David Shear has over 35 years of experience in development planning and management, including direct involvement in Africa, Asia and Latin America. His work covers the full spectrum of development activities: region-wide macroeconomic development, country development strategies, country budget planning, project design and implementation, private investment and evaluation.

During a 22-year career with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) he held such responsible positions as USAID Mission Director in Senegal; Director of the West Africa and Sahelian Affairs Office in Washington; Regional Director for West Africa, Abidjan, Ivory Coast; and Director of Planning, Budget and Congressional Affairs for the Africa Bureau in Washington.

After retiring from USAID in 1984, Mr. Shear served as the Washington Director of the Organization for Rehabilitation through Training, working with the World Bank, USAID, and the UNDP. He has also worked with many other donors, including FAO, IFAD, OPIC, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. He has lived in Nigeria, Tanzania, the Ivory Coast and Senegal.

For ten years Mr. Shear was President of the International Management and Development Group (IM&D), a consulting firm specializing in human resource development in Africa, Asia and Europe.

In addition to his current responsibilities as Senior Partner at Citizens International, Mr. Shear is a Senior Advisor to the OECD. He was also a member of the faculty of the Woodrow Wilson Graduate School in Public and Business Administration at Princeton University for eight years where he taught graduate seminars on development planning and management.

David Shear joined the Board of the Jane Goodall Institute in 1997 and became Chairman of the Board in 2002.