Laurel Neme

Dr. Laurel Neme is the Senior Policy Advisor for FRAME, a program of USAID aimed at combining web-based knowledge and an expert community of practice to help decision-makers and practitioners working on environment and natural resource management (NRM) analyze issues, plan strategically and advocate their positions more effectively. FRAME, short for FRAMEwork for improved environmental decision-making, has evolved into an unusual melding of a website and resource/advisory group, designed to improved natural resource management and environmental programs and projects. Dr. Neme is an independent consultant for both public sector and non-governmental clients, including USAID, the World Bank, the World Wildlife Fund and others. Before working on FRAME, she served as an international economist with the US Treasury Department's Office of Multilateral Development Banks where she oversaw the social and environmental aspects of projects and policies at the World Bank Group and regional development banks (including the African Development Bank), and directed the actions of the US Executive Directors for those institutions. In particular, she advised the multilateral banks on both environmental impact assessment, information disclosure, institutional issues and incentives structures all designed to facilitate public participation in the design and implementation of development programs. Dr. Neme holds a Ph.D. from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.