David was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming and soon moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. He fell in love with the outdoors as a Boy Scout and while helping his parents raise cattle and horses. His numerous wilderness rides in Wyoming and Montana and many other outdoor adventures, while living in 7 states and in Costa Rica, further reinforced his belief in protecting the environment for future generations. The challenge continues to be finding balance in the tug of war between preserving the environment and responsible growth.
David served as a presidential appointee at the senior executive service level in the United States Department of Agriculture. Assigned to the Risk Management Agency, he served as associate administrator for the multibillion dollar U.S. crop and livestock insurance program in Washington DC. In this role, he worked extensively with Capitol Hill. On an international level with the Organization of American States, he significantly advanced the field of agricultural risk management and food security, including authoring/co-authoring multiple publications. He frequently engaged with senior government officials and scientists in virtually every country in the hemisphere to create science based agricultural policy for small and mid-sized farmers, including women. His technical partners included the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Inter-American Development Bank, U.S. State Department, the World Bank, and others.
Prior to his public sector service, David worked in and with multiple global corporations and helped pioneer unique global risk management practices principally in the aerospace and chemical industries. This included securing multi million dollar funding to clean up many Brownfield sites. He also worked intensively to address Holocaust related insurance issues involving corporations and multiple countries for the benefit of the victims and their descendants.
David graduated from Brigham Young University with a BA in Political Science and a MA in Organizational Behavior from the Marriott School of Management.