Álvaro Bernal is an Associate Program Director at Dalberg Advisors, where he co-leads the firm’s Strategy Activation work in the Americas. He brings over 15 years of experience across the consulting, nonprofit, and public sectors, with a focus on inclusive economic development, gender and racial equity, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and climate.

In his consulting career, Álvaro has led more than 30 projects related to strategy and program design, implementation, organizational effectiveness, and monitoring, learning, and evaluation (MEL) for leading foundations, nonprofits, and city governments. Recent examples include co-leading the design and implementation of a $17M+ fund to scale workforce development programs for underserved communities in Los Angeles County over two years; co-leading a multi-year partnership with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation as the Learning and Technical Assistance partner for their Racial Equity 2030 initiative; managing an engagement with USAID Colombia to design and implement a $11M+ program connecting rural communities to solar energy; and developing strategies and MEL frameworks for clients including the Gates Foundation, ClimateWorks, the European Climate Foundation, and Hispanics in Philanthropy. Álvaro has also served as an Evaluation Panel Reviewer for leading philanthropic grants, including MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving and Melinda French Gates’ Action for Women’s Health.

Prior to joining Dalberg in 2021, Álvaro served for over five years as Co-Director of Governance and Sustainability at the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Western Hemisphere Region. There, he oversaw Board relations and led a capacity-building program for regional affiliates, providing technical assistance in leadership, management, governance, financial sustainability, and innovation.

Álvaro holds an M.Sc. in International Development Studies from the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and a B.A. in Economics from Universidad de los Andes in Colombia—his home country. He lives in New York City with his husband and two cats.