Dr. Michael Nelson is a Research Associate for the Leading Edge Forum. Michael is also currently Visiting Professor of Internet Studies in Georgetown University's Communication, Culture, and Technology (CCT) Program, a unique, trans-disciplinary masters program for students and researchers interested in how information technology is shaping society and vice versa. Since January 2008, he has been conducting research and teaching courses on The Future of the Internet, innovation, technology forecasting, and e-government, as well as consulting and speaking on Internet technology and policy.

Before joining the Georgetown faculty, Michael spent almost ten years as Director of Internet Technology and Strategy at IBM, where he managed a team helping define and implement IBM's Next Generation Internet strategy. Prior to that, Michael was Director for Technology Policy at the FCC, where he helped craft policies to spur the growth of the Internet. Before joining the FCC in January 1997, Michael was Special Assistant for Information Technology at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy where he worked with Vice President Al Gore on telecommunications policy, encryption and online privacy, electronic commerce, and information policy.