Senior Advisor
Laura A. Schifter, EdD, is a senior fellow with the Aspen Institute where she founded and directs This Is Planet Ed, an initiative to unlock the power of education as a force for climate solutions to empower the rising generation to lead a sustainable and resilient future. In 2025, Schifter co-authored Students, Schools, and Our Climate Moment: Acting Now to Secure Our Future to provide a framework for climate action in schools and share inspiring stories from parents, educators, and leaders nationwide. Her expertise is widely recognized, with publications in TIME, CNN, The Hechinger Report, and Education Week, and features in national media including The Washington Post, USA Today, and NPR.
Previously, Schifter served as a Lecturer on Education at Harvard Graduate School of Education (2014-2024), teaching courses on education, climate, and policy. She has worked as a policy and research consultant with clients including the Massachusetts Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice. She also served as a senior education and disability advisor for Rep. George Miller (D-CA) on the Committee on Education and Labor and an education fellow for Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. Her early career included teaching elementary school in San Francisco and co-authoring How Did You Get Here? Students with Disabilities and Their Journeys to Harvard. Schifter earned her Ed.D. and Ed.M. from Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.A. from Amherst College. After years working in special education policy, in 2019, she shifted her career to focus on the intersection of education and climate change.
