Vera Feeny is a senior program specialist for the Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN) Initiative at the National League of Cities in Washington, DC. She supports city technical assistance initiatives aimed at creating local systems to connect children to nature more equitably. Within the CCCN team, she leads the early childhood nature play strategy. She previously worked on NLC's Early Childhood Success team and is excited at opportunities for how the built environment can support healthy development and early learning. Vera has interned for a children's book series, Gusto & Gecko, and in early childhood advocacy at Jumpstart. Before attending graduate school, she taught English in Spain for two years and worked in developmental psychology research at UNC-Chapel Hill. Prior to joining NLC, Vera received a master of education in education policy and management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She also holds a bachelor of arts in psychology and sociology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.