Nikita Madan

Senior Environment Specialist, Water & Environment Vertical, Climate Centre for Cities (C-CUBE)

Position:

Senior Environment Specialist, Water & Environment Vertical, Climate Centre for Cities (C-CUBE)

Organization:

National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA)

Languages Spoken:

English, Hindi

Location:

Delhi, India

Personal Experience

Nikita is an Environmental Planner from the School of Planning & Architecture, New Delhi. With almost a decade of experience of working with government organizations, international institutions, academic setups and NGOs in the urban environment sector, her areas of expertise include water-sensitive planning and design, urban river management, integrated urban water management, management of urban ecosystems, climate change mitigation & adaptation, and revival of water bodies.

At NIUA, she has spearheaded multifaceted initiatives in the field of urban environment management. She has been involved in developing strategic frameworks, preparing guidelines, developing digital tools, piloting innovative technologies, and building capacities of individuals, on multiple aspects of sustainable urban development and environmental resilience. Notable contributions include the strategic framework for ‘Making River-Sensitive Master Plans’, the ‘Urban River Management Plan’ framework, the ‘Urban Water Body Diagnostic Tool’, and the ‘draft Master Plan for Delhi-2041’.

In addition to these, she is leading the preparation of an integrated database towards adoption of Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) in Indian cities, and establishing water-sensitive resilient communities in Delhi under the AIWASI initiative. She is also involved in preparing an advisory on Climate Finance. She is playing a pivotal role in developing a guideline for estimating the economic value of urban ecosystems in India, and identifying nature-based solutions for water related challenges in a city.

She has been extensively involved in knowledge sharing and capacity building related to the water and environment sector, and is the author for a number of publications in this subject.

Prior to joining NIUA, Nikita was working with the Landscape & Environmental Planning Department at the Delhi Development Authority, where she was engaged with the preparation of a revitalization plan for Yamuna floodplains, up-gradation of biodiversity parks in Delhi, and management of urban greens.

Area of Expertise

Urban policies, guidelines, frameworks
Urban environment and water-sensitive planning
Urban river management
Integrated urban water management
Ecosystem based adaptation
Ecosystem services and valuation
Nature based solutions

Qualifications

Masters in Environmental Planning, 2014, School of Planning & Architecture, Delhi Bachelors in Planning, 2012, School of Planning & Architecture, Delhi (gold medallist)