Maria Vassilakou is an experienced, inspiring urban leader devoted to open, inclusive and green cities. She served as vice mayor in Vienna and was responsible for Urban Planning, Traffic and Transport, Climate Protection, Energy and Public Participation from November 2010 to July 2019. Vassilakou envisages cities as open, green, affordable, family-friendly and diverse places for life. In her nine years serving as vice mayor, she successfully implemented a vast transformation agenda comprising numerous innovative projects, contributing substantially to Vienna’s number one position in all major international liveability rankings within the last decade. Maria Vassilakou now works worldwide as an independent advisor on urban transformation. After leaving office, she founded Vienna Solutions—a network of experienced Viennese urban experts and practitioners, with whom she cooperates building flexible teams to deliver complex urban projects.