Vaishnavi. T. G. Shankar is an urban development practitioner with 13 years of experience, primarily centered around climate change and cities. Her expertise spans policy outreach, capacity building, research, and program management with strong focus on urban climate governance, adaptation and disaster resilience, community resilience, and revitalization of heritage settlements and informal settlements. In her current role as a lead at the Climate Centre for Cities within the National Institute of Urban Affairs, Vaishnavi focuses on enhancing local capacities for implementing climate measures, fostering collaborative partnerships, and providing technical expertise for advocacy, as well as developing advisories, frameworks and tools. She leads the Urban Act project, an initiative for integrated urban climate action for low-carbon & resilient cities in South East Asia and has previously managed the development of flood resilience strategies for 5 Indian cities and climate assessments for 126 cities. Vaishnavi has prior experience working with Mahila Housing SEWA Trust, India Habitat Forum and the Centre for Conservation Studies, CEPT University. She is a Chevening Scholar and holds a Master's degree in 'Urbanization and Development' from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Bachelor degree in Architecture from the B.M.S College of Engineering, Bangalore.