Ariana Karamallis is a development professional with 15 years of experience across the Global South, focusing on urban informality, affordable housing, climate resilience, and equity. She specializes in global advocacy and strategic partnerships with people at the center—connecting local community priorities to global agendas to drive transformative change for the most vulnerable.
At Build Change, Karamallis has advanced commitments to resilient housing in key policy arenas, including United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) initiatives, UN-Habitat, and more. Previously, she led global advocacy and climate resilience at Slum Dwellers International, a network of urban poor communities driving bottom-up change for inclusive, resilient cities.
Driven by a passion for building just, equitable, and resilient communities through community-driven approaches, Karamallis is deeply committed to addressing urban informality and advancing equity and justice in cities. She believes that transformative change will only happen by shifting power to those most vulnerable—placing resources and agency in their hands.
Karamallis holds a Master of Urban Planning from NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service and a BA in Anthropology and African Studies from Smith College. Originally from the New York area, she has lived in Cape Town, South Africa, with her husband and two daughters since 2011.