Julian Palma is currently an Urban Development and Disaster Risk Management Specialist (Consultant) at the World Bank Group. In this capacity, Julian has been involved in the design and implementation of lending investments financed by the World Bank in key urban sectors such as urban transport, solid waste management, slum upgrading and municipal finance. He has also provided specific advisory services to national and local governments with respect to housing affordability and resilience, public-private partnerships and the modernization of hydro-meteorological systems. His international development portfolio is mainly focused in the Latin America Region (Bolivia, Colombia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru, Uruguay) but he has provided cross-support to projects in other regions including Afghanistan, India, Indonesia and South Africa. Prior to this position, Julian was an economic officer at the Embassy of Colombia in Pretoria and helped facilitate the policy dialog between the Government of Colombia and the Government of South Africa to pilot the first bus rapid transit (BRT) system in the country. Julian holds an MA from the School of Advanced of International Studies (2014) and a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Management from Lynn University (2007).