EIN Presswire | Newsmatics

WASHINGTON, DC, USA, September 19, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- Longtime equity and mobility leader, and veteran of the Obama Administration and the California Governor’s office, Sahar Shirazi, has joined Cityfi as the firm’s newest Partner and Equity Practice Lead. Sahar will continue to build on Cityfi’s commitment to advancing equitable outcomes for communities, foundations, and high growth companies globally, while integrating equity into the Firm’s work.

Sahar will collaborate with public agencies and private sector partners to create forward-thinking policies, processes, pilots, and programs that link equity to success. Her diverse background in both the public and private sector, from high-level strategic planning for large agencies such as the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under President Obama will bolster agencies and companies to create big visions, implement them through pragmatic and realistic actions, and track the outcomes to understand results and evolve policies.

“Sahar is a powerhouse in the field of transportation policy generally, and equitable mobility specifically. Cityfi is ecstatic that Sahar has joined its ranks and looks forward to building its equity practice under her leadership,” stated Cityfi Partner Andrew Wishnia.

“Transportation is the second largest category of spending for households in the United States after housing, and in many places the largest contributor to emissions and localized air pollution.” Sahar added, “A lot of people ask about what ‘equity’ means in the context of our mobility landscape. It means understanding the uneven benefits and burdens our past decisions and investments have made, connecting mobility to health, housing, climate, and economic vitality, and providing real solutions-in collaboration with communities-for overburdened and underrepresented populations.

Sahar’s personal story led her to her current work, as she experienced firsthand the connections between mobility, land use, and opportunity against a backdrop of systems built to serve only some. As an appointee for Governor Jerry Brown (D-CA), Sahar shaped policy to bridge the gap between communities, including the creation of a statewide comprehensive plan in coordination with dozens of cities, counties, public agencies, and community partners to tackle climate change, resiliency, public health, and social equity. In the Governor's office, Sahar also led an international sustainable city initiative with the World Bank and California, supported the legislative move to measure induced travel and vehicles miles traveled (VMT), and helped write the first automated vehicle policy for the state.

In 2020, she served on the first 100 days policy team for the incoming Biden-Harris Administration Administration, focusing on infusing equity into mobility policies during the first 100 days in office. Her experience working on high level policy and following it down to the local level focuses her expertise on making big ideas actionable, accountable, and positioned within larger policies but directly connected to local needs.

Sahar serves as the Vice Chair of the Oakland Planning Commission and the Co-chair of the Zoning Update Committee, where she has consistently promoted pragmatic development in response to community needs, and pushed for more inclusive policies and programs within the City. In addition to her work on the commission, Sahar volunteers with various local groups and organizes benefits and community events periodically. She is an Adjunct Professor at Northeastern University at Mills, where she teaches courses in the Public Policy department.


About Cityfi

Cityfi is a global strategic advisory firm led by a unique team of government innovators, entrepreneurs, designers, political advisors, and trusted industry experts who have transformed public agencies and scaled high growth companies. Cityfi engages in high-level and tactical strategy, working with bold visionary leaders and organizations to develop actionable roadmaps that drive positive change - quickly. Cityfi operates in six core practice areas (Mobility Systems and Reimagines Streets; Public Affairs and Regulatory Design; Resilience and Adaptation; CleanTech and Zero-Emission Transition; Civic Innovation and Change Management and Digital Transformation and Connectivity) and fostering collaboration among these areas is a distinguishing feature of our work, resulting in comprehensive solutions. Learn more at https://www.cityfi.co/.

Brandon Pollak
Cityfi
brandon@cityfi.co
Visit us on social media:
Twitter
LinkedIn