Keynote: James Lopez

Fri. 10:30-11:15 a.m., Interlocken A/B

James Lopez
Senior Advisor to the Deputy Secretary
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

James Lopez will discuss HUD's proposed Sustainable Communities Initiative. This initiative's objective is to improve the coordination of transportation and housing investments in a way that would result in more regional and local sustainable development patterns, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and more transit-accessible housing choices. Lopez will focus his discussion on how sustainable communities are climate resilient communities.

About James Lopez

James Lopez is a senior advisor to the deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development focusing on sustainability policy. Before coming to HUD, he served as deputy chief of staff in the office of King County Executive Ron Sims in Seattle, Washington, where he led the global warming team.

As part of his work at King County, Lopez was a contributing author to Preparing for Climate Change: A Guidebook for Local, Regional and State Governments. Lopez received a law degree from Case Western Reserve University in 1992 and practiced law for nine years in Boston. In 2003, he received a master's in public administration from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.