Kevin Nelson

Urban Governance Lead, Center for Democracy, Human Rights and Governance

USAID

Kevin Nelson is the Urban Governance Lead for the Governance Team within the Bureau of Development, Democracy and Innovation at USAID. In this role, he chairs the Urban Expert Working Group, composed of Agency technical experts who focus on urban work. USAID promotes a cross-sectoral systems approach to development connecting urban programming on gender, infrastructure, economic development, resilience, water and sanitation, among other issues. He also coordinates donor engagement and leads efforts to support the New Urban Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. Currently, Mr. Nelson is coordinating USAID’s strategic thinking about the role cities and urban areas have in driving national economies, promoting democracy and governance and addressing climate change, anti-corruption, violence prevention and supporting local solutions to municipal service delivery. Mr. Nelson brings over 25 years of direct experience working with local governments, cities, and regional councils of government to identify urban issues and develop relevant solutions that produce expected results and advance opportunities for sustainable living and prosperity. Mr. Nelson holds a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Illinois and a bachelor’s degree in Government and International Relations from the University of Notre Dame.

Why I Belong to SID-United States

Mark Johnson, Chief Operating Officer, Tetra Tech International Development Services, Tetra Tech

“As a long-time member of SID-US, Tetra Tech greatly benefits from the convening power of SID-US’s events and workgroups, which continue to propel the development community forward in working collaboratively to identify and scale solutions to solve some of the most complex challenges around the world today.”

David Alt, Director of Institutional Donor Engagement and Advancement, Catholic Relief Services

“CRS has been connected to key USG officials, such as the Inspector General of USAID and Mission Directors, thanks to SID-US’s events. These opportunities for engagement are valuable to the agency and are centered around important topics that impacts our day-to-day work and helps tackle global issues.”

Bobby Jefferson, Global Head, Diversity, Equity, Engagement, and Inclusion, DAI

"SID-US is a unique and enriching venue because it bridges so many of the divisions that too often separate us: small and large organizations, entry-level and senior staff, government and private sector, for-profit and nonprofit. As development practitioners, we all benefit from coming together under the SID umbrella."

Chris Watson, Business Development Manager, Premise Data

"SID-US has a really diverse membership base. As a result, they're able to support events that vary in terms of both their functional focus and the career level of the audience. This means there is always something going on that interests me and adds value to my career."

Tessie San Martin, CEO, FHI 360

"SID-US is the only entity in Washington that regularly brings together the full spectrum of the international development community: from INGOs, to international development companies, other corporates active in our space, embassies, the USG and other bilateral donor countries. The result are SID-US events that produce particularly rich discourse - unparalleled in other forums. SID-US is essential to our community."

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