Board Members

Dr. Nikia Clarke is Senior Vice President of San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation (EDC), and Executive Director of World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD), an EDC affiliate. She leads strategy and program development for the organization, and oversees its economic development, research, talent and global engagement priorities. Clarke’s background is in global trade and investment strategy, and she has two decades of experience in global and local economic development in the academic, private, and non-profit sectors. She is a former appointee to the National Investment Advisory Council, a collection of senior leaders that advises the administration on FDI policy and strategy, and is founder and former Director of OUCAN, an international network of emerging market industry leaders, policy makers and researchers. She is also a professor at UC San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy, and serves on the boards of SDSU’s International Business Program and Innovation District, Lifeline Community Services, the San Diego Innovation Council, the San Diego & Imperial Small Business Development Center Network, and Port Maritime Advisory. Previously, she advised the San Diego STEM Pathways Community and World Design Capital 2024. She holds a BA from Loyola Marymount University, an MPhil from Cambridge University, and a PhD from Oxford University.