Banker & Tradesman file photo

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has named a senior advisor to a nonprofit focused on climate change and an “equitable energy transition” in Massachusetts to be her representative on the MBTA’s board of directors.

A Beacon Hill budget deal earlier this year added the long-sought seat on the T’s board dedicated to a representative of the city of Boston. Advocates for the addition argued it would help elevate riders’ concerns and better connect the T’s own strategic planning with land-use planning going on in the commonwealth’s biggest city.

Wu announced her choice of Climate Beacon Conference President Mary Skelton Roberts in interviews with The Boston Globe and The Dorcheser Reporter over the weekend and in an email to the press Monday morning.

Skelton Roberts is also a senior advisor to the Climate Beacon Project, what the Wu administration described as “a newly established non-profit committed to ensuring Massachusetts achieves an equitable energy transition.” She was previously senior vice president at the Energy Foundation, where Wu’s office said she oversaw a $140 million grantmaking budget “aimed at reducing carbon emissions throughout the United States” and, prior to that, was co-director of climate issues at the Boston-based Barr Foundation, where she dealt with transportation, climate resilience and land use issues.

Her experience “aligns with Mayor Wu’s vision” for the T, Wu’s office said. Wu’s office spelled out the mayor’s agenda as “improving bus rider experience and making trips faster, expanding fare free transit, streamlining pricing on the Commuter Rail to ensure all trips within the City of Boston are Zone 1A, and providing more transparent communication to riders regarding improvements on the MBTA system.”

“For residents and workers in Boston to thrive, we need a world-class public transit system connecting community and opportunity,” Wu said in a statement. “I’ve known Mary for years, from running into her on the Orange Line during our morning commute, to collaborating on transportation policy advocacy at the MBTA and City of Boston. I’m excited to appoint Mary as the very first representative of the City of Boston on the MBTA Board of Directors. With her passion and expertise in transportation policy, deep involvement in community, and daily experience as a regular T rider, Mary will work closely with our team to ensure that Boston residents are fully represented in building the transit system our communities deserve.”

Skelton Roberts joins a board that’s seen significant change in the last 12 months as a number of former Gov. Charlie Baker’s appointees, including the former chair, were forced out or saw their terms not renewed, and were replaced with veteran public servants with significant transit experience.