Sylvan is an Economist in the World Bank's Development Impact Department (DIME). He is an applied micro-economist who has worked on a wide range of topics including personal and household finance (financial inclusion, sports betting), digital development, agriculture, and gender (childcare, labor participation). His work often examines financial management strategies of the poor with links to intra-household bargaining and behavioral decision-making.

Sylvan received his PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of California, Berkeley. He also studied at Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies as well as Wesleyan University. Before joining DIME, Sylvan was a Research Fellow at IFPRI, a Peace Corps Volunteer in Niger, and a DIME field coordinator in Malawi.