Presented by Aaron Packman, Professor  – Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Daniel Horton, Assistant Professor – Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, and the Climate Change Research Group

Extreme meteorological events pose significant engineering and public health challenges for societies and their built environments. With over 80% of the U.S. population living in cities and relying on infrastructure networks to provide essential resources, support economic growth, and confer protection from hazards, it is essential that urban residents seek to lessen the impacts of looming threats. Despite advances in hazard prediction, urban design, and distributed sensing networks, large cities remain vulnerable to extreme weather events such as floods, heat waves, and poor air quality episodes. Climate change has exacerbated these engineering and public health challenges by modifying the intensity and frequency of some high impact weather events.

Professors Packman and Horton will discuss work by their multidisciplinary research team seeking to prepare Chicagoland’s citizens and infrastructure for projected environmental changes. In particular, they will discuss research efforts focused on hazard mapping, green infrastructure, and electric vehicle adoption.