Research Institute for
Sustainability | at GFZ

Joanna Gubman

Visiting Researcher

E-Mail

joanna [dot] gubman [at] rifs-potsdam [dot] de

Joanna Gubman’s project focuses on a comparison of constitutional frameworks in Germany and California, particularly amendment procedures, approaches to direct democracy, and the flexibility of governance systems.

The project is motivated by the observation that many sustainability challenges in California – including housing reform, transportation funding, and climate policy – are constrained by financial or political barriers that ultimately stem from institutional structures embedded in the state constitution.

During her stay at RIFS, Mx. Gubman will conduct interviews with scholars and practitioners working on constitutional law, democratic innovation, and social movement strategy. The goal is to identify key institutional contrasts between Germany and California and to explore how constitutional flexibility can support effective governance and sustainability transformation.

Groups

  • Co-Founder, The Good Government Project (2026)
  • Vice President, Board of Directors, California Walks (2025–present)
  • Executive Committee Member, Sierra Club San Francisco Group and San Francisco Bay Chapter (2024–present)
  • Board Member, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition / SFBC Education Fund (2021–2026)
  • Executive Director, Urban Environmentalists / Environmental Director, YIMBY Action (2021–2024)
  • Administrative Law Judge II, California Public Utilities Commission (2020–2021)
  • Advisor to Commissioners, California Public Utilities Commission (2015–2019)
  • Supervisor & Senior Analyst, California Public Utilities Commission (2013–2015)
  • Managing Consultant, Navigant (now Guidehouse) (2007–2011)
  • German Chancellor Fellow, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation – research fellowships in Germany (2011–2012 at the German Solar Association, 2016 at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, 2019 at Agora Verkehrswende, and 2026 at RIFS)
  • M.S. Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University
  • B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University

  • Democratic institutions and governance
  • Sustainability policy and state capacity
  • Constitutional design and institutional reform
  • Urban policy and sustainable mobility
  • Energy and climate policy