John Dennis

John Dennis is a seasoned independent investor and family foundation manager who focuses on social impact ventures. For 25 years, he has worked as an international development consultant and project manager. He has worked for Asian Development Bank, Cornell University, Oxfam American, UNDP, and Worldwide Fund for Nature, in countries such as Madagascar, Sudan, Afghanistan, Belize, Thailand, and Cambodia. More recently, John led an assessment of two Pakistani universities that resulted in a large USAID grant to Faisalabad University to create the U.S.-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Agriculture and Food Security in partnership with UC Davis. John’s current interests include examining how open source technology developed at Cornell University for the establishment of safe drinking water supplies can be sustainably extended to some of the poorest communities in the world. John holds a B.A. in anthropology and agriculture and a Ph.D. in developmental sociology and agronomy, both from Cornell University.