TITLE: NSF Investments and Opportunities in Interdisciplinary Research on Hazards and Disasters

ABSTRACT:

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is in the midst of a series of major, multi-directorate investments in the basic science and engineering underlying society's ability to prepare for--and respond to--hazards and disasters. This talk reviews recent results, opportunities and challenges in this area, focusing on strongly interdisciplinary research where humans are inextricably "in the loop." Examples are drawn from the Infrastructure Management and Extreme Events (IMEE) program, as well as from recently-released solicitation in Critical Resilient Infrastructure Systems and Processes (CRISP) and Smart and Connected Communities (S&CC). The talk will include ample opportunity for discussion.

David Mendonca currently directs the IMEE program at NSF and participates in the administration of a number of others. While at NSF, he is on leave from the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he is an Associate Professor. His research focuses on the role of systems engineering in disaster response.