Sharon is responsible for the UN Environment Programme’s work on urban circular economy. She is involved with developing practical tools, conducting research, and bringing solutions to implement urban metabolism, systems thinking, and circular economy approaches in cities in developing countries. An urban planner by profession, she also coordinates partnerships and joint resource mobilization on sustainable urbanization for UNEP.
Sharon’s career in sustainable urban development started in the early 2000s and has included several topics and spanned many cities and countries around the world. She has worked on eco-industrial development in the Philippines; urban renewal and design in Hong Kong; disaster risk reduction in the Asia-Pacific region; and land management in Zambia. Sharon has a Master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University and studied urban planning at the University of Hong Kong as a Japan/ADB fellow.