Jesse Lin

Born and raised in Lakewood, California, Jesse Lin is the son of Taiwanese immigrants to the United States.

Jesse received a Bachelor of Arts in political science and economics & accounting from University of California, Santa Barbara. After graduating, he worked at a Y Combinator start-up and the World Economic Forum. At Harvard Kennedy School, he earned a Master in Public Policy with an emphasis on regulation of emerging technologies and completed a legislative fellowship on Capitol Hill.

Jesse then attended Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the Board of Student Advisers. During law school, he worked at the ACLU of Michigan and the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. Following graduation, he served as a law clerk to Judge Julia E. Kobick of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

Initial Fellowship Focus: The fellow will deliver a proof of concept for proactive collaboration between Boston’s Law Department and other city departments. The work may facilitate policy or program innovations in areas such as expanding housing supply, protecting city properties from sea-level rise, or preserving critical funding streams. They will also begin positioning the Law Department to scale and institutionalize a creative, partnership-driven approach to problem-solving beyond the fellowship.