Dr Shirin Malekpour is a social scientist with expertise in strategic planning and governance for sustainable development. Based at Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Monash University, Australia, Shirin’s research explores how transformative change towards sustainable development could be unlocked through long-term strategic planning and governance processes. She has been Chief Investigator in multiple transdisciplinary action research programs, focusing on transformative adaptation, futures thinking, scenario planning, and collaborative governance under conditions of deep uncertainty.
In 2020, Shirin was appointed by the UN Secretary-General as one of the 15 members of the Independent Group of Scientists who will shape the next Global Sustainable Development Report. In 2018, she was recognised as one of the top 25 young scientists in the world in the field of sustainable development and received the international Green Talents award. Shirin has an interdisciplinary background and has previously worked as an engineer in large water and wastewater infrastructure projects in Africa and the Middle East.