Alexander Van Hout

Bolivia Bridge Program Manager

Alex oversees all EIA staff, operations, and training in Bolivia. He began his journey as an engineer at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, graduating with a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering. After graduating, Alex was commissioned as an engineering officer in the Army. He spent five years in the military, serving most of that time in Germany, Afghanistan, and South Carolina. His various roles included leading a platoon of 35 Soldiers clearing hidden explosives from roadways in Afghanistan, mentoring and building partnerships with Afghan police and engineer units, managing logistics for his company in Germany during the closure of their base, and supervising planning and operations for a basic training battalion graduating 5,000 new Soldiers per year.

Upon leaving the military, he earned a master's degree in Transportation Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin before joining the international engineering consultant firm Arup at their office in New York City. While at Arup, he worked on projects including several major airports, bus terminals, light rail systems, bike lanes, corporate campuses, traffic studies, and pedestrian simulations. Alex is originally from Saline, Michigan. When he's not working, he spends his time cycling around Cochabamba, studying Quechua, and playing all types of music on his guitar.