Millington Bergeson-Lockwood
Innovation and Learning Advisor and Historian
USAID
Dr. Millington Bergeson-Lockwood is an innovation and learning advisor with the USAID mission in Kinshasa, DRC. He also assists USAID's Office of Civil Rights and Diversity (OCRD) and the Respectful, Inclusive and Safe Environments (RISE) program as a facilitator. As part of this work, he has designed and leads sessions on the history of anti-black racism in the United States for US government staff from USAID and US embassies around the world. Prior to his current work he lived and worked in Malawi where he focused on issues of local ownership in international development.
He holds a Masters Degree and PhD in history from the University of Michigan where he specialized in the study of African American history and race and racism in the United States. He has written several articles and a book on these topics and taught previously at universities in the United States. He believes that understanding the history of racism and systems of oppression form a fundamental foundation for positive change and are crucial for advancing more inclusive, equitable partnerships and locally-led systems of development.