Dr Sirat Mahmuda

Dr. Sirat Mahmuda is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the City Futures Research Centre (CFRC), bringing extensive experience in research, academia, and government affairs. She completed her PhD at the University of Queensland’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, where her research focused on spatial and temporal modelling of short-term accommodation rental dynamics in Australia and India.

With certifications in Climate Adaptation Finance, Sustainable Finance and ESG & Impact Investing from the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, Dr. Mahmuda applies advanced quantitative and spatial analysis techniques to social science research. Her expertise spans climate finance, environmental governance, and spatial planning.

Prior to joining CFRC, she served as Deputy Secretary at the Economic Relations Division, Government of Bangladesh, where she coordinated international climate finance initiatives and collaborated with partners including ADB, GIZ, UNDP, and UNEP. She led high-impact projects such as the “Improved Coordination of International Climate Finance in Bangladesh” and managed World Bank–funded research on trade and transport infrastructure.

At the Centre for Future Research and Cities (CFRC), Dr. Sirat Mahmuda is engaged in developing use cases for the Planning Support System (PSS) platform, including scenario-based tools such as What If?. She also works on the Rental Vulnerability Index (RVI), an evidence-based metric developed by CFRC to assess rental vulnerability across Australia. In addition, Dr. Mahmuda is contributing to the development of the Housing Policy BOT, an AI-driven platform designed to demonstrate how emerging technologies can support housing research and policy innovation.