Brooke M. Mercaldi

Brooke Mercaldi joined the Sabin Center in October 2026 as an Equitable Cities Climate Law Fellow. Her work focuses on the urban climate transition and legal tools local governments use to advance climate mitigation and adaptation. 

Brooke earned her J.D. with an Advanced Certificate in Environmental Law and her Master of Environmental Management through the joint degree program at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University and the Yale School of the Environment. While completing her law degree, Brooke was a Research & Writing Editor on the Pace Environmental Law Review, as well as a Land Use Scholar and Sustainable Business Law Hub Student Scholar. During her time at Yale University, Brooke served as a Research Assistant at the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy and was a Law, Environment & Animals Program Fellow at Yale Law School. She also participated in the Yale Environmental Protection Clinic where she spent several semesters researching climate change law and policy issues with various national environmental organizations.

Prior to the joint degree program, Brooke earned a B.S. in Environmental Systems and Sustainability Studies from Southern Connecticut State University, where she completed an Honors Thesis on the physical dynamics of the Connecticut shoreline and their implications for coastal zone management. Her work is published in the Journal of Coastal Research.

Before beginning her role as an Equitable Cities Climate Law Fellow, Brooke worked as an Environmental Law & Policy Consultant for the Natural Resources Defense Council and as a Staff Attorney at the Marine Affairs Institute & Rhode Island Sea Grant Legal Program.