Mirit Friedman is a doctoral student in the Urban and Regional Planning program, studying environmental planning, climate change adaptation, and integrated land and water management. Mirit’s dissertation research focuses on integrated land and water management through the lens of dam management. Her extensive background in environmental sciences and urban planning guides her research, where she employs a mixed-methods approach to examine the mechanisms and challenges behind local government management of their owned dams. This scope of research extends to the exploration of the potential risks and vulnerabilities associated with such dams. Her unique perspective allows her to view and address the pressing water challenges of today through an interdisciplinary lens. The novelty and urgency of her work has helped Mirit receive funding awards, including a National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant and the Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship, among others.
Over the years, Mirit has had the privilege of collaborating with faculty members across the university on issues related to municipal drinking water provisioning and the renewable energy transition. Moreover, she is proud to apply her expertise in a pedagogical context, having developed and currently teaching a class titled “Water you going to do about it? Planning and urban water conflicts”, as part of the Sweetland Writing Fellows program. This course offers students a deep dive into various urban water issues such as sea level rise, flooding, contamination, and drought, through a climate justice lens. In addition to her passion for teaching, Mirit has served as a student leader for the Michigan Urban Planning Doctoral student group (UPDoc), and the Planning Accreditation Board task force on creating innovation in curriculum.
Building on her undergraduate degree in Environmental Sciences from UC Berkeley (2015) and her time working on partnerships and volunteer programs for the National Park Service at the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Mirit came to urban planning to better understand and mediate the urban-environmental interface in the age of climate change. In 2019, Mirit received her Master’s degree from Georgia Institute of Technology in City and Regional Planning, continuing to focus on environmental planning. During her time at Georgia Tech, she worked for the Atlanta Regional Commission, co-developed and co-instructed the Sustainable Cities Studio for undergraduates, and was the Vice President for the Student Planning Association.