Future Proofing New York: Planning for the New Normal Climate Week NYC Wednesday, September 25, 2024 AECOM, 605 Third Avenue, 2nd Floor

Welcome

Tom Prendergast, Executive Vice President & New York Metro Chief Executive, AECOM

As Chief Executive, Tom oversees growth and profitability of the Design and Consulting Services group in the New York Metro. His areas of responsibility include transportation, water and wastewater, environment, power, and buildings and places, which encompasses more than 1,300 architects, engineers, scientists, and other support staff. Prior to joining AECOM, Tom served in a number of leadership roles during his 30 years at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)—the largest transportation agency in North America—most recently as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. In that capacity, he established the strategic direction and policies of the MTA’s agencies and was instrumental in securing a five-year capital plan to modernize New York’s public transportation systems, including Second Avenue Subway and East Side Access. Tom currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Regional Plan Association and the Eno Center for Transportation.

Keynote

Meera Joshi, Deputy Mayor for Operations for the City of New York

Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi oversees New York City’s infrastructure, public realm, and climate portfolio. She is expanding open space, reducing emissions, and protecting New Yorkers from the impacts of climate change, while ensuring that the city’s infrastructure and foundational services like trash collection and drinking water are strong and reliable. Meera also sits on the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Joshi was formerly President Biden’s nominee for Administrator of USDOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, responsible for interstate trucking regulation, and Chair and CEO of the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission, the nation’s largest for-hire transportation regulator.

She was the Inspector General for New York City’s Department of Corrections, responsible for investigation of corruption at all levels of the City’s jail operations and the First Deputy Executive Director of New York City’s Civilian Complaint Review Board, leading investigations of civilian allegations of police misconduct. She served as General Manager for the New York Office of Sam Schwartz Transportation Consultants and was a visiting scholar at NYU’s Rudin Center for Transportation Policy.

She holds a B.A. and J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania.

Moderator: Robert Freudenberg, Vice President, Energy & Environment, RPA

Rob has been with RPA since 2006. As Vice President for Energy & the Environment, he leads initiatives around climate mitigation and adaptation, open space conservation and park development, and water resource management. Previously, Rob was New Jersey director. He managed the state program with a focus on sustainability planning and policy and led projects including developing an arts and revitalization plan for Paterson and a neighborhood revitalization plan for East Camden; and facilitating land use and urban design recommendations for the 13-county Together North Jersey effort. Prior to joining RPA, Rob served as a coastal management fellow at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, where he focused on policies for the NJ Department of Environmental Protection. Rob holds a master’s degree in public administration in environmental science and policy from the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs and a bachelor’s degree in environmental biology from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

Pippa Brashear, Resilience Principal & Partner, SCAPE Landscape Architecture

Pippa is Resilience Principal and Partner at SCAPE. A leading national expert on resilience planning and design for climate adaptation, Pippa works with multi-disciplinary teams to develop landscape strategies and next-century infrastructure that integrate environmental, economic and social benefits. She leads both planning and built work teams within the firm, bringing an ecological and people-driven approach to SCAPE’s projects—informed by systems thinking; an understanding of natural and nature-based systems; engineering methods; and social and environmental equity. Pippa holds a master’s in landscape architecture and a master’s in urban planning with distinction from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. She also holds a B.A., cum laude, in environmental science and public policy from Harvard College.

Gwen Dawson, Senior Vice President of Design & Construction, BPCA

Gwen is responsible for planning and implementing the Authority’s capital program, including the coastal resiliency projects designed to reduce the risk to Battery Park City from future flooding associated with severe storms and sea level rise. During her tenure, the Authority has overseen the completion of the buildout of Battery Park City’s development parcels and the restoration of historic Pier A, as well as the implementation of a broad capital program focused on the maintenance, restoration, and enhancement of Battery Park City infrastructure, public spaces, and related facilities and amenities throughout its 96 acres. Prior to joining the Authority, Gwen resided in Colorado, where she was engaged in the management of public-private planning and development projects for prominent urban properties and facilities. She is a graduate of Florida State University and Duke University School of Law.

Joshua DeFlorio, Chief of Resilience & Sustainability, PANYNJ

Josh is Chief of Resilience and Sustainability at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ). He leads a team of more than 20 staff that focuses on ensuring that the aviation, port, urban rail, tunnel, bridge, terminal, and real estate facilities called for in the agency’s $37 billion capital plan are planned, designed, and delivered to be both environmentally sustainable and climate resilient. Josh is a Transportation Chapter Author on the 5th National Climate Assessment.

Benjamin Shepherd, Benchmarking Practice Director, Atelier Ten

Ben is a LEED Fellow and Director of Atelier Ten's largest US office, based in New York City. Since joining the firm in 2006, he has extensive experience in sustainability consulting, master planning, urban ecology, and renewable energy across a variety of green development project types. In addition to leading the firm's US Benchmarking and Planning practices, Ben has also been a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) since 2016 and is a previous Co-Chair of ULI New York’s Infrastructure Council. He currently serves on the National ULI University Development and Innovation Council (UDIC) that focuses on the convergent needs of academic and private‐sector partners. He has also served as adjunct faculty at Cornell’s Art Architecture & Planning (AAP), and at Pratt Institute’s Graduate Architecture & Urban Design (GAUD) program.

Moderator: Karen Appell, Vice President & Climate Change Lead, New York Metro, AECOM

As the Climate Change Lead for the New York Metro Water group, Karen oversees the Extreme Weather Initiative for the region. With more than 25 years of experience, she leads multidisciplinary teams that develop strategic solutions for the planning, design, and construction of complex infrastructure projects focusing on climate adaptation. Currently, Karen manages the Kissena Park Cloudburst Hub, part of the NYC Department of Environmental Protection’s Cloudburst Program to implement innovative and adaptive methods of absorbing, storing, and transferring stormwater in flood-prone communities. She previously led Rebuild By Design – Hudson River, a coastal flood risk reduction project for one of the country’s densest and most transit-oriented areas. Karen earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Biological Engineering from Cornell University with a concentration in Environmental Systems Engineering and a graduate certificate in Water Resources Engineering from the Stevens Institute of Technology.

Laurian Farrell, Deputy Commissioner for Coastal Resilience, NYC DEP

Laurian is the Deputy Commissioner for the Bureau of Coastal Resilience at the City of New York – a bureau tasked with leading the coastal resilience efforts for NYC’s 520-mile shoreline. Laurian has worked in the private, public, and philanthropic sectors for more than 20 years, is a water resources engineer, has a master’s degree in landscape architecture, and centers equity in her practice. Laurian spent 12 years at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, a watershed-based regulatory authority, leading the Flood Management & Infrastructure program. She was the Senior Manager-Environment for the City of Brampton, Ontario, and moved to the United States in 2019 to join the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities. Laurian most recently worked as a Director at the Resilient Cities Network, where she developed a deep, international understanding of the challenges facing ultra-urban coastal cities.

Douglas McPherson, Manager, ReAL Edgemere Community Land Trust

With more than 15 years of experience in the fields of urban planning, parks equity, and community health, Doug serves as Manager of the ReAL Edgemere Community Land Trust (CLT). In this role, Doug leads the CLT's open space activation and resilient housing efforts—both key elements of the Resilient Edgemere Community Plan, which was released by the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) in 2017. Over the past six years, he has worked to secure subsidies and entitlements for more than 5,000 units of senior, supportive, and family housing in his various roles at HPD and Empire State Development (ESD). Doug also served on the Friends of the QueensWay steering committee and on Queens Community Board 10. He received a Master of City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania.

Cecil Scheib, Chief Sustainability Officer, New York University

Cecil is NYU’s Chief Sustainability Officer, leading the university-wide effort to build a healthier and more sustainable future. Key responsibilities include reducing NYU’s greenhouse gas emissions; supporting sustainability teaching and research across NYU’s diverse schools; championing ideas that advance innovation, education, and social justice; and engaging with the community through student, faculty, staff, and administrator opportunities. Cecil formerly served as Chief Program Officer at Urban Green Council, as the Managing Director of the Building Resiliency Task Force for the City of New York, as Director of Energy and Sustainability at NYU from 2007 to 2012, and co-founded Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage. He earned a BS in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Stanford University. He serves on the Board of Directors of Urban Green Council, and is a New York State licensed professional engineer, Certified Energy Manager, and LEED Accredited Professional.

Joy Sinderbrand, Senior Vice President for Capital Programs, NYCHA

Joy manages the execution of the capital portfolio for NYCHA, the largest landlord in North America. With over $8B of work in the current five-year capital plan, project teams are delivering historic levels of investment to public housing residents while incorporating innovative building materials, construction methods, technology, and stakeholder engagement practices. At NYCHA, she also managed the implementation of $3B of Superstorm Sandy recovery work and resilience retrofits benefiting 60,000 low-income New Yorkers. Previously, Joy worked on major capital redevelopment programs at the World Trade Center and Penn Station. She teaches at Hunter’s Master of Urban Planning program and is a longtime member – and former chair – of ULI New York’s Infrastructure Council. She holds joint master’s degrees in public Affairs and Urban & Regional Planning from Princeton University and is certified as a Passive House Tradesperson, Waterfront Edge Design Guidelines Associate, and Citizen Pruner.

Moderator: Grace Rauh, Executive Director, 5BORO Institute

Grace is the Founding Executive Director of the 5BORO Institute, an innovative non-partisan public policy think tank focused on New York City. She is a former award-winning journalist who spent 11 years as an on-air political reporter at NY1 News, focusing on city, state, and national politics. She hosted NY1’s weekly podcast “Off Topic/On Politics” and was the guest host of NY1’s nightly public affairs show, “Inside City Hall.” Grace was awarded the Society of Professional Journalists’ national Sunshine Award for her contributions to open government. After leaving NY1, Grace led communications at BridgeBio Pharma. During Grace’s tenure, BridgeBio had its first two FDA drug approvals and was named one of Fast Company’s most innovative biotech companies. Grace’s writing has been published in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and the New York Daily News, and she has made numerous appearances on MSNBC to provide political analysis.

Victoria Cerullo, Director of Urban Engagement, The New York Climate Exchange

Prior to joining The New York Climate Exchange as Director of Urban Engagement, Vicki was a Senior Advisor to NYC's First Deputy Mayor and previously served as Deputy Director of Strategic Partnerships and Executive Director of the Mayor's Office of Climate & Environmental Justice. She began her career in the Bloomberg Administration, first as a Director in the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit, then Legislative Representative in the Office of City Legislative Affairs, and Chief of Staff to the NYC Parks Commissioner. Vicki was also part of a team assembled by Mayor Bloomberg to manage Superstorm Sandy recovery. Her roles in philanthropy and the private sector have spanned sustainability, news, financial products, operations, and government innovation. She received her MPA from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Anna Dyson, Director, Yale Center for Ecosystems + Architecture

Anna is the Hines Professor of Architecture at the Yale Schools of Architecture (YSoA) and Environment (YSE). She is the founding Director of the Yale Center for Ecosystems + Architecture (Yale CEA), a research initiative that integrates interdisciplinary labs across campus to collaborate on the research, development, and deployment of novel architectural systems that are focused on the challenge of metabolizing energy, water, and materials within architecture in radically new ways. She has been a professor of architecture at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where she founded the Center for Architecture, Science and Ecology (CASE) with SOM in 2006. Recipient of the Innovator Award from Architectural Record, Dyson holds many international patents on building systems innovations for the collection and distribution of clean energy, water, air quality, and material life cycle. Her work has been exhibited internationally at venues including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), The World Future Energy Summit (WFES), and The Center for Architecture.

Kate Johnson, Head of US Federal Affairs, C40 Cities

As the Head of US Federal Affairs at C40 Cities, Kate works with C40 member cities and partners to advance US federal policy that supports cities in achieving their climate goals and support C40’s overall engagement with partners in Washington, DC. Prior to joining C40, Kate served for eight years at the Washington, DC Department of Energy and Environment where she led an interdisciplinary team charged with achieving DC's goal to be carbon neutral and climate resilient.

Timon McPhearson, Director, Urban Systems Lab & Professor of Urban Ecology, The New School

Timon is Professor of Urban Ecology and Founder and Director of the Urban Systems Lab at The New School in New York City, where he studies urban climate risks, resilience, and nature-based solutions. He is a Senior Research Fellow at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Stockholm Resilience Centre, and Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics at The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. He has published over 200 scientific articles, book chapters, and reports. His books include Urban Planet (2018), Resilient Urban Futures (2021) and Nature-based Solutions for Cities (2023). He was a Lead Author for the IPCC AR6 report, a Contributing Author to the first IPBES report, and an inaugural member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Commission on BiodiverCities. He was awarded the Innovation in Sustainability Science Award by the Ecological Society of America in 2019 and the Sustainability Science Award in 2019 and 2023.

Closing Remarks

Maulin Mehta, New York Director, RPA

As New York Director, Maulin is responsible for leading RPA’s research, planning, and advocacy activities in the state. His work includes researching and building support for a broad range of projects and campaigns to improve equity in land-use, transportation, and health in our region. Previously, he worked with non-profits in New York and New Jersey overseeing projects to address economic development, resiliency, and real estate challenges. He helped improve neighborhoods through placed-based strategies including participatory planning and affordable housing development centered on community values and goals. He also worked at NYC Parks helping to solve inter-agency issues for open space and infrastructure projects. There he helped improve transparency and predictability of the permitting process and worked across agencies to build consensus. Maulin is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners. He holds a Master of Urban Planning from New York University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Rutgers University.