Salem Afeworki is a seasoned sustainability leader and a global citizen who is passionate about making a positive impact locally and globally. Salem is the first Energy and Sustainability Manager for the City of Costa Mesa and is responsible for developing and implementing sustainability programs citywide. Before joining the City, she founded Value Sustainability, a boutique consultancy that specializes in climate change and community engagement services based in Southern California. Salem has worked in multidisciplinary settings for global organizations such as the United Nations, KPMG and Jacobs Engineering in 4 continents – allowing her to cultivate inclusive and diverse thinking, interactions and attributes. She was named 40 under 40 in Energy Transition in 2020, North America Ambassador by One Young World (OYW) in 2019 and Citizen E by Citizene.org/ United Nations Habitat for Humanity Los Angeles in 2018 among other awards. Salem holds a Bachelor of Art in Communication and Political Science from the University of Asmara, and a Masters of Science Degree in Environmental Management and Auditing from the Universidad de Leon, Spain. She has also completed several executive leadership programs at MIT, UC Berkeley and the University of Southern California.