Securing water supply for nature and people is central to The Nature Conservancy’s near and long-term goals. Towards that end, the Conservancy is helping to create and scale-up Water Funds around the world. Water Funds are governance and financial mechanisms organized around the central principle of watershed conservation. For the promise of a continuous supply of clean water, downstream users (e.g., municipalities, utilities, companies) direct payments to upstream communities (e.g., farmers, ranchers) and land preservation organizations, to finance long-term ecological restoration and protection efforts within their source watersheds. The west slope of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains is one of four focal areas for the Rio Grande Water Fund, established to help restore forested wate