Priya Mulgaonkar

Priya Mulgaonkar is an organizer, policy strategist and researcher working at the intersection of environmental justice and community-led planning. She co-teaches Sustainable Communities for Pratt’s Sustainable Environmental Systems (SES) program. She currently works as Assistant Director of Policy & Research at the Green New Deal Network (GNDN), where she leads federal and state-level policy research, develops policy frameworks rooted in justice and equity, and drives alignment across a diverse coalition of grassroots organizations, labor groups, and climate advocates.

Priya brings deep expertise in participatory planning and community capacity building for equitable climate adaptation. She previously worked at the NYC Environmental Justice Alliance and Hester Street, where she partnered with frontline communities to advance local climate resilience plans, statewide climate goals, and equitable policies around energy, waste and land use.

She holds a Master of Urban Planning from Hunter College and a B.A. in Environmental Studies and Sociology from NYU. Her work has been recognized by GreenBiz’s “30 Under 30” and the Emerging Leader in Environmental Health & Justice Award from Clean and Healthy NY. She also served 8 years on the board of BK ROT, a youth-powered food waste hauling and composting cooperative in Brooklyn.

Priya is passionate about building collective power to advance urban sustainability, shifting public resources toward community resilience, and challenging extractive systems in pursuit of a just future.

Master of Urban Planning | Hunter College | New York, NY | MAY 2021
B.A. Environmental Studies & Sociology | New York University | New York, NY | MAY 2015

Publications & Reports

• Flex Funding for Green Transit: How Democratic Governors can fight back against Trump and champion sustainable transportation – Green New Deal Network | 2025. Research team lead, design and layout. 
• Guide: How Cities Can Use Federal Direct Pay Funds for Progressive Priorities – Green New Deal Network | 2024. Research team lead, design and layout. 
• Report: How States can Flex Federal Funding from Highways to Green Transit – Green New Deal Network | 2024. Research team lead, design and layout. 
• Inflation Reduction Act: Campaign Opportunities for State Organizers – Green New Deal Network | February 2023. Researcher and Co-Author.
• Choose Healthy Life: Capacity-Building for Health Equity in the COVID-19 Pandemic – Hester Street | February 2022. Team lead and co-author. 
• Cooperative Works: Equitable Business Development Strategies for the Retrofit Market – Forefront Fellowship, Urban Design Forum | February 2021. Co-author. 
• A Critical Decade for Climate, Equity & Health – NYC Climate Justice Agenda | April 2020. Co-author, editing, & design layout. 
• Environmental Justice & Trees Fact Sheet – Just Nature NYC Partnership |  March 2020. Co-author, spatial analysis, editing.
• Justicia Climática: How the NY Climate & Community Protection Act will Increase Resiliency for New York’s Latinx Communities – Demos | April 2019 by Lew Daly, Demos, & Priya Mulgaonkar, NYC Environmental Justice Alliance. Co-author, research & spatial analysis. 
• Midway to 2030: Building Resiliency & Equity for a Just Transition – NYC Climate Justice Agenda | NYC Environmental Justice Alliance | April 2018. Co-author, spatial analysis, editing & layout design
• Clearing the Air: How Reforming the Commercial Waste Sector Can Address Air Quality Issues in Environmental Justice Communities – Transform Don’t Trash NYC | September 2016. Lead author.
• A Just Transition for New York: Achieving Clean & Renewable Energy Equity for Environmental Justice Communities – Environmental Law in New York | January 2019 by Eddie Bautista, Annel Hernandez, Priya Mulgaonkar, & Kartik Amarnath
• Trash Tales: Lessons from the Fight for Waste Equity in NYC – Strategies for Health Justice: Lessons from the Field | Poverty & Race Research Action Council | November 2018 by Melissa Iachan, New York Lawyers for the Public interest (NYLPI) & Priya Mulgaonkar, NYC Environmental Justice Alliance
  

Select Press Features & Media

• Print interview. “‘A threat multiplier’: The hidden factors contributing to New York City’s coronavirus disparities.” April 21, 2020. Grist.
• Print Interview. “Heat Waves Kill More People than Any Other Weather Disaster. These Cities have a Plan.” December 1st, 2020. Huffington Post. 
• Radio Interview. “Indivisible 101: NY Renews.” February 2nd, 2020. WBAI.
• Op-Ed: New York’s Ambitious Climate Law Hangs in the Balance.  December 20th, 2019. Gotham Gazette. 
• Quote. City Comptroller Scott Stringer calls on de Blasio to commit $1 billion per year to energy efficiency. January 23rd, 2020. New York Daily News.
• Radio Interview. “New York’s Aggressive Battle Against Climate Change.” June 21st, 2019. NPR. 
• Print Interview. “New York State Is About to Pass Its Own Green New Deal.” June 18th, 2019. Vice News.
  

Speaking Engagements

• Virtual Town Hall on Climate, Resilience, and COVID-19 with The Waterfront Alliance – May 29th, 2020
• Green New Deal Public Assembly – November 17, 2019
• NY Renews: A Just Transition for New York State – April 23, 2019 – Artists for a Green New Deal: Explaining Policy, Exploring Poetic, US Department of Arts & Culture