Country:
Bangladesh
Organization:
Shahjalal University of Science and Technology
Certificate:
Urban Climate Leadership
Three Cairns Fellows
Mahmuda Sharmin
As a professor, Mahmuda Sharmin is motivated to create safer, inclusive, and resilient cities by supporting green spaces that can improve quality of life and mitigate growing climate risks. She enrolled in the Urban Climate Leadership certificate program to cultivate a global network of peers and deepen her knowledge of urban studies.
Political disconnects, rapid urbanization, and intensifying climate risks all pose growing challenges to creating resilient and sustainable urban communities in Bangladesh. That reality became clear to Mahmuda Sharmin when she observed how the quality and nature of urban life in the German and Australian cities where she pursued graduate and doctoral studies compared to environmental resources back home.
“During my PhD, I closely observed how local and state governments in developed countries collaborated to mobilize resources aimed at increasing urban tree canopy cover, ultimately improving quality of life,” she said. “But upon returning to Bangladesh, I was overwhelmed by the complexity and dynamism of its urban landscapes.”
Sharmin earned her doctorate in urban ecology at Western Sydney University, where she became interested in urban dynamics, the threats posed by air pollution, and public perceptions of greenspace. An associate professor at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, she is now focusing her research on how urban greenspaces can support multiple ecosystem services, including the mitigation of flooding and extreme heat, both of which are intensifying in Bangladesh.
She enrolled in the Urban Climate Leadership certificate program to broaden her knowledge of urban studies, including policy development, public transport, and energy-efficiency, and to build a network of colleagues across the Global South.
“By learning from and collaborating with international peers, I hope to contribute to shared solutions for the pressing urban challenges,” she said.
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