Sonal Shah (economist)

Sonal R. Shah (born May 20, 1968 in Mumbai, India), is an American economist. She was appointed to the Obama-Biden Transition Project led by John David Podesta in November 2008 and is the head of Global Development Initiatives, the philanthropic arm of Google.org.

Education

Shah moved to the USA at the age of 4 in 1972. She graduated from the University of Chicago with a B.A. in Economics in 1990 and received a Master’s degree in Economics from Duke University.

Career

Early career

Shah held a variety of US Department of Treasury positions from 1995 until 2001. She was the director of the office overseeing the strategy and programs for sub-Saharan Africa, including debt relief, development programs and World Bank/IMF strategies. She worked with the Ministry of Finance in Bosnia and Kosovo to design the post-war banking system. She also served as a senior advisor to the Secretary and Under Secretary on the US response to the Asian financial crisis.

From 2001-2003, Shah joined the Center for Global Development as Director of Operations and Programs, helping set up all aspects of the strategy, infrastructure and operations.

From 2003-2004, Shah joined the Center for American Progress as an Associate Director, advising current and former Congressional and Government executives on a variety of topics from trade, outsourcing and post conflict reconstruction issues.

In 2004, Shah joined Goldman Sachs as a Vice President, focusing on their environmental strategy and implementation. Sonal worked on green initiatives, including advising clients and bankers on alternative energy opportunities and how to implement environmental, social and governance criteria for all investments.

Links to radical Hindu groups

Sonal Shah has been accused of being a member of VHP which is a radical Hindu group active North America.

Google.org

In 2007, Shah joined Google.org as the head of Global Development Initiatives. She worked closely with Executive Director Larry Brilliant, guiding global economic development efforts. She has also worked extensively on the growth of small and medium sized enterprises in partnership with the Omidyar Network and the Soros Foundation.

Obama administration

Sonal Shah was elected to co-chair the Technology, Innovation and Government Reform panel along with Julius Genachowski and Blair Levin.

Relief and development work

In 2001, Ms. Shah has worked closely with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America as the National Coordinator during the 2001 Gujarat Earthquake..

Later that year Shah helped co-founded a non-profit initiative called Indicorps. This is a non-religious, non-political US based organization that describes its mission as being to create a "profound personal experience and an opportunity to understand participatory development through intense voluntary service." Its projects include education, health, rural development, Tsunami relief, health and sanitation projects, and microfinance.

Awards and recognition

• Henry Crown Fellowship, Aspen Institute, 2006
• Next Generation Fellow, American Assembly, Columbia University, 2007
• India Abroad Person of the Year, 2003

Papers and articles

• Guiding Principles and Design of the MCA
• Trading Views
• Served on Commission for Weak States and National Security, Center for Global Development

Footnotes

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