Adam Freed

Adam Freed has more than 20 years of experience working on local and global urban issues. At Bloomberg Associates, a non-profit consultancy, Adam works with cities around the world to craft and implement sustainability strategies and actions covering a wide range of issues, including energy, GHG mitigation, climate resilience, housing affordability, green infrastructure, air quality, solid waste management, and neighborhood revitalization.

Prior to joining Bloomberg Associates, Adam was the Deputy Managing Director of The Nature Conservancy’s Global Water Program, where he worked with cities in 33 countries to have safe, sustainable, and reliable water supplies and developed innovative financing strategies for natural infrastructure solutions. From 2008-2012, Adam served as Deputy and Acting Director of the New York City Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability, overseeing the implementation of PlaNYC and related sustainability initiatives and developing the city’s first climate resilience program. As part of PlaNYC, the City planted 1 million trees, created more than 240 new community playgrounds, enacted the nation’s most aggressive green buildings legislation, achieved the cleanest air quality in over 50 years, launched a $2 billion green infrastructure program, and lowered its GHG emissions 12%.

Adam is also a Lecturer at Columbia University and a member of the NYC Water Board, which is responsible for setting NYC’s water rates to fund the city’s water and sewer system’s operating and capital needs (approximately $3.8 billion annually). In addition, he serves on the Board of ioby, a national crowd-resourcing platform to support community-led improvement projects; as an External Advisor to Fannie Mae’s Sustainable Communities Initiative; and on the Investor Advisory Group for the UN’s Joint SDG Fund. He received his master’s in Urban Planning from New York University and was a Mel King Community Fellow at MIT.