Director of Water Innovation Advocacy

What We Can Achieve Together:

The Director of Water Innovation Advocacy’s work is anchored in Florida’s Indian River Lagoon and will include an on-the-ground pilot that will test Smart Watershed Network Management, which transforms existing and new stormwater ponds into an interconnected, intelligent network by retrofitting them with sensors and automated controls, then coordinating their operations using real-time information and predictive models.

The Director of Water Innovation Advocacy for Stormwater and Climate Adaptation Policy Innovation will play an active, hands-on role in Brightstorm’s Florida pilot to help identify, test, and refine the policy, regulatory, and institutional conditions needed for digital innovation in stormwater solutions to succeed at scale.

Working closely with water and policy experts in The Nature Conservancy’s Florida chapter, The Director of Water Innovation Advocacy focuses on understanding real-world implementation challenges—including permitting, trust building, and agency decision-making—and translating those insights into pathways for broader state and national adoption. Brightstorm’s long‑term impact depends on modernizing statutes, administrative rules, and regulatory guidance so digital and adaptive water solutions are explicitly enabled across jurisdictions. You will serve as an integral member of the team, supporting pilot implementation with insights gained through prior experience and cultivation of critical relationships within the public sector.

Responsibilities & Scope

• Identify barriers to scaling digital water solutions (policy, regulation, funding, governance, capacity) and develop practical strategies to address them.
• Support the transition from pilot projects to broader adoption by defining needed changes, key stakeholders, and next steps.
• Bridge technical innovation with real-world implementation conditions.
• Build and manage partnerships across government, utilities, NGOs, funders, and technical partners to drive adoption.
• Align Brightstorm’s pilot learnings with TNC’s Florida water strategy and broader outreach efforts.
• Represent Brightstorm in external discussions on scaling and systems change.
• Support development of policy, regulatory, financing, and programmatic pathways that enable wider adoption.
• Translate project insights into clear, actionable recommendations for decision-makers.
• Help partners understand what is both innovative and feasible.
• Capture lessons learned and develop practical resources (briefs, playbooks, case studies) to support replication.
• Create scalable, adaptable models for use across regions and partner organizations.
• Contribute to organizational strategy, identifying opportunities for growth and scaling impact.
• Support donor and partner communications by clearly articulating Brightstorm’s impact.
• Maintain focus on implementation, measurable outcomes, and sustained momentum.

We’re Looking for You:

Are you excited by the idea of helping bring the next wave of stormwater innovation into the mainstream?

The Nature Conservancy is looking for an ambitious and practical leader to help create the conditions for digital water solutions to be adopted at scale. This is not a traditional policy role. It is a role for someone who understands that real change happens when technology, institutions, funding, regulation, and partnerships move together.

You might come from water, infrastructure, climate, public policy, innovation, finance, utilities, or another sector that has gone through similar change. What matters most is that you are credible, collaborative, action-oriented, and motivated by The Nature Conservancy’s mission.

You will help turn promising pilots and technical successes into wider adoption by identifying barriers, building coalitions, shaping enabling policy and funding pathways, and helping partners take the next practical steps.

What You’ll Bring:

• BA/BS degree and 5 years’ experience in conservation practice or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Experience managing complex or multiple projects, including staffing, workloads and finances under deadlines.
• Experience in partnership development with non-profit partners, community groups and/or   government agencies.
• Experience negotiating.

Desired Qualifications

• Located in, or willing to re-locate to, Florida.
• Knowledge of Florida public policy landscape and relationships with key stakeholders that drive innovation within the state.
• Credibility in water, infrastructure, climate, environment, or public sector innovation.
• A strong interest in how policy, regulation, finance, and institutions shape real-world adoption.
• The ability to connect strategy to implementation.
• Strong partnership and coalition-building skills.
• Clear, persuasive writing and communication.
• Comfort working across sectors, disciplines, and stakeholder groups.
• A practical, adaptive mindset and bias toward action.
• Commitment to clear and consistent communication.
• Desire to lead in a dynamic and highly collaborative work environment.
• Enthusiasm for innovation, systems change, and TNC’s mission.
• Politically savvy.