Mark Nichols is the Founder and President of Seven Summits, LLC. He has an extensive background in European affairs, energy, infrastructure, commodities, emerging markets and national security. He has worked at the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Wesley K. Clark & Associates. He is also a Member of The SPECTRUM Group, a premiere defense and security consulting firm headquartered in Washington DC.

Mr. Nichols began his career in the Clinton Administration at the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). At the State Department, he was Senior Advisor in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Europe. He worked on the NATO 50th Anniversary Summit, the Sarajevo Summit and the Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe, a multi-billion dollar program with the EU to rebuild the region after the wars in Bosnia and Kosovo.  At USAID, Mr. Nichols managed humanitarian assistance programs in the Caucuses and Central Asia in the Office of Emergency and Humanitarian Assistance in the Bureau for Europe and the New Independent States.

During his tenure at Wesley K. Clark & Associates, Mr. Nichols led the firm’s Energy and Defense and Commodities Divisions, supporting clients in the areas of oil and gas, wind power, electric vehicle manufacturing, interoperability defense communications and cyber security. He also created a partnership with a New York-based investment banking firm, with a focus on Eastern Europe. Prior to joining Wesley K. Clark & Associates, Mr. Nichols was Vice President and Treasurer of General Clark’s 2004 Presidential campaign.

Mr. Nichols also served as an advisor to the Liberation Route Europe, a multinational project to honor our World War II veterans and commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day. The Liberation Route Europe is a hiking trail from London to Berlin that follows the footsteps of the Allied soldiers as they made their way across Europe. 

Mr. Nichols holds a Masters’ degree in International Affairs from Columbia University and a B.A. in European History from Bard College. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Stimson Center and Renew America Together. He is a former Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is also a graduate of the Georgetown Leadership Seminar, the British Council’s European Series, the Young Leaders Program of the Council for the United States and Italy and the Aspen Institute’s Executive Seminar. He speaks English, French, Russian and Portuguese. A native Arkansan, he lives in Washington DC.