevate project visibility. What You Will Need Experience · A master's degree or equivalent experience in natural resources or a related field. · Minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience. · Experience developing and managing complex multi-stakeholder partnerships and working with utilities, government agencies, conservation organizations, or watershed collaboratives is especially valued. · Experience securing grants, developing funding proposals, or managing fundraising initiatives. · Demonstrated understanding of watershed restoration, wildfire resilience, natural resource management, or water resource planning. · Strong project management and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously. · Exceptional written and verbal communication skills. · Ability to communicate technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences. · Ability to work independently while managing relationships across diverse stakeholder groups. · Willingness to travel regularly throughout the Greater Salt Lake region and occasionally elsewhere in the U.S. Preferred Qualifications · Knowledge of Utah's water, wildfire, forest, and watershed management landscape. · Experience with conservation finance, environmental finance, public-private partnerships, environmental markets, resilience funds, green bonds, revolving loan funds, or similar financing mechanisms. · Familiarity with watershed benefit modeling, economic valuation, risk assessment, or investment analysis. · Experience developing, implementing, or influencing natural resource, wildfire mitigation, forestry, or watershed resilience policy and translating technical information into actionable recommendations for policymakers and decision-makers. · Experience working with federal and state funding programs and partners. · Experience supporting executive-level stakeholder engagement. · Spanish language skills are a plus. Potential Salary: $96,000–$105,000, commensurate with experience, qualifications, and location. How to Apply: Please submit a resume with a cover letter by September 4, 2026 . Internal applicants should submit their application through the Jobs Hub portal in Workday. External applicants must apply through the WRI Careers portal to be considered. We m ay close for applications sooner if we receive a high volume of applications from qualified candidates. What we offer: Access to the WRI global network with the opportunity to exchange with and learn from passionate colleagues working at the cutting edge of their fields across Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and the US The chance to have an impact and to develop your career within a mission driven organization with access to varied learning and training opportunities A workplace that strives to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of our work The opportunity to join and get involved in different working groups and affinity groups to shape the future of WRI Commitment to hybrid working model with flexible working hours Generous leave days that increase with tenure . If based in the US: Medical Coverage, Dental Coverage, Vision Coverage, retirement plan access and employer contribution . About Us: World Resources Institute works to improve people’s lives, protect and restore nature and stabilize the climate. As an independent research organization, we leverage our data, expertise and global reach to influence policy and catalyse change across systems like food, land and water; energy; and cities. Our 2,000+ staff work on the ground in more than a dozen focus countries and with partners in over 50 nations. Our mission and values: WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations. Our values are shared ideals that bind us together: Independence, Integrity, Impact, Partnership and Care. Our culture: WRI is committed to advancing gender and social equity for human well-being in our mission including equal opportunities in employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, caste, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, or protected Veteran status. Our People team carefully reviews all applications.