Mark Edwards

Mark Edwards is the co-founder of Upstream USA, a nonprofit focused on breaking the cycle of poverty by helping women achieve their own goals and reducing the incidence of unplanned pregnancy.

Over half of all pregnancies in the US are accidental and unplanned, most occur to women who are using a contraceptive method that doesn't work well for them, and the downstream impact on mothers, fathers, and children when women have children before they want and plan for them is significant, and ripples for generations.

The mission of Upstream is to change health care so that all women receive the highest quality services and can conveniently access the full range of contraceptive methods, particularly the most effective methods, IUDs and implants. Upstream’s vision is that one day, every child born in America is a planned for and wanted child. When that happens, women and men will be better positioned to achieve their own educational and economic goals, and downstream, we will have had a meaningful impact on intergenerational and child poverty.

Prior to co-founding Upstream USA, Mark was the founder and executive director of Opportunity Nation, a national, bipartisan campaign focused on expanding economic mobility and closing the opportunity gap. Prior to Opportunity Nation, Mark was the managing partner of Edwards & Company, Inc., a marketing and communications company focused on elevating educational institutions and nonprofit organizations. He is a trustee of Phillips Exeter Academy, Mass. Bay Brewing Company, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, and Horizons for Homeless Children.

Mark is a graduate of Harvard College and lives in Massachusetts with his wife and three children. He bikes to work daily, and enjoys backpacking and other outdoor activities. Follow Mark on Twitter at @medwardsnow.