American Rivers (AR) seeks a strategic, ambitious, and team-oriented Vice President of Regional Conservation (VP) to develop and operationalize a unifying vision and growth plan for the organization’s five regional offices. As the country’s leading voice for rivers for almost 50 years, American Rivers fights for clean water, thriving communities, and healthy ecosystems. A national organization, American Rivers’ work has notable range, suited to the needs each region; broadly speaking, AR’s efforts have focused on protecting wild, free-flowing rivers; reforming, hydropower, removing dams and reconnecting floodplains to restore river habitats and function; building frontline community partnerships to revolutionize how cities use their water; and assisting communities with capacity building and resilience in the face of climate change impacts such as drought and flooding.

With the arrival of a new President and Chief Executive Officer, Tom Kiernan, in February 2021, American Rivers is entering an exciting chapter in which it will expand its reach and impact through new programming and policy efforts and through establishing new regional offices in strategic areas around the country. Working in close partnership with the CEO and the other members of AR’s leadership team, the Vice President of Regional Conservation will help to chart a course for the future of the organization as it redefines its core strategic goals centered around equity, biodiversity, and climate change. The VP will play a pivotal role in setting organization-wide strategy to reach its North Star goals and in ensuring the effective implementation of this strategy across the regional offices while also supporting each region’s specific needs.

The ideal candidate will be a results-oriented leader and team builder; a change agent with experience managing a large, geographically dispersed staff, ideally for a national or multi-site organization, and uniting them around shared goals and a commitment to achieving them. This will include experience establishing and growing the systems needed to achieve results, such as operations, communications, volunteer boards, et cetera. The VP must have a deep passion for the natural environment and rivers in particular, expressed in professional, personal, or volunteer activities; and a lived commitment to environmental justice and equity, diversity, and inclusion. A record of success in major donor fundraising as well as familiarity with working with high-level volunteers will also be important in this role. The position does not require relocation, though the VP will be expected to travel to AR’s regional offices and its Washington, DC headquarters.