Yuan Xiao is a Sr. Urban Development Specialist with the Global Practice for Urban, Resilience and Land of the World Bank. She is based in Beijing and works on the World Bank’s investment projects and advisory service and analytical products in China. Before this assignment, Yuan worked in the World Bank’s Middle East and North Africa Region. She was assistant professor of urban planning at Columbia University in New York prior to joining the World Bank. Yuan specializes in sustainable urbanization, land management, and municipal finance. Yuan is a Chinese national. She holds Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, M. A. from University of Toronto, and B.A.s from Peking University.