Daniela (Dani) is the Chief of Operations for WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities in the global team in Washington, DC. She leads WRI Ross Center's operational strategy and implementation, is a member of its Executive Team and is a core advisor to its Global Director. Dani provides guidance to country offices in Africa, Brazil, China, Colombia, Europe, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Türkiye, facilitating peer learning, leading development of operational policies, and ensuring effective collaboration and coordination. Dani brings experiences and knowledge which bridge technical and operational, and global and local from her former role as operations and project director in Brazil for 10 years. 

Prior to joining WRI in 2006, Dani has worked for two years in Germany and Brazil with the European Community’s projects to disseminate urban mobility practices. Dani has also done research and published papers related to sustainable mobility. 

She is a Civil Engineer and holds a M.Sc. in Transportation from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.