Curriculum Vitae

 

Experience

Charter Cities Institute

Senior Manager, Special Projects

Washington, DC/Remote Hybrid

December 2023 – Present

  • Leads a team of four, reporting directly to the Executive Director, in sourcing and delivering early-stage technical assistance to urban development and investment projects, focusing on strategic definition, project preparation, and policy-led delivery support. This includes defining project vision and feasibility, developing economic strategies and conceptual masterplans, conducting policy reviews, and advising on stakeholder engagement and phased implementation planning.

  • Leads screening and discovery calls to assess project viability and align stakeholder objectives during early project scoping phases, having conducted over 60 so far.

  • Established a project development pipeline that defined what services our organization offered.

  • Coordinates and supports technical assistance projects focused on the design, legal frameworks, and implementation strategies for charter cities and special economic zones across multiple jurisdictions, having been on the teams for 17 projects so far.

  • Attends and organizes roadshows, conferences, summits, and trade fairs, including 18 major multi-day events and 73 single-day engagements, having organized and led my organization’s delegations for 9 major events.

  • Speaker and Moderator at International Conferences on Urban Innovation and Governance, including:

    • Keynote Speaker, Liberty in Our Lifetime Conference (2024)

    • Panelist, U.S.-Africa Business Summit 2024 (Dallas) Cities: Delivering Now to and For the People of the Future

    • Panel Moderator, Zuzalu (2023)

  • Engages with senior government officials across multiple levels and regions, including heads of state, ministers, ambassadors, and U.S. legislators. Highlights include:

    • Heads of State:

      • Interim President Mamady Doumbouya of the Republic of Guinea

    • U.S. Officials:

      • National: Engaged with offices of Senator Mike Lee, Senator Cynthia Lummis, and Congressman Bill Huizenga

      • State (Wyoming): Met with Senators Chris Rothfuss, Dan Dockstader, and Brian Boner

    • Ministers and Senior Officials:

      • Zambia: Minister of Finance

      • Mozambique: Minister of Public Works

      • Uganda: Minister of Finance for Investment and Privatization

      • Kingdom of Buganda: Prime Minister, Minister of Lands

      • Côte d'Ivoire: Minister of Communication and Digital Economy

      • Qatar: Nasser Al Khori (Doha Debates/education advisor with ministerial-level influence)

      • Mali: Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abdoulaye Diop

      • The Gambia: Minister of Public Service and Policy Coordination

      • Central African Republic – Minister of Investment

    • Ambassadors: Held discussions with ambassadors from Tanzania, Mozambique, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Botswana, and Togo

    • Additional diplomatic engagement with the former Mayor of Mariupol, Ukraine

  • Engages with national and subnational government agencies across the U.S., Africa, and beyond to advance investment promotion, urban development, and special economic zone initiatives. Key agencies and counterparts include:

    • United States:

      • U.S. Department of State

      • U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

      • U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (USDFC)

      • U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA)

      • U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

      • Prosper Africa

      • Virginia Port Authority

    • Africa and Global:

      • Zambia: Presidential Delivery Unit, Ministry of Finance, Zambia Development Agency

      • Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe Development Agency

      • Rwanda: Rwanda Development Board, Rwanda Special Economic Zone Authority

      • Malawi: National Planning Commission

      • Mozambique: Ministry of Public Works, Housing Development Fund FFH (Fundo de Fomento de Habitação)

      • Togo: Togo Invest Corporation

      • Uganda: Free Zones Authority, Kingdom of Buganda (Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Lands)

      • Botswana: Botswana Investment and Trade Centre

      • Mauritania: Investment Promotion Agency

      • Nigeria (Benue State): Benue Investment and Property Company

      • Zanzibar: Zanzibar Investment Promotion Authority

      • Kenya: State Department of Lands

      • Israel: Israel Economic and Trade Mission

Partnerships Manager

September 2021 – November 2023

  • Supported or coordinated technical assistance projects related to special economic zone (SEZ) legal frameworks and investment climate reforms in emerging markets, including: 

    • Co-authoring draft SEZ legislation for Malawi as part of a multi-disciplinary international team; the draft substantially informed and influenced the updated SEZ law later adopted by the government; and

    • Coordinating a legal drafting team for a proposed Ecuadorian SEZ reform project, overseeing the development of a comprehensive draft SEZ law; while not introduced to the legislature, the draft served as a foundational reference for ongoing policy discussions.

  • Led stakeholder engagement and membership growth for the Africa’s Next 50 Cities Coalition (NXT50), engaging with over 200 government entities, private sector businesses, and non-governmental organizations, and resulting in the successful conversion of 81 organizations into active NXT50 members.

  • Organized and led NXT50 events, including two NXT50 cocktail hour events at CCI summits, and seven digital roundtable events.

  • Organized and led multiple high-level government engagement events, including:

    • Coordinated a partnership MOU signing ceremony with the Director of Rwanda Development Board at the Rwandan Embassy

    • Arranged and led private dinner with Mozambique Minister of Public Works

    • Hosted cocktail reception for diplomats from each of the 16 Southern African Development Community (SADC) embassies

    • Arranged and led private dinner with Zambia’s Permanent Secretary for Commerce

    • Coordinated official visit of over 20 Senegalese mayors to the Charter Cities Institute (CCI) headquarters

    • Coordinated a technical assistance MOU signing ceremony at the Zambian Embassy 

  • Played a key role in the negotiation and drafting of MOUs with major governmental and intergovernmental institutions to formalize strategic partnerships. Notable agreements include:

    • United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa)

    • African Union Development Agency – NEPAD

    • Rwanda Development Board (RDB)

    • Kenya State Department for Lands and Physical Planning

  • Received on the job training on heavy asset deals and public-private partnerships from project collaborators.

  • Wrote accessible thought leadership through blogs and short form content on topics such as constitutional challenges to ZEDEs, urban development frameworks, and city-focused policy reviews for the Charter Cities Institute.

Legal Researcher

August 2020 – August 2021

  • Authored and co-authored a range of publications on urban governance and special jurisdictions, including the Charter Cities Atlas, chapters of the Governance Handbook, and a peer-reviewed article in the Journal of Special Jurisdictions analyzing the Honduran ZEDE law.

  • Wrote accessible thought leadership through blogs and short form content, on topics such as constitutional challenges to special jurisdiction laws, policy developments, urban governance in practice, and economic frameworks.

  • Interviewed prominent scholars and practitioners for Q and A videos that were published to the Charter Cities Institute’s YouTube page.

Militant Wire Network

Analyst and Contributor

April 2022 – Present

  • Conducts independent research and analysis on global militant activity, terrorism, and armed conflict for Militant Wire, contributing expert insights on private military companies, drone warfare, and paramilitary militias to inform international security discussions, publishing 4 articles for the publication, conducting 3 international television interviews, and being interviewed for 1 podcast.

  • Collaborates with a global network of researchers to produce analytical content covering conflict zones worldwide.

US Peace Corps  

Peace Corps Volunteer 

Qianjiang, People’s Republic of China

June 2014 – July 2017

  • Taught English as a Foreign Language to vocational college students in rural Qianjiang, Chongqing, China for 3 years (including extended volunteer service), conducting people-to-people diplomacy while developing culturally appropriate curriculum and teaching methodologies for technical education students

  • Served as second-ranking elected member of Peace Corps China's Volunteer Advisory Committee, coordinating between volunteers and country staff to communicate critical volunteer needs and policy recommendations while recording official meeting minutes for country-wide meetings and teleconferences

Education

Juris Doctor

University of Washington School of Law, Seattle, WA

June 2020

  • Journal: Washington International Law Journal

  • Relevant Coursework: International Business Transactions, International Trade Law, Transnational Law, Entrepreneurial Strategy, Global Tax Perspectives, Business Organizations, Mergers & Acquisitions, Negotiation, Secured Transactions

Technology Entrepreneurship Certificate 

University of Washington, Foster School of Business, Seattle, WA

June 2020

  • Relevant Coursework: Entrepreneurial Finance, Entrepreneurial Marketing, Entrepreneurial Law Clinic

Bachelor of Arts, International Studies; and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations

University of Washington, Seattle, WA

March 2013

Additional Qualifications

  • Bar status: Washington State, Active

  • Language: Chinese Mandarin, limited working proficiency

Publications and Media

Peer Reviewed Publications

Other Scholarly Publications

Blogposts, popular writings, and other writings

Podcasts and other Audio and Video Recordings