Diana Chaman Salas serves as Director of Climate and Resiliency for Hennepin County, Minnesota, where she is in charge with fostering climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts with an equity lens. Prior to that, she served as a consultant for the Global Food Banking Network and worked as a principal analyst for Second Harvest Heartland, where she designed a strategy to reduce child hunger in Minnesota’s metro area.
Diana has a master’s in public administration from Syracuse University and a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in Comparative Politics. She co-developed the Peruvian National Strategy for Family Farming and Food Security. Diana has been a speaker at the UN Climate Change Conference COP26, and COP20, The No More Food to Waste Conference in the Hague, the UN’s Woman of the Mountain Conference, and the World Bank 2015 Annual Meeting.
SESSIONS
Natured-based solutions for climate resilience in Hennepin County, Minnesota
Hennepin County’s climate resilience work is centered on leveraging natured-based solutions. This presentation highlights two specific projects; First, the implementation of a bold goal to plant one million trees in urban heat island areas. The second project centers on converting unused tax-forfeited lots as agriculture spaces, in coordination with community based organizations.This session will provide best practices and methodologies to reduce the urban heat island effect and promote natured-based solutions.
Learning Objectives
- Share best methods to prioritize climate vulnerable populations to build resilience.
- Promote the adoption of natured-based solutions within local governments
- Identify best methods to deploy tree canopy in urban heat island areas
- Share resources for urban agriculture work in partnership with community
Participant Outcomes
- Manage GIS maps and data collection methods to identify climate vulnerability communities
- Access toolkit materials to promote natured-based solutions
- Learn how to expand tree canopy with a focus on reducing urban heat
- Implement best practices for urban agriculture in partnership with local communities