Dr. Mark Svendsen

Dr. Svendsen received his M.S. from Colorado State University in Water Resource Systems Engineering in 1976 and Ph. D. in Soil and Water Engineering and Tropical Agriculture from Cornell University in 1983. Presently he is the President of the United States Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (USCID) and a member of the ICID Working Group on Integrated Land and Water Resources Management (WG-ILWRM). Dr. Svendsen has been involved in many international developments works throughout his career.

Dr. Svendsen has worked in USAID/Washington, managing irrigation assistance projects in the Asian region, in irrigation and water policy research with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and in the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). For the past 11 years he has worked as an independent consultant to governments and international lenders in the field of water resource planning and management. Dr.Svendsen has work experience in more than 25 countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. He has authored/co-authored more than 100 journal articles, book chapters, and professional papers and organized and facilitated more than 20 professional workshops and conferences. He is an Associated Editor of the journal Irrigation and Drainage Systems and a member of the International Water Resources Association (IWRA).