David Rusk

Photo of David Rusk

"David Rusk is the hottest urban expert in the nation today,” the Baltimore Sun commented in reviewing Baltimore Unbound. Cities without Suburbs, the Congressional Quarterly wrote, has virtually become the Bible of the regionalism movement.” Rusk combines strong analytical skills with practical political experience. He is a former federal official, New Mexico legislator (1975-77) and mayor of Albuquerque (1977-81), the USA’s 36th largest city.  Rusk is now an independent consultant on urban and suburban policy. Since 1993 he has spoken and consulted in over 120 US communities. Abroad, Rusk has lectured on urban problems in England; Berlin, Stuttgart, and Frankfurt, Germany; and in Toronto and Victoria, Canada. In 1997 he served as an advisor to the government of South Africa on metropolitan governance in Johannesburg, Capetown, and Durban. During 2000 he was a visiting professor at the University of Amsterdam and Delft Technical University in The Netherlands.

Building One America
2020 Summit Speaker: 
Currently not speaking at summit
Speaker Year: 
2023