Kian Tajbakhsh is a social scientist and urban planner based in Tehran, Iran. Since returning to Iran in 2000, he has worked as a consultant in the areas of local government reform, urban planning and social policy, and has taught at several universities. He has worked with several organizations including Iran's Municipalities Organization and the Social Security Organization, and international organizations such as the World Bank and the Dutch Association of Municipalities. His academic research examines the evolving nature of Iranian state institutions. Tajbakhsh is the author of two books and over 20 academic papers. In 2006, he completed a three-year study of the local government sector in Iran. From 1994 until 2001, Tajbakhsh taught urban policy and politics at the New School for Social Research in New York City. He received his MSc from University College, London in 1984, and PhD from Columbia University in 1993.