Cities in Action: Expert Conversations for Urban Forestry Solutions
Speaker Information
Dr. Shalini Dhyani is a Principal Scientist at the CSIR-National Environment Engineering Research Institute, India. She is a visiting scientist at CIFOR, Bogor Indonesia. She is Asia Vice Chair and Steering Committee member in the Commission on Ecosystems Management of IUCN and Associate UNESCO-TWAS. Shalini works on socio-ecological interlinkages, following diverse knowledge systems and sustainability science approaches for ecosystem health assessments, and implementing nature-based solutions (NbS). She has been the lead author of the two IPBES assessments and is also involved as the lead author for the upcoming sping-shed assessment by ICIMOD, Nepal, and another on forest resilience by IUFRO.
Speaker Information
Joan Keener is the Deputy Director of Trust for Public Land’s New York City Playgrounds Program. A native New Yorker, with a background in community organizing and gardening, Joan left a career in journalism to join Trust for Public Land in its mission to connect children to urban green spaces. Over the past 17 years, she has supervised participatory design, community engagement and post-opening activation at 120 green schoolyards across the five boroughs. Helping to manage an ongoing partnership with the Department of Environmental Protection and Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice to build climate resilient playgrounds, she has overseen site selection, budgeting, and community engagement at 56 green-infrastructure sites, designed to capture an average of 1 million gallons of storm water annually each. She has a B.A. in Dance and Political Philosophy from Sarah Lawrence College.
Speaker Information
Dr Manan Bhan is currently a Fellow in Residence at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), a global leader among environmental think-tanks. He leads public-facing action research focussing on sustainable land use and climate research both inside and outside cities. In Bengaluru, he is leading efforts to develop hyper-local toolkits to combat heat stress.
The Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), in collaboration with the Hixon Center for Urban Sustainability at the Yale School of the Environment, is delighted to announce the fourth webinar of the Cities in Action: Expert Conversations for Urban Solutions series—bringing together experts to identify innovative urban forestry management strategies.
In this edition we bring speakers: Manan Bhan, Fellow in Residence, the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE); and Joan Keener, Deputy Director at Trust for Public Land’s NYC Playgrounds Program. The conversation will be moderated by Shalini Dhyani, Principal Scientist, CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI).
Urban forests are vital as cities expand rapidly, offering essential environmental, social, and economic benefits. They help combat climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide and reducing urban heat through shade and moisture release. Urban trees improve air quality, reduce stormwater runoff, and support biodiversity by providing wildlife habitat. Beyond ecological benefits, green spaces enhance mental health, encourage physical activity, and foster community well-being.
As concrete landscapes grow, preserving and expanding urban forests is crucial to creating livable, resilient cities. This session will explore innovative strategies for supporting urban forests, focusing on benefits to climate-vulnerable populations such as children and low-income residents. Experts will share insights drawn from their experiences as researchers and practitioners advancing greener cities across India and the United States.
