Titles

• Senior Global Futures Scientist, Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory
• Assistant Research Professor, Healthy Urban Environments (HUE), Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation
• Assistant Research Professor, Knowledge Exchange for Resilience, Arizona State University

Biography

Melissa Guardaro is an assistant research professor in the Julie Ann Wrigley Global institute of Sustainability at Arizona State University and works for the Healthy Urban Environments Initiative (HUE) and Knowledge Exchange for Resilience (KER). Her research focuses on adaptation, equity, vulnerability, urban policy, and governance for the mitigation and adaptation to extreme heat and urban heat island effects. She is currently working with the City of Phoenix to formulate a comprehensive heat reduction strategy, and with The Nature Conservancy, the Maricopa County Health Department, and community-based organizations to create neighborhood heat solutions that improve thermal comfort and public health outcomes, especially during extreme heat events.

Melissa most recently was the United Nations Representative for the American Association of University Women, where she advocated for gender justice in the formulation of the Sustainable Development Goals. She completed a PhD in sustainability from Arizona State University, a master’s degree in sustainability and environmental management from Harvard, and an MBA from Columbia University.

Education

• PhD, Sustainability, Arizona State University, 2019
• MS, Sustainability and Environmental Management, Harvard University
• MBA, Business Administration, Columbia University