Pacific Institute

The Pacific Institute is a research organisation focused on water. Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Oakland, California, it works at local, national and international levels, combining science-based research and thought leadership with outreach and engagement to advance responses to water challenges and to inform water sustainability and resilience efforts. It operates as a mission-driven nonprofit think tank.

Its technical work spans water sustainability and resilience research, climate change adaptation, water equity, water efficiency and reuse, nature-based solutions, corporate water stewardship, and the tracking and analysis of water conflict. The institute's Water Conflict Chronology is the most comprehensive open-source database of water-related conflict events globally; maintained for more than 30 years, it recorded over 420 such events in 2024 alone. The institute has produced more than 432 online reports and analytical tools.

The organisation engages more than 270 cross-sector stakeholders, working with parties ranging from major corporations to frontline communities, and places weight on strategic partnerships and convening. Its research and commentary reach an estimated 18 billion global media impressions a year.