Amanda Burden is the principal of urban planning at Bloomberg Associates. Prior to this, she was the New York City planning commissioner and spearheaded rezoning plans for 124 neighborhoods, initiated housing opportunities throughout the five boroughs, and emphasized community consensus building to improve the streetscape, reclaim the waterfront, and create dynamic public spaces including the East River Esplanade and the High Line. Previously, she launched the Midtown Community Court in Times Square, a model of community-based justice. Earlier in her career, Burden was vice president for planning and design at the Battery Park City Authority, where she developed design guidelines for buildings and supervised the design of the Esplanade and 30 acres of parkland. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners College of Fellows and the Council on Foreign Relations.