Jennifer Lenhart (Dr.)

Jennifer Lenhart is a Writer with Earth Negotiations Bulletin, as well as Global Cities Lead at World Wildlife Fund. A national of Sweden and the United States, she currently resides in Santiago, Chile. A wanderer since childhood, she has lived in over 25 cities in eight countries.

Jennifer holds a Ph.D in urban climate governance from Wageningen University, and a joint-MSc in Environmental Science, Policy and Management from Lund University and Central European University.

Her research and passion focus on cities, including how they interact within multilevel environmental governance regimes. She has 15 years’ experience addressing urban environmental challenges, including at UN-Habitat in Nairobi, the City of Malm’s Environment Department, an urban sustainability consultancy in Seattle and WWF. Her fascination with urban planning and design, including how people interact in cities, inspired her blog, the Urban Observer, recognized by Guardian Cities as one of the best city blogs. Jennifer’s love of cities builds on her conviction that compact, mixed-use urban planning provides high quality urban life, while reducing sprawl to ensure wilderness areas can endure.