Director of Water Development

Make it rain. Make Snow. Make Earth Habitable. Rainmaker builds and deploys audacious technologies that work with nature to create an abundant, habitable planet. We are modernizing proven cloud-seeding science with weather-resistant UAS, radar and satellite observations, numerical weather prediction, novel sensing and validation systems, and sustainable seeding technologies. We are building an integrated system to make more freshwater available to farms, ecosystems, and communities. Our ambition is bold, but we pursue it with humility. We take on difficult problems in the real world with technical rigor, grit, integrity, and an openness to learning and course-correcting. We are hiring individuals with evidence of exceptional ability. If you want to build systems that endure, restore and deliver the future we were promised, we want to hear from you. 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 Water Development, you will own our engagement with the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Reclamation. You will build the programs, partnerships, and funding pathways that put precipitation enhancement to work in the basins Reclamation manages, and you will own the Congressional relationships and coalition presence that make the work durable. This position is based in Washington, DC. What You'Ll DoInterior & Reclamation Engagement: Own Rainmaker’s relationship with DOI and Reclamation end to end, including the Commissioner’s office, the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, the policy and program offices, and Research and Development. Build durable relationships with senior career and political leadership, and know where decision authority sits between Washington and the regions. Program Development & Funding: Identify and secure the Reclamation authorities and funding vehicles that can support precipitation enhancement, such as WaterSMART and its component programs, drought response and resiliency authorities, Science and Technology and R&D funding, basin-specific and system conservation programs, cooperative agreements, and the standing weather modification authorities. Own proposal development, submission, and follow-through. Authorities & Legislative Strategy: Maintain command of the statutory landscape governing Reclamation, develop legislative proposals and appropriations language, and pursue new authorities where existing ones do not reach. Congressional Engagement: Own relationships with the House Natural Resources and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committees, the Energy and Water appropriations subcommittees, and the Western delegations whose states and districts our projects serve. Prepare member- and staff-level briefing materials that make the case for precipitation enhancement as federal water supply infrastructure. State & Federal Alignment: Work in close partnership with Rainmaker’s State Government Affairs team, who own our relationships with state water agencies, districts, and basin bodies. Understand what each state and basin is working toward, then find the federal authorities, funding, and relationships that advance it. Reclamation Regional Engagement: Build direct relationships with Reclamation’s regional and area offices, where projects are administered and where much of the practical decision-making on federal water operations happens. Coalition & Community Building: Represent Rainmaker across the Washington water community. Identify the positive-sum opportunities on water policy where our objectives and theirs align, and convert them into shared advocacy. Build the network of validators and allies that gives Rainmaker standing on these issues. Field Demonstrations & Site Visits: Organize visits for Interior and Reclamation leadership, Congressional staff, state and basin officials, and water user groups, building first‑hand understanding of what the technology does and where it fits in a working water system.