James Anderson

James Anderson oversees Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Government Innovation programs, focused on building problem-solving capacity within local governments and spreading innovations that work. Current programs include Cities of Service, CityLab, the India Smart Cities Challenge, Innovation Teams, the Mayors Challenges, and What Works Cities. He led the Foundation’s efforts to establish the nation’s first social impact bond in partnership with Goldman Sachs and the City of New York. Before joining Bloomberg Philanthropies, James served as communications director to New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. During that time, he was the chief architect of NYC Service, the City’s high impact citizen service strategy, and Cities of Service, a bipartisan coalition that now includes over 160 mayors representing more than 55 million Americans. Previously, he served as senior advisor to the commissioner of the City’s homeless services agency, and as communications director for the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, a national advocacy organization.