Adjunct/Affiliated Professor
Operations Division Liaison, Minnesota Department of Transportation
Ben Lowndes currently serves as the operations division liaison at the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). In this role, he provides conflict resolution and strategic planning services to MnDOT personnel in order to build stronger working relationships within the agency and with key external partners for the success of agency projects and programs. Prior to this, Lowndes served in MnDOT’s Office of Public Engagement and Constituent Services as well as MnDOT’s ombudsman’s office, where he helped the agency improve its statewide public engagement and worked to resolve conflicts that had already risen between the public and the agency. Lowndes earned his J.D. (cum laude) and certificate in advocacy and problem solving in May 2014 from Hamline University School of Law and the Dispute Resolution Institute. He also holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English, focusing on rhetoric and composition studies. He is a qualified civil facilitative/hybrid neutral under Rule 114 of the Minnesota General Rules of Practice and was admitted to the Minnesota Bar in 2014.
