Nelson W. Cunningham will be joining the U.S. Department of State as a Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment. In this role, he will focus on several special projects, including encouraging greater private sector participation in overseas critical minerals projects, finding common ground among stakeholders on addressing plastics pollution, and developing a coherent framework for engaging with India on economic, energy, and environmental cooperation.
Cunningham is a longtime board member of the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum and the American Chamber of Commerce India. He was previously involved with the U.S.-India Business Council. Additionally, he is the co-founder and former president of McLarty Associates, where he advised clients on economic and policy issues globally since 1998.
Earlier in his career, Cunningham worked in the Clinton Administration on Latin American and trade issues and served as General Counsel to Senate Judiciary Chair Joseph R. Biden. He has also served on various advisory committees including the Secretary of State’s Foreign Affairs Policy Board, the State Department’s Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy, and chaired the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. Advisory Committee.
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