Seminar: Shalini Gupta

Wednesday, March 17, 2021 | 3:30 PM

The role of a justice lens in the future of environmental policy and research

Shalini Gupta
Writer, researcher, and environmental justice advocate

Shalini Gupta will share with us her journey as a policy researcher and activist who centers environmental justice communities in her work, nationally and in Minnesota. A key collaborator in the landmark City of Minneapolis Green Zones effort, she will reflect on the broader federal momentum around environmental justice, and the imperative for Minnesota and the Twin Cities looking ahead.

Speaker: Shalini Gupta

A headshot of the speaker Shalini Gupta

Shalini Gupta is a writer, researcher and environmental justice activist. Shalini has been involved with energy, climate and environmental policy—with a focus on building frontline community capacity—for the past 20 years. Her work is centered on solutions to our ecological crises that are grounded in people and place; and our economic and social histories.

Through her consultancy work, Shalini works with a range of philanthropic, governmental and community-based organizations across the country, including the City of Boston, the National Audubon Society, Community Members for Environmental Justice, and the McKnight Foundation. A former governor appointee to the Minnesota Next Generation Energy Board, Shalini has served as co-Chair of the Headwaters Foundation for Justice Board of Directors and on the founding leadership team of the Midwest Environmental Justice Network. Prior to starting her consulting work, Shalini was the co-founder and executive director of the Center for Earth, Energy and Democracy, an environmental justice research and policy organization. As a co-facilitator of the City of Minneapolis Environmental Justice Working Group, her work helped develop the city's groundbreaking 2013 Climate Action Plan – which established Minneapolis' first environmental justice focused Green Zones Initiative.

She holds a BA in the Geophysical Sciences from the University of Chicago and a Masters in Environmental Management from Yale University. Shalini lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, home of the Dakota people, with her husband, two sons, mother, and a community of friends and extended family.

Part of our Spring 2021 Seminar series.
Recordings are shared on our YouTube channel