Melissa Gómez

Melissa Gómez is a sustainable mobility and urban innovation specialist with around fifteen years of professional experience spanning research, public policy and practice in Europe and Latin America. She currently works as Transport Policy Officer at ADFC, the German Cyclists' Association, the largest cycling organisation in Germany, based in Berlin. From that position she works on national transport policy, advocacy and the regulatory conditions that allow cities to build safer streets, including the campaign that made it legally easier for German local authorities to introduce 30 km/h speed limits.

Her academic background combines political science and urbanism. She holds a degree in Political Science from Universidad Complutense de Madrid, a master's degree in urban planning from Universitat de Barcelona and a further master's degree in urbanism from the Institut d'Urbanisme de Paris. That combination shapes the way she works, treating mobility not only as a technical or infrastructural question but as a matter of governance, participation and political decision making.

Before joining ADFC she worked as an independent consultant in sustainable mobility and urban innovation, advising on research, urban planning, safe walking and cycling, governance and citizen participation. She has also worked with Citymart, the open innovation platform for city governments, and with the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment. Her professional experience covers Germany, Spain, England, Italy and Colombia.

A recurring theme in her work is inclusive cycling infrastructure designed for all ages and abilities, from young children to older people and people with disabilities. She has shared that approach as a guest in the MobiliseYourCity Expert Voices series and as a speaker and moderator at Velo-city, the world cycling summit of the European Cyclists' Federation. She is committed to acting as a knowledge bridge between European and Latin American practice in sustainable urban mobility.