Abdullahi Abdulle
Founder & CEO

Abdullahi Abdulle is an accomplished leader with over a decade of experience in public policy, urban planning, equitable community engagement, facilitation, leadership development, and strategic planning.

This expertise culminated in the 2023 launch of Humanize MN, his consulting firm dedicated to supporting people-centric, equitable policies and inclusive decision-making to improve government services.

His passion for humanizing these systems stems from a deeply personal place. As a new immigrant to the United States, Abdullahi faced challenges navigating essential services like education, healthcare, and transportation. He vividly recalls spending nearly four hours each day commuting to a minimum-wage job, relying on a combination of public transit and rides from friends.

This firsthand experience, coupled with his observations of America's dependence on automobiles, inspired him to pursue a career in transportation and urban planning, ultimately leading him to seek public office.

In 2020, he made history as the first person of color elected to the New Brighton City Council.

Abdullahi’s impactful leadership has garnered numerous accolades, including the 2023 Rosa Parks Diversity Leadership Award from WTS and the 2021 History Makers at Home award from the City of Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights.

At Humanize MN, Abdullahi continues his commitment to empowering decision-makers to understand the impact of their choices on people with limited resources.

Prior to founding his firm, he led the Minnesota Department of Transportation's Advancing Transportation Equity Initiative. In this role, he designed and executed a statewide initiative to define transportation equity, develop transportation equity commitments, and acknowledge systemic harms caused by past agency decisions. His approach centered on amplifying the voices and experiences of people who are underserved and overburdened by transportation investments.

Abdullahi holds a master's degree in urban planning from Minnesota State University.