Adaptive Land Lab

Lauren Oertel is a Master of Regional Planning student at Cornell University. Before her graduate studies, she was an associate planner for an interdisciplinary urban planning and design firm in Denver, Colorado. During her bachelor's study, Lauren's research focused on advocacy planning for informal settlements that face climate injustices in southern Texas' Rio Grande Valley. Her thesis research focused on the design of gender- and ethically-inclusive public spaces. She is pursuing a career that uses advocacy and education as tools for the planning and design of underrepresented communities faced with climate insecurities. 

In the Adaptive Land Lab, she supports the NOAA NEST project, conducting research on the impacts of demographic change on Northeastern U.S. communities and how to plan more equitably for future climate migration.