Many federal and state agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), have significantly invested on hazard mitigation research as well as on improving the societal aspects associated with disasters. However, the aftermath that unfolded following the recent disasters confirm that the impact of past research in terms of improving community resilience following a natural disaster is limited. This is believed to be due to the research on Hazard Mitigation and Community Resilience (HMCR) not being conducted holistically. Solving engineering problems protects infrastructure from experiencing collapse. However, maintaining their functionality immediately following a disaster and minimizing associated disruptions have paramount importance for the affected communities. To overcome this challenge and introduce transformative changes to the traditional practice, an HMCR program is being initiated by using the complex societal problems that have been identified in recent disasters and driving the research agenda based on the identified problems. A key element of the effort to transform the HMCR initiative into a research center is to design and implement a convergence research program and integrated education and training efforts that will create more resilient systems and communities. This NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC) Planning project fosters the creation of an agenda to design the center for HMCR. The properly constructed and well-funded ERC on HMCR with a convergent research program can enable communities and organizations to be better prepared for disasters, spend resources wisely to mitigate impacts, and recover quickly from disasters.
Hazard mitigation, as an adaptive resilience strategy, is deeply embedded in complex and interconnected structural, social, economic, and policy contexts. Dynamics of these processes influence the effectiveness of hazard mitigation strategies, impacts of disasters, community resilience, and directions of the post-disaster reconstruction. Understanding this reality becomes a transdisciplinary agenda for research and education as well as to create direct impact to the communities. The integration of research and education involving multiple disciplines to solve current issues in disaster prone areas with emphasis on community resilience is crucial as it will enrich the workforce and guide the decision making process in the presence of future disasters and recovery. This project focuses on better understanding the processes and interdependencies of the different systems in the community. In order to propel fundamental research with direct impact to community resilience, a workshop will be organized for faculty from multiple disciplines (e.g., engineering, urban planning, business, computer science, political science, economics, and sociology) together with stakeholders to generate collaborative research that solve important problems in HMCR. A convergence research agenda that integrates engineering with several other disciplines will consist of multiple thrust areas. The topic may focus on: (1) hazard modelling and mapping, (2) design for resilience, (3) system analysis of resilience, and (4) socioeconomic patterns and policy. By gaining broad knowledge in HMCR, the team will provide stakeholders with an improved understanding of their role, and will be able to communicate how the convergence research agenda and its outcomes will improve community resilience in disaster prone areas. It will promote convergence research collaboration to investigate HMCR problems and enhance the participation of underrepresented groups and stakeholders. It can also increase the capacity across the engineering academic community to develop ideas, facilitate team formation, and foster stakeholder community networks. In this context, researchers will strengthen on-going partnerships and will build additional ones with industry leaders and other organizations to increase the innovative capacity and broader societal impacts of the research outcomes. The program will engage underrepresented students by recruiting among the diverse student population and will provide opportunities for faculty with diverse background to work together and grow their academic careers and support the formation of the HMCR Center.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
