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Derrick Seegars’ Blueprint for a Sustainable Future

The urban planning graduate student is crafting climate policy that brings sustainability and equity to New York City
News Staff | Thu, Apr 10, 2025

Growing up in Mount Vernon, New York, just outside of the city, Derrick Seegars had a view that captivated him: a direct line to the towering skyline of Manhattan. From the fourth-floor window of his family’s apartment, he would stare, filled with awe, at the famous skyscrapers in the distance. 

But it was a single childhood trip to the Empire State Building that cemented his fascination. He recalls standing at the top, pressing his hands against the glass and gazing down at the streets below. “I was wondering, ‘How does all of this work?’” says Seegars. That moment stuck with him, sparking a lifelong passion for architecture and design.

Eventually, his passion led him to pursue a master’s degree in urban and environmental policy and planning at Tufts, where he is now completing a thesis focused on a critical challenge: how to create a comprehensive, enforceable sustainability policy for New York City—one that balances climate mitigation with practical implementation and prioritizes the needs of underserved communities.

His path to urban planning wasn’t linear. After high school, Seegars spent several years working in finance and media, gaining a broad view of how systems function—but also realizing he wasn’t doing the kind of work that fulfilled him. He turned back to his first love, earning an undergraduate degree in architecture and later expanding his focus to urban planning, sustainability, and the power of policy to promote social equity. 

Now Seegars is working to embed green design, climate resilience, and justice into urban planning and policy. Policy is a means to an end, he says, a way to translate ambitious climate goals into tangible outcomes for vulnerable communities. “Sustainability can’t just be for luxury buildings and wealthy neighborhoods,” as he puts it. “It has to reach the people who need it most.” 

That conviction is what drives his work—and what he hopes will shape the cities of the future.

What led you to focus your thesis on New York City’s climate policy?

New York already has strong sustainability efforts, but they’re scattered. My thesis is about pulling those pieces together, creating a policy framework that weaves climate mitigation, green building standards, and enforcement into something unified and actionable. It’s about making ambitious ideas work in practice. And it's personal: New York is my home. So it feels like there’s a lot at stake.

What was the moment that you knew this was the field for you?

My summer with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration was pivotal. I lived in Guam doing hurricane and climate research, and I saw firsthand how people’s lives worldwide are shaped by rising sea levels and extreme weather. That experience made it clear to me that urban resilience isn’t optional—it’s urgent. 

How did your interest in equity and environmental justice grow from there?

It solidified when I started connecting the dots between climate impacts and vulnerable communities. I’ve always cared about helping people, but learning about how infrastructure failures—like flooding, pollution, or poor building performance—hit low-income and marginalized communities hardest pushed me further into this space. That’s when I realized I wanted to focus not just on design, but on the policies that shape people’s everyday lives. The people most affected by climate change are often the least equipped to respond. That imbalance demands action.

Where do skyscrapers fit into your thinking now?

I still love them. My goal is to visit the world’s ten tallest; that’s hard because it keeps changing as taller and taller ones get built! 

As much as I love them, I recognize that they’re some of the least sustainable structures we build. They use huge amounts of energy. I’m excited by new approaches: wind turbines, solar integration … and fully electric buildings like the new JPMorgan Chase tower in Manhattan. There’s room for innovation, but it has to go hand-in-hand with equity.

What other urban challenges are you thinking about?

There’s so much overlap: transportation, stormwater management, housing policy. Cities need to manage all of it in a way that prepares for climate change. Right now, I’m working with the city of Medford [Massachusetts], helping implement local policies that prioritize resilience. We can’t wait for the federal government to lead. Cities have to act. That’s also why collaboration between municipalities is so important—what works in Medford can inform what’s possible in places like New York or Miami.

What’s next for you?

I’m applying for roles in planning, sustainability, and equity-focused policy work. Long term, I want to help shape the future of cities; they should be places that work not just for some, but for everyone. I’d love to be part of efforts that center climate resilience in affordable housing or bring green infrastructure into historically excluded neighborhoods.

And I’m still chasing those skyscrapers. I’ve been to the Petronas Towers, Shanghai Tower, and several across the U.S. Dubai is next on my list. I’ll always love the engineering and ambition they represent—but now, I also think about how we can build them smarter, greener, and for the benefit of more people.