Michelle M. Thompson was a Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth Public Interest Technology Fellow at New America. She is a geographic information systems professional and associate professor at the University of New Orleans in the department of planning & urban studies. Thompson's research focuses the application of public participation geographic information systems in community development and reinvestment. Thompson is also the project manager of the web-based community mapping service, WhoData.org, which combines parcel level neighborhood condition information with public data to monitor socioeconomic and land-use changes. As a volunteer, Thompson has served Cross World Africa, Inc. as vice president since 2009 providing cultural and economic support to families in East Africa. Thompson is also the principal of Thompson Real Estate Consultants LLC, a real estate research and education firm. Thompson has worked in both public and private companies related to the finance of residential and commercial real estate. In June 2017, Thompson joined New America as a Public Interest Technology fellow focusing on financial inclusion and citizen participation.