Simone Sandholz leads the Urban Futures & Sustainability Transformation Programme at United Nations University’s Institute for Environmental and Human Security. She holds a PhD from the Faculty of Geo and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, a Master’s degree in Technology in the Tropics from Cologne University of Applied Sciences, Germany and a Diploma in architecture and urban planning from the University of Siegen, Germany. Her research interests include disaster risk management, green and grey infrastructure, sustainable urban and regional development and urban climate action.