Amy Jones

Amy holds a Master’s degree in Global Urban Development and Planning from the University of Manchester, where she also completed a BA in Geography with International Study. As part of her undergraduate studies, she spent a year in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Hong Kong.

Prior to joining LSE, Amy spent four years working for ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability’s World Secretariat in the Urban Research, Innovation, and Development Team. In her role at ICLEI, Amy supported the implementation and operationalisation of ICLEI’s Global Research & Innovation Strategy, strengthening the organisation’s role at the interface of research, policy, and practice. She contributed to several international research and innovation projects addressing diverse themes, chief among them UrbanShift, led by UNEP and funded by GEF. Through this project, Amy applied the Integrated Sustainable Urban Development Assessment (ISUDA) to analyse 23 cities’ sustainability commitments and developed analysis reports and knowledge products to help cities shape more ambitious and actionable climate strategies. Alongside project implementation, Amy has also co-authored policy briefs, peer reviewed papers, and implementation guidebooks on various topics including urban digital transformation, resilient smart cities, city level models, and innovation in the food-water-energy nexus. In her role at ICLEI, Amy also contributed to the design of research and innovation–oriented events, the development of new project proposals, and represented ICLEI at global events such as UNFCCC COP.

Before joining ICLEI, Amy was a Research Assistant at Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) Brazil, where she gained valuable experience working at the intersection of academic research and applied urban policy.

Amy’s research interests lie in the integration of innovative finance and digital transformation in cities to support climate action. She is particularly interested in how urban governance systems can harness new financial tools and emerging technologies to accelerate climate resilient development. Amy's research is co-supervised by LSE Cities.

Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, UN-Habitat & University of Melbourne (2025) The Cities and Local Governments Brief from Accelerating Next-Generation City Climate Action: Findings from the 2024 Innovate4Cities Conference & Update to the Global Research and Action Agenda on Cities and Climate Change Science (GRAA). (co-author)

Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, UN-Habitat & University of Melbourne (2024) Accelerating Next-Generation City Climate Action: Findings from the 2024 Innovate4Cities Conference and Update to the Global Research and Action Agenda on Cities and Climate Change Science. (co-author)

ICLEI, (2023). Digitalization: A Game Changer for Local Governments & Communities. (co-author)

Macedo, L.S.V., de Oliveira, J.A.P., Bellezoni, R., Salehi, P., Currie, P., Jones, A. (2022). Innovating in Urban Green and Blue Infrastructure to Improve the Food-Water-Energy Nexus: An Implementation Guide for Cities and Subnational Governments.

Jackson, E., Jones, A., Salehi, P. (2022). Advancing Community Resilience Through Smart Approaches: A Resource for Canadian Communities. In: Sharifi, A., Salehi, P. (eds) Resilient Smart Cities. The Urban Book Series. Springer, Cham.

Kamtam, P., Salehi, P., Jones, A., Asadzadeh, A. (2022). The Role of Smart Cities in Building the Resilience of Vulnerable Communities: Three Case Studies from Europe, Asia, and Africa. In: Sharifi, A., Salehi, P. (eds) Resilient Smart Cities. The Urban Book Series. Springer, Cham.

Gerdes, A., Jones, A., Salehi, P. (2021). Sustainable Building and Living, Focus on Plastics. International Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Centre (ISC3).