Irene Garcia and Michael Shank

Irene García is the Built Environment Lead for CNCA, where she manages the “Dramatically Reducing Embodied Carbon in Europe” project. Prior to joining CNCA, Irene led the Sustainable and Livable Cities program at German Marshall Fund (GMF) Cities. While at GMF she also served on the Advisory Board of REN21 for their Renewables in Cities Global Status Report. Prior to joining GMF, Irene worked as policy officer at the World Future Council in Hamburg, where she advised policymakers on the transition to 100% renewable energy. Before that Irene was at ESADEgeo Barcelona and served as research analyst and speechwriter to Former EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana, and as a research analyst working on research projects for The Brookings Institute and the Barcelona Metropolitan Region. Irene holds a MS in Urban Affairs from the Paris Institute of Political Studies and a MA in International Relations from the Barcelona Institute of International Studies. She speaks Spanish, English and French. Irene is based in Berlin. Michael Shank is the Director of Engagement for the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance. In this role, Michael supports alliance members’ efforts to communicate ambitious climate action to the public, the press and other policymakers. As a climate communicator, Michael’s past clients include the United Nations and its member states, the U.S. Congress and Administration, and the Vatican, as well as leaders in the subnational space, such as the B Team, We Mean Business, Under 2 MOU and The Climate Group. Michael’s Ph.D. is in climate conflict; he teaches sustainable development and climate security graduate classes at NYU’s Center for Global Affairs.