Tony Pipa is a senior fellow in the Global Economy and Development Program at the Brookings Institution, where he studies place-based policies to improve social progress in the United States and globally, including through use of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level. He is also considering the future of U.S. multilateral aid and the applicability of lessons from international development to improving rural development in the U.S.

Tony has over 25 years of executive experience in the philanthropic and public sectors addressing poverty and advancing inclusive economic development. During the Obama administration, he served as chief strategy officer at the U.S. Agency for International Development and held multiple senior policy positions at the Agency. He served as U.S. special coordinator for the Post-2015 Agenda at the Department of State, leading the U.S. delegation at the U.N. to negotiate and adopt the SDGs. Prior to his government service, he directed the NGO Leaders Forum at Harvard University and was the founding CEO of the Warner Foundation, a family foundation in North Carolina focused on improving economic opportunity and race relations. He helped launch Foundation for Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and has played a principal role in the start-up of several philanthropic ventures focused on addressing poverty and improving distressed communities.

He serves on the board of directors of Strive Together and the Advisory Council of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy. He has published articles, book chapters, and opinion pieces on local implementation of the SDGs, the effectiveness of place-based policies, multilateral aid, philanthropic effectiveness, financial innovations, and policies to strengthen resilience and prosperity. He attended Stanford University, was graduated from Duke University, and earned a Master of Public Administration at the Harvard Kennedy School.