Water Education Foundation
The Water Education Foundation is a California-based nonprofit organization provides educational resources on water resource-related issues for the state as well as the western United States region. 1 The group also manages Project WET to provide further water education programming and resources on climate change through carbon emissions. 2 3
Contents
Background
The Water Education Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 1977 which provides educational resources on water-related issues in within the state of California as well as the western United States. 1 The foundation has provided publications discussing water-related issues pertaining to climate change in California as well as training programs for teaching participants on said water issues and how to study potential remedies. 4 5
The Water Education Foundation also publishes an online magazine which discusses developments in water-related issues within the western United States while as well as educating readers on water management issues and potential solutions to climate change. 6
Activities
In 2014, the Water Education Foundation released a post on its website regarding the passage of California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) that year, which created local and regional agencies to help develop regulations that address groundwater conservation. The post also posted information about SGMA, explaining how the new bill would authorize the creation of local Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSA) that would be tasked with creating plans for preventing groundwater basin overdrafts. 7
In February 2025, the Water Education Foundation linked to a blog post concerning the passage of California Proposition 4, which issued a “general obligation bond” to raise $10 billion to fund “climate resilience, water, and natural resource management programs—the largest climate and water bond to date.” 8 According to a February 2025 blog post by the Public Policy Institute of California, the proposition would also include funds towards implementing the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act and activities such as drought planning and water recycling. It would also include funding towards projects to address potential “coastal resilience and sea level rise.” 8 9
Project WET
California Project WET is a project of the Water Education Foundation that trains K-12 teachers as the California affiliate of Project WET (Water Education Today). 10 Project WET provides lessons, educational materials, and professional development training for teachers that address water resource issues. It also offers its resources and services to corporations and government organizations and includes environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics to use in their organizations. 11
Project WET offers a “Climate Resilience Lesson Plan” which discusses how climate change occurs due to increased carbon emissions into the atmosphere caused by conventional energy sources, such as burning fossil fuels, while also educating on studying water-related and other environmental practices to find solutions to said climate change through learning about issues such as water scarcity and contamination. 12 2
Water Leaders
Water Leaders is an annual program that the Water Education Fund hosts in California and Colorado where it provides young professionals with information regarding water-related environmental issues. 13 Each participant with the program produces a report discussing their views on potential policy recommendations that address said issues. 14
Water Leader’s 2024 “cohort” produced a report calling for each of the 250 local Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) in California to develop “regional networks” to develop plans on how regulatory changes will be implemented by stakeholders. The report also called for the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation to incorporate the GSAs over 100 Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSPs) on groundwater regulations into the approval process for land use permits, requiring that land repurposing to align with the environmentalist and economic goals of the GSAs. Finally, the cohort’s report called for GSAs to receive increased funding to hire more people to provide oversight on compliance with groundwater regulations and that the money is distributed “equitably.” 5
Leadership
Jenn Bowles is the executive director of the Water Education Foundation. Previously, Bowles worked as a writer and communications strategist at Best Best & Krieger LLP and as a reporter for The Press-Enterprise and the Associated Press. 15
Financials
In 2023, the Water Education Foundation reported $1.6 million in total revenue, including $375,291 in government grants. 16 17 It also reported $1.6 million in total expenses. 18
Financial Statistics
Total Assets
Total Revenue
Total Expenses
| Year | Total Assets | Total Revenue | Total Expenses | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $3,243,602 | $2,299,540 | $2,030,402 | View |
| 2023 | $3,021,514 | $1,667,412 | $1,602,624 | View |
| 2022 | $2,841,848 | $1,817,660 | $1,618,800 | View |
| 2021 | $2,382,248 | $1,797,483 | $1,281,079 | View |
| 2020 | $1,954,405 | $1,510,836 | $1,297,525 | View |
Prior year filings: 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011
Revenue Detail
Expenses Detail
Employee Compensation
- Number of Employees: 11
Highest Earning Employees
| Employee | Title | Total Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| J Bowles | Exec Director | $149,820 |
Grant Activity
All-time grants received statistics from Candid dataset:
- Total Grant Value: $898,100
- Number of Grants: 69
- Number of Funders: 32
Selection of highest value grants received from the last seven years: