Penn IUR Announces the 2024 Lawrence C. Nussdorf Urban Leadership Prize Winners

The Penn Institute for Urban Research (Penn IUR) is proud to announce the recipients of the 2024 Lawrence C. Nussdorf Urban Leadership Prize, which recognizes leaders who are guiding cities toward a sustainable and equitable future. This year, three pathbreaking urban leaders from around the globe will be honored. The 2024 awardees are Jaime Alberto Pumarejo Heins, former Mayor, City of Barranquilla, Colombia; Andrew Melnik, International Projects Manager, City of Bucha, Region of Kyiv, Ukraine; and Lauren Sorkin, Executive Director, Resilient Cities Network. 

Penn IUR will honor the work of these exceptional leaders on April 5, 2024 at its 19th annual Urban Leadership Forum, entitled "Innovating for Urban Resilience.” For more information, contact ardenj@upenn.edu.

About the Awardees

Jaime Alberto Pumarejo Heins served as mayor of Barranquilla, Colombia, from 2019 to 2023. Pumarejo established Barranquilla as a model for sustainable and inclusive urban development, including reclaiming a degraded and forgotten mangrove forest, re-greening the city, implementing solar and wind powered infrastructure, and fostering international collaborations for ambitious green infrastructure projects. Previously, Pumarejo served as City Manager of Barranquilla, Secretary of Economic Development of the Government of Atlántico, and Minister of Housing of Colombia. He is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Commission on Nature-Positive Cities, the Advisory Board of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, and the Global Commission for Urban SDG Finance. He was recently awarded WRI´s prestigious Ross Center Prize for Cities.

Andrew Melnik is a business developer, management consultant, and social entrepreneur with a focus on sustainability and preservation. For the last two years, he has dedicated his efforts to Ukraine's post-war reconstruction, urban development, and energy efficiency projects. He has represented Ukraine and the City of Bucha, a municipality in the Kyiv region, at many international forums to attract funding for Ukrainian municipalities, cooperating with the world's leading consulting and architectural companies, NGOs, and funds. Melnik has worked for more than 20 years in investment banking and management consulting on projects ranging from startup development to project management.

Lauren Sorkin is the Executive Director for the Resilient Cities Network where she oversees global efforts to strengthen cities in the face of the complex and interconnected challenges. Leading a team of urban resilience professionals in London, Mexico City, New York, and Singapore in collaboration with Chief Resilience Officers in 40 countries, her work builds on the unique capacity, breadth, and legacy of the 100 Resilient Cities Program to enhance the resilience of communities and critical infrastructure. She also serves as an advisor and spokesperson on urban resilience, sustainable finance, climate risk, stakeholder engagement, and urbanization trends. Previously with the Asian Development Bank, Sorkin led the Bank’s first ever climate change investment plan before moving to the ADB’s Vietnam Office to mainstream climate risks and opportunities in the country’s $7 billion portfolio.

About the Lawrence C. Nussdorf Urban Leadership Prize

Penn IUR recognizes leaders in urban affairs through its Lawrence C. Nussdorf Urban Leadership Prize. Past recipients include (titles and affiliations current at time of award):

• Steve Adler, Former Mayor of Austin (2023)
• Manuel A. Alculete Lopes de Araújo, Mayor, Municipality of Quelimane, Mozambique (2023)
• Eleni (Lenio) Myrivili, Global Chief Heat Officer, UN Habitat & Arsht-Rock, and Chief Heat Officer, Athens, Greece (2023)
• Sheela Patel, Founding Director, Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centres (2023)
• Claudio Orrego, Governor of the Santiago Metropolitan Region in Chile (2022)
• Emilia Saiz Carrancedo, Secretary General of UCLG (2022)
• Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, Mayor of Freetown, Sierra Leone (2021)
• Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol, England (2021)
• Inga Saffron, Journalist and Architecture Critic, Philadelphia Inquirer (2020)
• Egbert Perry, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Integral, LLC (2019)
• Mauricio Rodas, Mayor, Quito, Ecuador (2019)
• Elizabeth Julian, Founder and Senior Counsel, Inclusive Communities Project; former Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (2018)
• Rose Molokoane, Coordinator, South African Federation of the Urban Poor (FEDUP); Deputy President and Management Committee; Member, Shack/Slum Dwellers International (SDI); Co-Chair, UN-Habitat World Urban Campaign (WUC) (2017)
• Victor Santiago Pineda, President, World ENABLED; Adjunct Professor, Department of City and Regional Planning, University of California-Berkeley (2017)
• Angela Glover Blackwell, President & CEO, PolicyLink (2016)
• Jeremy Nowak, President, J Nowak and Associates (2016)
• Michael A. Nutter, Mayor, City of Philadelphia (2015)
• Renée Lewis Glover, Chair, Board of Directors, Habitat for Humanity International; former President and CEO, Atlanta Housing Authority (2015)
• Sister Mary Scullion and Joan Dawson McConnon, Co-Founders, Project HOME (2014)
• Martin O’Malley, Governor of Maryland (2014)
• Joan Clos, Executive Director, United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-HABITAT) (2013)
• Yael Lehmann, Executive Director, The Food Trust (2013), Founder and Principal, Urbane Indonesia (2013)
• Derek R.B. Douglas, Vice President for Civic Engagement, University of Chicago and former Special Assistant to President Barack Obama, White House Domestic Policy Council (2012)
• Paul Levy, President and CEO, Philadelphia’s Center City District (2012)
• Lily Yeh, Global Artist and Founder, Barefoot Artists (2012)
• Raphael Bostic, Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (2011)
• Henry Cisneros, Executive Chairman, CityView, and former Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (2011)
• Jane Golden, Executive Director, City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program (2011)
• John Timoney, former Miami Chief of Police and author, Beat Cop to Top Cop: A Tale of Three Cities (2011)
• William Hudnut III, Senior Fellow Emeritus, Urban Land Institute; former Mayor, Indianapolis, Indiana (2010)
• Shirley Franklin, Mayor, City of Atlanta, Georgia (2009)
• Parris Glendening, President, Smart Growth Leadership Institute; former Governor, Maryland (2009)
• Bruce Katz, Vice President and Founding Director of the Metropolitan Policy Program, The Brookings Institution (2009)
• Edward J. Blakely, Executive Director, Mayor’s Office of Recovery and Development Administration, City of New Orleans (2008)
• M. Susan Savage, Secretary of State, Oklahoma (2008)
• Donna E. Shalala, President, University of Miami; former Secretary, US Department of Health and Human Services (2008)
• Joseph P. Riley, Jr., Mayor, City of Charleston, South Carolina (2007)
• James Lee Witt, Chairman and CEO, James Lee Witt Associates, a Part of GlobalOptions Group (2006), Mayor, City of Gulfport, Mississippi (2006)
• Loree D. Jones, Secretary of External Affairs, Office of the Mayor, Philadelphia (2006)
• Manuel A. Diaz, Mayor, City of Miami (2005)
• Stephen Goldsmith, Former Mayor, City of Indianapolis (2005)
• Marc H. Morial, Former Mayor, City of New Orleans (2005)
• John F. Street, Mayor, City of Philadelphia (2005)