Sebastián is the Director, Strategy & Institutional Alignment, for WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities. He is a member of the Executive Team of the center and manages its governance structure working closely with the Global Director and global executives and their support teams. He has a particular focus on the development and execution of the WRI's five-year strategy ensuring optimal alignment between all parts of the center and relevant functions and teams across the organization. In his capacity, Sebastian and his team play a crucial role in enabling strategic planning, adaptive management, and institutional learning.

With more than thirteen years at WRI, Sebastian has deep understanding of the organization, experience in delivering cross-cutting initiatives, and a passion for organizational development.

Sebastian previously served as Sustainable Mobility Manager in WRI's sustainable urban mobility initiative EMBARQ in Mexico. In that capacity he led a technical advisory team to Mexico’s Federal Program in support of Massive Public Transport Infrastructure (PROTRAM), leading to the implementation of several Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Systems and mobility plans. As part of this role, Sebastian and his team was responsible for advising Federal and State governments in transport governance, policy reform, master planning, transport modelling, and financial analysis.

Prior to joining WRI, Sebastian conducted research on urban ecology and ecosystem services at University of Florida IFAS - School of Forest Resources & Conservation, and the U.S. Forest Services, Northern Research Station in Syracuse, NY.

As a devoted mountain climber, guide and coach, Sebastián has 20 years of experience leading expeditions in Patagonia, Antarctica, and the Himalayas. Sebastián is an effective facilitator and advocate for leadership development and capacity building. He has collaborated with OECD, World Bank and other multilateral development organizations in the delivery of training programs such as the Leaders in Urban Transport Planning Program (LUTP), co-organized by WRI Mexico and the World Bank.

Sebastián graduated from Universidad de Chile and the State University of New York - ESF with a MSc degree in urban and landscape ecology.