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NYCHA Now
July 2023 Sustainability 

NYCHA Representatives Participate in White House Summit on Climate, Sustainability 

Vincent Echavaria

NYCHA was recently represented at a White House summit addressing climate resilience and sustainability in affordable housing. The event was inspired by a visit earlier this year to the Recovery and Resilience project at Baruch Houses by White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory. 

Senior Vice President for Capital Programs Joy Sinderbrand and Deputy Director of Sustainability Programs Siobhan Watson visited the nation’s capital on July 11 to join Biden-Harris administration officials and housing industry representatives from across the country to discuss best practices for incorporating climate resilience and sustainability programs into affordable housing portfolios. The summit, convened by the White House Council on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, also focused on opportunities for leveraging federal funding for bolstering such efforts.  

Summit organizers noted that increasing extreme weather events due to climate change could continue to impact housing affordability and the sustainability of local economies and communities across the country. The convening was intended to explore opportunities to help reduce the risks posed by extreme heat, poor air quality, flooding, and other climate impacts to low-income Americans. 

Pointing to the regional effects from wildfire smoke in recent weeks and extreme heat during the summer, Ms. Sinderbrand said the summit came at a fitting time for leaders to propose solutions for advancing equity, climate resilience, and sustainability throughout the nation’s affordable housing portfolios.    

“The timing couldn’t have been better for some of the best in the field to gather to emphasize the administration’s commitment to this absolutely critical and time-sensitive topic,” Ms. Sinderbrand said. 

Photo caption: Senior Vice President for Capital Programs Joy Sinderbrand (right) and Deputy Director of Sustainability Programs Siobhan Watson at the White House summit on July 11.