Facing the challenges of sustainably managing and sharing water,
our most precious natural resource, requires collaboration,
education and outreach. Since 1977, the Water Education
Foundation has put water resource issues in California and the
West in context to inspire a deep understanding of and
appreciation for water.
Taking a steady pulse of the water world, the Foundation offers
educational materials, tours of key watersheds, water news, water
leadership training and conferences that bring together diverse
voices. By providing tools and platforms for engagement with wide
audiences, we aim to help build sound and collective solutions to
water issues.
What We Do
We support and execute a wide variety of programming to build a
better understanding of water resources across the West,
including:
Mission: The mission of the Water Education
Foundation, an impartial nonprofit, is to inspire understanding
of water and catalyze critical conversations to build bridges and
inform collaborative decision-making
Vision: A society that has the ability to
resolve its water challenges to benefit all
Where We Work
Our office is located in Sacramento, CA.
Connect with Us!
Sign up here to get email announcements
about upcoming workshops, tours and new publications.
You can learn more about the daily comings and goings of the
Foundation by following @WaterEdFdn on Twitter,
liking us on Facebook or
following us on
LinkedIn.
In case you missed it, registration for our first water tour of
2025 along the Colorado River opened last week and the bus is
filling up quickly! Seating is limited, so reserve your spot soon
while tickets last.
Lower Colorado River Tour: March 12-14
Don’t miss the return of our annual
Lower
Colorado River Tour as we take you from Hoover
Dam to the U.S.-Mexico border and through the Imperial and
Coachella valleys to learn about the challenges and opportunities
facing the “Lifeline of the Southwest.” Experts discuss river
issues such as water needs, drought management, endangered
species and habitat restoration. Get more tour
details and register here!
The Water Education Foundation has a full-time opening for an
experienced, energetic and motivated News & Publications Director
who can elevate our online and print publications with sharp
editing, innovative storytelling and a passion for clearly
explaining the complexities and nuances of water resource issues.
We are looking for a veteran journalist who is a strong editor
with fluency in digital media (including website management and
social media). This position oversees our staff writer and is
responsible for producing articles examining water issues in
California and the Colorado River Basin, managing our weekday
water news feed and posting breaking news and other news on
social media, among other tasks.
Our 2024 California Water
Leaders cohort completed its year with a report on its
policy recommendations for ensuring the state’s over-pumped
groundwater basins reach sustainability under the
Sustainable Groundwater Management Act.
The landmark law known as SGMA turned 10 in 2024 as many of the
state’s sustainability plans were moving into implementation. The
goal is for those basins to become sustainable by 2040 or 2042.
The Water Leaders cohort of 20 up-and-coming
leaders – engineers, attorneys, planners, scientists,
water managers and other professionals from water-related
organizations – worked collaboratively and had full
editorial control on the report.
The Foundation’s 2025 programming calendar begins in just a
few months and is packed with engaging tours, workshops and
conferences on key water topics in California and across the
West. Seating is limited and tickets go quickly for all our
programs, so mark your calendar now so you don’t miss out!
Current Foundation member organizations receive access to
coveted sponsorships opportunities for our tours and
events, which are all prime networking opportunities for
the water professionals in attendance! Contact
Nick Gray for more information.
Lower Colorado River Tour: March 12-14
Be sure to catch the return of our
annual Lower Colorado
River Tour as we take you from Hoover Dam to
the U.S.-Mexico border and through the Imperial and
Coachella valleys to learn about the challenges and opportunities
facing the “Lifeline of the Southwest.”
Following the river as it winds through Nevada, Arizona and
California, the tour explores infrastructure, farming
regions, wildlife refuges and the Salton Sea. Experts discuss
river issues, such as water needs, drought management, endangered
species and habitat restoration. Get more tour
details and register here!
Since 1977, the Water Education
Foundation has worked to inspire better understanding
and catalyze critical conversations about our most vital
natural resource: water.
This is not a mission our impartial nonprofit can carry out
alone.
Today on Giving Tuesday, a global day of philanthropy, please
consider making a
tax-deductible donation to support the important
work we do to provide impartial education and foster informed
decision-making on water issues in California and the West.
Today on Giving Tuesday, a global
day of philanthropy, you can support impartial education and
informed decision-making on water resources in California and the
West by making a
tax-deductible donation to the Water Education
Foundation.
Your support ensures that our legacy of producing in-depth news,
educational workshops and accessible and
reliable information on water reaches new heights in 2025.
The beautifully designed book is a
treasure trove of gorgeous color photos, water literature and
famous sayings about water. It discusses the engineering feats,
political decisions and popular sentiment that led to
the water projects that helped make California the economic
powerhouse we know today. The book includes a foreword by
the late Kevin Starr, the Golden State’s premier historian.
This book normally retails for $35, but you can get it for a
limited time for just $17.50. Use the discount code
HOLIDAYBOOK at checkout to get your 50 percent
discount. It’s the perfect gift for anyone interested in water in
California.
As we wrap up our year at the Water Education Foundation, we
are busy looking ahead to our 2025 slate of engaging
tours, workshops and conferences on key water topics in
California and across the West. Make sure to save the dates
below!
Meanwhile, as we approach the holidays, we want to remind
everyone:
We will soon announce a holiday sale of our
popular maps and guides on key water
regions and topics so you can get gifts for the water
wonk in your life. Stay tuned!
Giving
Tuesday is right after Thanksgiving
and a national day to support nonprofits. We’ll be sure to
let you know how to support water education in the West on that
day.
If you are an
up-and-coming leader in the water world who is thinking
about applying for our 2025 California Water Leaders
cohort, you can view a virtual Q&A
sessionto get tips on applying for the
competitive program.
During the session, Jenn Bowles, our executive director, and
other Water Education Foundation team members provided an
overview of the program and gave advice on submitting an
application by Dec. 5, 2024.
The 2024 Colorado River Water
Leaders cohort completed its seven-month program
with policy recommendations involving ”augmentation” –
projects that increase the availability and supply of water – as
the Colorado River Basin grows hotter and drier.
The cohort of
12 up-and-coming leaders included engineers,
lawyers, resource specialists and others working for public,
private and non-governmental organizations from across the
river’s basin. The cohort had full editorial control to choose
its recommendations.
Lois Henry, a journalist who
launched SJV
Water as a nonprofit news site devoted to
covering water in the San Joaquin Valley, was named the
2024 recipient of the Water Education Foundation’s Rita
Schmidt Sudman Award for Excellence in Water Journalism.
Henry said she was honored to receive the award, which
acknowledges outstanding work that illuminates complicated
water issues in California and the West.
“I’m grateful and humbled to receive this recognition,” Henry
said. “Water is such an arcane and politically rife topic. We
really strive to explain what’s happening in layman’s terms and
walk an unbiased line. So, it’s exciting to know our work has hit
the mark and provided value to our readers.”
Registration closes Friday for our
2024 Water
Summit, set for next Wednesday, Oct.
30, in downtown Sacramento with conversations focused on
our theme, Reflecting on Silver Linings in Western
Water.
Our Water
Summit on Oct. 30 will take a deep dive on issues
critical to our most precious natural resource in the West but
it’s so much more.
During our event, you’ll also have
a chance to network with people from across the water
communityfrom municipal water agencies to
irrigation districts, farming and lending organizations to state
and federal agencies that manage or regulate water to
environmental and other nonprofit organizations.
Karla Nemeth, director of the California
Department of Water Resources, will deliver the opening keynote
and participants will be treated later in the day to a
presentation by visual artists whose work seeks to expand
perspectives on how we relate to water.
Are you an
up-and-coming leader in the water world? Applications are
now available for our 2025 California Water Leaders cohort, and
are due no later than Dec. 5, 2024.
If interested in applying, start by checking out the
program
requirements. Make sure you have the time to commit
to the program next year and approval from your organization
to apply.
Only a few seats are left on the
bus for our Northern California
Tour on Oct. 16-18 that explores the Sacramento
Valley from Sacramento to Redding with visits to Oroville and
Shasta dams!
Don’t miss this scenic journey through riparian woodland, rice
fields, nut orchards and wildlife refuges while learning
from experts about the history of the Sacramento River.
Grab your
ticket here before they’re gone!
Visit Shasta & Oroville Dams; Learn about Park Fire Impacts
Firsthand during NorCal Tour
Only a few seats are left on the
bus for our Northern California
Tour October 16-18 that journeys across the
Sacramento Valley from Sacramento to Redding with visits to
Oroville and Shasta dams!
Don’t miss this scenic journey through riparian woodland, rice
fields, nut orchards and wildlife refuges while learning
from experts about the history of the Sacramento River.
Grab your
ticket here before they’re gone!
Water Summit: Exclusive Sponsorship Opportunities Available
In case you missed the news last
week, you can now register for the Water Education Foundation’s
40ᵗʰ annual
Water Summit to be held on Wednesday, Oct. 30, in
Sacramento, with the theme, Reflecting on Silver
Linings in Western Water.
You can now register for the Water
Education Foundation’s 40ᵗʰ annual Water
Summit! The one-day conference will feature leading
policymakers and experts sharing the latest information
and insights on water in California and the West. The event
includes lunch and an evening reception for networking with
speakers and fellow attendees from a variety of backgrounds.
The Water Summit will be held Wednesday, Oct. 30, in Sacramento,
with the theme, Reflecting on Silver Linings in
Western Water. Speakers and conversations will
focus on the promising advances that have developed from myriad
challenges faced in managing the West’s most precious
natural resource.
It may be the dog days of summer but it’s a busy time at the
Water Education Foundation as we prep for our fall events!
Space is becoming limited for one of our most popular water
excursions, the three-day Northern California
Tour in mid-October.
Registration opens in just a few weeks for our premier annual
event, the Water Summit, on Oct. 30 in
Sacramento. Make sure you’re among the first to know this year’s
theme by signing up for Foundation
announcements.
While you’re signing up for announcements, you can also sign
up for our weekday water newsfeed known as Aquafornia to help you stay in the
know.
The Water Education Foundation’s tours offer participants a
first-hand look at the water facilities, rivers and regions
critical in the debate about the future of water resources.
From recent news articles to publications, maps and tours, Water
Education Foundation has everything you need, including the
award-winning Layperson’s Guide to the Delta.
