From Brownfields to Boomtowns: How an EPA Urban Planner Helped Drive Economic Recovery and Environmental Protection

What do brownfield sites, zoning codes, school siting rules, and post-disaster rebuilding have in common? 

According to Dr. Matthew Dalbey, former senior advisor to the Environmental Protection Agency and founder of Corner Shop Strategies, they’re all issues he had to confront to help protect the environment and inspire economic growth in communities across the country as land use decisions shape public health, economic opportunity, and long-term risk.

In this episode, Dalbey unpacks 20 years at the EPA. He talks about EPA’s “Smart Growth” work: helping communities redevelop underused sites, modernize zoning barriers, and design safer, more walkable places. 

Our conversation also explores how interagency collaboration works in practice, including EPA–FEMA partnerships after recurring floods and storms—where “build back” can unintentionally rebuild vulnerability unless local planning aligns with mitigation. 

Finally, Dalby offers an insider view of how shifting federal priorities across administrations can change what’s possible, and why certain climate-finance implementation choices created major operational challenges inside government.

This podcast is produced as a time capsule for America's 250th anniversary, preserving the stories and contributions of those who have helped build our Republic.

• Host: Dipka Hesse 

• X: @DBHesse

• LinkedIn: ⁠linkedin.com/dipkabhambhani⁠

• YouTube: @theenergyodyssey 

Thank you to our great team who helped make this inaugural episode possible. A special thanks to David Padrusch and Mathew John for their support, without which this wouldn’t be possible.

• Executive Producer: Richard Taliaferro (richard@richardtaliaferro.com)

• Graphic Artist: David Zerba (zerba.david@gmail.com)

• Editor: Axel Soderland (axelfromdc@gmail.com )

#Brownfields #SmartGrowth #EPA #FEMA #DisasterRecovery #ClimateResilience #LandUsePlanning #ZoningReform #CommunityDevelopment #PublicHealth #EconomicDevelopment #InfrastructurePlanning #FederalPolicy #InteragencyCollaboration