NYU-RICS Americas Conference: Innovation and Sustainable Real Estate

Zachary Aarons

Co-Founder & General Partner, MetaProp

Zach Aarons is a pioneering PropTech investor and Co-Founder & General Partner at MetaProp, where he has spent over a decade investing at the intersection of real estate and technology. Prior to founding MetaProp in 2015, he was one of the most active angel investors in the category, backing more than 50 early-stage companies. Since inception, MetaProp has invested in over 175 PropTech companies globally, with a mission to make real estate more affordable, accessible, sustainable, and resilient. Earlier in his career, Zach held roles at Millennium Partners, ENIAC Ventures, and Solomon Partners, and founded the tourism company Travelgoat. He is an Assistant Adjunct Professor at Columbia GSAPP and serves on multiple industry and investment committees, including the Real Estate Board of New York and Van Wickle Ventures. Zach is co-author of the Amazon bestselling book PropTech 101 and a frequent speaker at leading global industry events. He has been featured in major publications including The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, TechCrunch, and Forbes, and has been recognized in Business Insider’s Seed 100 as one of the top seed investors in the United States.

Philip Krim

Co-Founder & CEO, Montauk Capital

Andrew Min

Head of RXR Labs, RXR

Andrew Min leads digital initiatives at RXR. His responsibilities involve investing in and managing various proptech investment strategies, portfolio companies, and JVs, as well as leading RXR's in-house software development team. RXR is a vertically-integrated real estate investor with over $20 billion gross asset value under management across office, residential, industrial, and infrastructure assets. Andrew also works on a number of corporate and investment strategy initiatives, including new market identification, macroeconomic research, organizational design, investment processes, and RXR's annual strategy white paper. As part of his portfolio, Andrew also serves as co-CEO of View. View is the leader in smart building technologies that transform buildings to improve human health and experience, reduce energy consumption, and generate additional revenue for building owners. View Smart Windows automatically adjust in response to the sun, eliminating the need for blinds and increasing access to natural light. View Smart Windows are installed and designed into 50 million square feet of buildings including offices, hospitals, airports, educational facilities, hotels, and multifamily residences. View was formerly traded on the Nasdaq via a $1.6 billion SPAC merger. Before RXR, Andrew was an Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company where he led teams serving real estate clients (institutional investors, investment managers, lenders, developers, owners, property management companies, brokers, service providers, tenants, startups, and VC/PE firms) across strategy, operations, and investing, with an emphasis on digital disruption. While at McKinsey, Andrew advised on ~$15 billion of transactions. He was also the fifth employee at numberFire, a sports analytics startup that was later acquired by FanDuel, and a professional backpacking trip leader. Andrew is a graduate of Princeton University, where he was the president of the debate team and competed internationally at the highest levels of collegiate debate. He was formerly the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Manna Christian Fellowship (a chaplaincy at Princeton University) and serves in various volunteer roles at Church of the City New York. He is an avid hiker, a Yankees and Jets fan, and captains the church softball team. A native New Yorker, Andrew lives in the Upper West Side of New York with his wife, Jess, and their family.

Mark Bhasin

SVP & Adjunct Associate Professor of Finance, Basis Investment Group & New York University’s Stern School of Business

Joined Stern 2018 Mark K. Bhasin, CFA, FRM, CAIA, FDP, CMT, ERP, PRM, LEED Green Associate, WELL AP is currently Senior Vice-President for Basis Investment Group, LLC, a multi-strategy commercial real estate finance platform based in New York. Mr. Bhasin has spent over 20 years in the finance and real estate sectors. Mark has also worked at CWCapital, GMAC Commercial Mortgage, and PaineWebber. At PaineWebber, Mark participated in the firm's Investment Banking Analyst Training Program. While an undergraduate student at NYU, Mark worked part time for two years at Kidder Peabody & Co. in its CMO/MBS research group. Mark is also an owner of Delos, which is the founder of the WELL Building Standard (WELL certification), WELL Health-Safety rating, WELL AP credential, and International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). Mr. Bhasin is a former Adjunct Professor of Real Estate Development at Columbia University where he lectured in real estate finance. He is a former Lecturer at SUNY Stony Brook where he taught MBA corporate finance courses. Mr. Bhasin is a graduate of New York University's Stern School of Business where he earned his Bachelor of Science in finance and accounting. While at Stern, he was an Alumni Scholar and member of Beta Alpha Psi. He earned his Master of Science in Real Estate Development from Columbia University where he was also a real estate finance teaching assistant. Mr. Bhasin is a CFA, CAIA, FDP, and CMT charterholder and holds the FRM (Financial Risk Manager), ERP (Energy Risk Professional), and PRM (Professional Risk Manager) risk management designations. He holds the WELL AP and LEED Green Associate credentials, as well as the Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR) Certificate and Risk and Artificial Intelligence (RAI) Certificate from the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP), Certificate in ESG Investing from CFA Institute, and Certificate in Climate and Investing (CCI) and Certificate in Impact About Mark Bhasin Adjunct Associate Professor Joined Stern 2018 Investing from CFA Society United Kingdom. Mr. Bhasin is an active member of the Urban Land Institute where he is Vice Chair of Programs of the Sustainable Development Product Council (SDC) and member of the ULI New York Housing Council. He was a member of the 2018 ULI Health Leaders Fellows. Mr. Bhasin is also an active member of the CFA Institute and CFA Society New York.

Sandhya Espitia

Chief Operating Officer, Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY)

Sandhya Espitia is the Chief Operating Officer of the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), the city’s leading real estate trade association and a driving force behind an industry that generates half of New York City’s local tax revenue. Representing 14,000 members across 1,000 firms, REBNY shapes the future of the city’s built environment through unmatched programs, products, and services. As COO, Espitia leads organizational transformation and impact—overseeing technology and digital strategy, member experience, industry awards and events, revenue drivers, and services for both commercial and residential markets. Under her leadership, REBNY has undergone sweeping digital, talent, and financial transformation, positioning the 130-year-old institution for its next era of growth. She works closely with industry leaders to advance strategic priorities, strengthen stakeholder engagement, and move New York City real estate forward. Espitia’s leadership has earned her recognition as one of Bisnow’s Women Leading Real Estate and a City & State Latino Trailblazer, honoring her influence in shaping the city’s real estate landscape. Prior to REBNY, she served as ICSC’s Managing Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, overseeing regional strategy and operations for the organization. Later, she became ICSC’s Global Vice President, leading education, certification, and innovation initiatives for commercial real estate developers across the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East. She also held senior roles at Harvard University, managing industry programs across the Americas and overseeing the Fulbright Program for the U.S. Department of State with a focus on science, technology and innovation. Espitia holds a B.S. in Film and Digital Media from Texas Christian University, a M.A. in International Education from the School for International Training, and an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business. She completed a fellowship in Management and Administration at Harvard University. Espitia is passionate about innovation at the intersection of people, technology, and the built world. She serves on the boards of the New York State Board of Real Estate and The Gateway School.

Iben Falconer

Director of Strategic Partnerships, itselectric

Gregg Gerken

Former Head of Commercial Real Estate & Executive Vice President, TD Bank

Gregg Gerken is the former Head of Commercial Real Estate for TD Bank, where he was responsible for a $28 Billion Investment Real Estate portfolio and a $4 Billion LIHTC Equity portfolio serving regional, Institutional Real Estate and not for profit clients. He has over 35 years of banking experience, spending over 25 years in the real estate industry. Gregg Gerken joined TD Bank in 1997 as the Senior Lender for the Northern New Jersey Region. In 1998 he was promoted to Senior Vice President and Market Manager for TD Bank. In 2008 he was promoted to the North Market President of TD Bank, responsible for the Commercial and Retail Banking functions in Bergen, Passaic, Hudson Counties in New Jersey & Rockland County, New York. In August 2009, Gregg was promoted as Co-Director of Commercial Real Estate for TD Bank and in October 2010, was announced as the Head of Commercial Real Estate for the bank. Prior to joining TD Bank, Gregg’s responsibilities included Real Estate Lending in New Jersey for Fleet Bank, National Westminster Bank & Citizens First National Bank, which were combined through mergers. He held positions of increasing responsibility including Team Leader-Real Estate Lending and was Real Estate Division Manager. Gregg currently serves on several Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) committees, is a member of the Real Estate Roundtable's Real Estate Capital Policy Advisory Committee (REPAC), and Homeland Security Task Force Committee. He also serves on the Board of Theatre Square Development for the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Gregg has also served on the Executive and Development Committee for the New Jersey chapter of the Susan G. Komen® Breast Cancer Foundation and is a past Chairman of the MBA’s Senior Bankers Executive Committee. Gregg ran in his third Boston Marathon on April 21, 2014. Gregg graduated from Ohio University with an International Business and Political Science degree.

Tyng Patka

Partner, Adler & Stachenfeld LLP

YuhTyng “Tyng” Patka is a Partner and Co-Chair of the NYC Real Estate Tax & Zoning Incentives Practice, and Chair of the NYC Climate Mobilization Act Task Force and the PACE Financing Practice at Adler & Stachenfeld LLP. She also co-chairs the Firm’s New York City Development Practice and the Impact Practice. Regarded as one of NYC’s foremost real estate tax and zoning incentive experts, with specialized expertise in building tax classifications, Tyng advises developers and building owners on optimal ways to reduce their property’s property tax burden. She provides strategic direction on tax incentive programs, as well as zoning benefits, and also advises stakeholders on Local Law 97 compliance and C-PACE financing. Often quoted by the media and called upon as a speaker-moderator, Tyng was recently selected by Crain’s New York Business as one of their 2026 Notable Women in Law and was also ranked by City & State on the 2025 Law Power 100 list of New York State’s top legal professionals.

Paul Stanley

Executive Director, CRE Sustainable Finance, Wells Fargo

Minija Yang

Vice President, Head of Sustainable Finance, International WELL Building Institute (IWBI)

Minjia Yang is the Vice President & Head of Sustainable Finance at the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), where she leads initiatives to advance social sustainability strategies within the global investment landscape. Minjia leverages her interdisciplinary expertise in law, economics, and finance, combined with deep insights into global markets, to drive sustainable finance, policy advocacy, partnership building, and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) efforts. Before joining IWBI, Minjia played a key role at Delos, a wellness technology company, where she helped establish over 10 subsidiaries and joint ventures across Asia and launched the first venture capital fund dedicated to wellness technology for the built environment. Her diverse career spans public, private, and nonprofit sectors, with professional experience across Asia, Africa, North America, and Latin America. She has collaborated with prominent organizations including the Inter-American Development Bank, Grameen Bank (2006 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate) in Bangladesh, social enterprises in Lesotho, nonprofit organizations in Haiti, the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Office, and consulting firms throughout Asia. Minjia serves on the advisory boards of several international organizations, private equity funds, and educational institutions, including the Urban Land Institute’s New York Housing Council, Berkeley Capital Group’s Hotel Lending Committee and Regenerative Impact Committee, the Out Leadership ESG Working Group, and the Women in Leadership Program Advisory Board at Mercy University. In 2024, Minjia was honored as one of the Global 50 Women in Sustainability by SustainabilityX® Magazine, recognizing her contributions to driving social sustainability and sustainable finance across industries. She earned a Bachelor of Laws from Sun Yat-sen University in China and was recognized as a Chinese young leader at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP). Minjia was also a W.T. Chan Fellow, participating in the Social Entrepreneurship Program at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She holds a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in economics and finance from Cornell University.

Matt Strahan

World Economic Forum