Resilient Futures Podcast (Formerly Future Cities)

This month, anthropologist and historian Dr. Eric Cline and USACE research social scientist Dr. Ben Trump come together with hosts Alysha and Todd to explore large-scale regional destabilization and collapse in the Late Bronze Age.Around 1200 B.C., an interconnected network of eight large, thriving civilizations collapsed in a matter of decades. Dr.s Cline and Trump wanted to explore how this collapse came about, whether the civilizations could have predicted or prevented it, and what resilience strategies some of these civilizations exhibited."They went down. There's no reason to suspect that we won't as well... It would be absolutely hubristic to think that we would be the first ones that are immune from that."We promise it's not all that ominous. Listen to learn more about what these researchers describe as a "poly-crisis," and how we can learn from it today to be more resilient to environmental, economic and social disturbances, and how recovery from collapse takes place.Dr. Eric Cline, Professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and of Anthropology; Director of the GWU Capitol Archaeological Institute: https://cnelc.columbian.gwu.edu/eric-h-cline Dr. Ben Trump, Research Social Scientist, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamin-trump-ba062523 Check out the paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959378023001589/pdfCheck out Dr. Cline's book, 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed, here: https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691208015/1177-bcPreorder Dr. Cline's upcoming sequel, After 1177 B.C.: The Survival of Civilizations, here: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691192130/after-1177-bc You can also preorder the graphic novel version of 1177 B.C., coming soon: https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691213026/1177-bc Ben's Haiku:   Complexity's cost.   Dependency's brief fragility.   Resilience is key.Eric's Haiku(s):   Bronze realms crumble,   empires fade in twilight's grasp,   ages mourn their fall.   Civilizations wane,   bronze echoes in silent ruins,   time's shadow devours.       Bronze echoes shatter,   civilizations entwine,   silent ruins weep.

This month features a special guest. The Honorable Rachel Jacobson, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment, visited UGA for the Southeast Defense Communities Resilience Workshop this week. During her busy visit to Athens, she stopped by to chat with Alysha and Todd about climate resilience in the U.S. Army: on military bases, in outreach projects and construction, and overseeing climate policies.Ms. Jacobson is an experienced environmental lawyer who previously served in the Department of Justice and at private law firms in Washington, D.C. In this episode, she describes the importance of resilience in the military and its projects, and how (and why!) the Army is building a better standard of resilience.Our guest described it best: "It is a national security imperative to maintain resilient installations."Links:Rachel Jacobson, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment: https://api.army.mil/e2/c/downloads/2022/04/21/3c9c5f77/hon-rachel-jacobson-s-bio.pdfHelpful links from the ASA (IE&E), including projects and directories: https://www.army.mil/asaiee#org-ie-e-info-links U.S. Army's Climate Strategy: https://www.army.mil/e2/downloads/rv7/about/2022_army_climate_strategy.pdf U.S. Army's Climate Strategy Implementation Plan: https://www.army.mil/e2/downloads/rv7/about/2022_Army_Climate_Strategy_Implementation_Plan_FY23-FY27.pdf 

Alysha and Todd speak with Marta Berbés-Blázquez and Stephanie Cruz Maysonet from the University of Waterloo about the implementation of Nature-based Solutions in the Global South. NbS research has primarily taken place in the Global North. The group discusses how to build solutions that satisfy the ecological, economic and sociopolitical needs of the Global South. Berbés-Blázquez introduces the idea of "urban labs," spaces for communities to engage in place-based experimentation.  Cruz Maysonet then speaks to practitioners Tischa Muñoz Erickson (San Juan, Puerto Rico) and Mercy Borbor-Cordova (Guayaquil and Duran, Ecuador) about their work with communities and project management.Stephanie's Haiku: Stream-facing housesPounded by sudden watersNow a blooming front.Resources:Marta's profileMercy's profileTischa's profileStephanie's profileStephanie's participation was financially supported by the Waterloo Climate Institute. Learn more here: https://uwaterloo.ca/climate-institute/

Alysha and Todd are joined by Kyle McKay (USACE Research Civil Engineer) and Charles van Rees (Conservation Scientist at UGA) to discuss BIODIVERSITY- and spoiler alert, it's a lot bigger than bugs and bunnies.Biodiversity is an ecological concept that can be difficult to quantify but is critical for environmental stability. It's also something that engineers working on nature-based projects have to keep in mind for the creation and restoration of natural infrastructure systems.Kyle's Haiku:Built or natural?IntergenerationalLegacy is key.Charles's Haiku:Safe homes and good health, Butterfly, thistle, finch, fox.Choose both: it's all life.Todd's Haiku:All species on EarthComprise the planet's machinePluck, pull, push, kaputResources:Jointly advancing infrastructure and biodiversity conservationThe potential for nature-based solutions to combat the freshwater biodiversity crisis

On interdisciplinary collaboration, promoting resilience projects and disaster management strategies with Executive Director of ASCE, Tom SmithAlysha Helmrich and Todd Bridges are joined by Tom Smith, Executive Director of the American Society of Civil Engineers, to discuss interdisciplinary collaboration between engineers, policy experts, and environmental managers. The group engages in a detailed discussion of how to promote resilience projects and disaster management strategies. Find the full episode description here. Find links mentioned in the episode below!Pathways to Resilient Communities - Pathways to Resilient Communities (1).pdf (asce.org)ASCE 73 Sustainable Infrastructure Standard - ASCE releases groundbreaking standard for sustainable infrastructure | ASCEASCE-NOAA Workshops and Report - New ASCE-NOAA report details tangible needs, progress toward climate-resilient infrastructure | ASCEASCE Future World Vision - Home | Future World VisionASCE INSPIRE Conference - Home | ASCE INSPIRE 2023ASCE 7 Supplement - New addition to the ASCE/SEI 7-22 Standard protects buildings from a 500-year flood event | ASCEASCE Report Card - America's Infrastructure Report Card 2021 | GPA: C-ASCE Code of Ethics - Code of Ethics | ASCEG20 Policy Brief - T20_PolicyBrief_TF3_-Investments-Climate-Resilient-Infrastructure.pdf (orfonline.org)Plot Points Podcast and new ASCE Book - The infrastructure system resilience big picture starts with incremental progress | ASCE

Join co-hosts Dr. Alysha Helmrich and Dr. Todd Bridges as they introduce themselves and the Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems, reintroduce the show, and try to define resilience! (Previously named the Future Cities podcast -- same content, new branding!)

Academic research, no matter how scientific, can be deeply personal. Pursuing a PhD in a field like urban resilience demands an unwavering dedication to the topic driven by a genuine care for the issues at hand. While this passion can help motivate scholars, it is practically very difficult to bring one’s full self into academic endeavors, even when an institution explicitly recognizes that individuals’ unique perspectives and experiences can enrich their research and shed new light on complex problems. In this episode, Madison Horgan (PhD student, Arizona State University) interviews fellow ASU scholars Dr. Michele Clark and Taína Diaz-Reyes (PhD student) about how programs such as ASU’s Earth Systems Science for the Anthropocene Graduate Scholars Network (ESSA) can help create safe spaces for researchers, especially black, Indigenous, and people of color, who have unique and incredibly important perspectives on resilience and science, to bring their whole selves to their research.Cultivating safe spaces for reflection and learning is especially important when working on place-based solutions alongside communities. Recognizing that urban resilience is not a one-size-fits-all concept, some scholars will partner with local communities to develop contextually relevant strategies. Solutions that are tailored to the specific challenges, needs, and aspirations of a particular community hold the potential for more meaningful and sustainable impact. However, to do this work well, researchers must learn how to ask the right questions to understand the nuances of each context and identify the most pressing issues that need to be addressed. Asking the right questions involves engaging with community members, stakeholders, and experts to gain a comprehensive understanding of the interconnected factors that contribute to urban resilience. Further, we discuss what it means to use the term “solutions” in the context of wicked challenges.Follow our guests on Twitter!@ESSA_ASU, @ MicheleDClark1, and @Tai_rannosaurus---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Urban green infrastructure has the ability to make cities more sustainable. However, the exact implementation of green infrastructure and the choices that must be made during implementation are still topics for discussion. Recently, the Consolidated Urban Green Infrastructure Classification (CUGIC) was published as a tool to help policymakers, practitioners and researchers assess the state of their urban green infrastructure relevant to urban biodiversity, human well-being, and ecosystem services. In this podcast, Joeri Morpurgo (Leiden University), Dirk Voets (Head remote sensing, Cobra-Groeninzicht), Ciska van Alphen (Policy officer, Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality), and Jacco Schuurkamp (Senior policy officer, Municipality The Hague) discuss the challenges and opportunities for implementing green infrastructure and how CUGIC helps!Follow our guests on Twitter!@DirkVoets, @JoeriMorpurgo @UniLeidenNews and @MultiGreen3.---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

On this month's episode of the Future Cities Podcast, Dr. Alysha Helmrich hosts Dr. Virginia Smith, who explores the future of urban hydrology. She covers a lot of ground! From the magnitude of flood impacts, the differences between hydrology and urban hydrology, the stakeholders in urban flooding, data collection and management for stormwater, integration of AI in stormwater management, and social vulnerability and equity. Tune in to hear all the details!Of note, Virginia is hiring students! You can reach out directly via email or apply online at: https://www1.villanova.edu/university/engineering/faculty-research/Resilient-Water-Systems.htmlRelevant Links to Research Articles:https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1038/s41598-020-65232-5.pdfhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1752-1688.12656https://ascelibrary.org/doi/full/10.1061/JSWBAY.0000945https://ascelibrary.org/doi/full/10.1061/JSWBAY.0000958https://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.1061/JSWBAY.0000986https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-23214-9Follow our guest on Twitter!@VCRWSteam---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

On this month's episode of the Future Cities podcast, Alysha Helmrich interviews her colleague, Katherine (Kat) Shayne. Kat Shayne is the CEO of Can I Recycle This? (CIRT). A start-up homed in Athens, GA that helps cities, counties, businesses, and individuals properly dispose of products. Kat shares her own journey in sustainability that led her to creating CIRT and describes CIRT's mission and goals. You can learn more about CIRT at www.cirt.tech. You can also learn more about the Circularity Informatics Lab at https://www.circularityinformatics.org/.Follow our guest on Twitter!@CanIRecycleThis@KatherineShayne---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Dr. Catherine de Rivera leads a conversation with Carole Hardy and Eric Butler.  They dive into the social, ecological, and technological aspects of connectivity with an emphasis on the benefits of ecological connectivity. This podcast is rooted in work co-produced with researchers and practitioners from Portland, Oregon. This episode also features Sahan T. M. Dissanayake, Leslie Bliss-Ketchum, Jennifer Karps, and Lori Hennings. Referenced Articles:Butler 2022Hardy 2022---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Dynamic Criticality is the idea that organizations must constantly reform their priorities in the face of volatile environments to maintain an adaptive state. Infrastructure research has yet to identify competencies that might aid infrastructure organizations in achieving dynamic criticality. Ryan Hoff discusses how competencies from other organizations can inform how infrastructure managers can better prepare their organizations to shift priorities in the face of disturbances.--Suggested Readings:Dynamic Criticality article Susan Clark’s workMikhail Chester’s governance workMikhail Chester’s autopoiesis workBook rec: The Black Swan by TalebFollow our guest on Twitter: @RyanMHoff---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Pervasive across infrastructure literature and discourse are the concepts of centralized, decentralized, and distributed systems, and there appears to be growing interest in how these configurations support or hinder adaptive and transformative capacities towards resilience. There does not appear to be a concerted effort to align how these concepts are used, and what different configurations mean for infrastructure systems. This is problematic because how infrastructure are structured and governed directly affects their capabilities to respond to increasing complexity. Dr. Alysha Helmrich recommends a multi-dimensional framing of de/centralization through a network-governance perspective where capabilities to shift between stability and instability are paramount and information is a critical mediator.Articles:De/centralization - https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2634-4505/ac0a4fLeadership - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsc.2022.791474/full Follow our guest on Twitter: @AlyshaHelmrich---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Dr. Christina H. Fuller shares her work on environmental health and justice, particularly examining how air quality varies down to a block-level across communities. She provides insights on conducting participatory research within frontline communities and advocating for more inclusive environmental justice research. Dr. Fuller also discusses her diverse work experiences from industry, non-profits, consulting, and academia.Follow our guest on Twitter: @DrCHFuller ---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Dr. Mikhail Chester hosts Dr. Stephanie Pincetl, whose work engages a multitude of disciplines (from engineers to urban planners to economists) to advance urban sustainability science and decision-making for water, energy, transportation, and land use systems. She explores how understanding and synthesizing these diverse systems surrounding our complex urban systems opens opportunities for future alternatives.This episode is part of a continuing series: Infrastructure and the Anthropocene Forum. Follow our hosts:Dr. Mikhail Chester (@mikhailchester)Dr. Stephanie Pincetl (@SPincetl)Recommended Readings:Transforming California: A Political History of Land Use and DevelopmentThe Nutmeg's CurseEnvisioning Real UtopiasDesigns for the Pluriverse---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

The built environment has significantly contributed to climate change, and it is becoming increasingly clear that net-zero carbon emissions is not enough. Phil Horton and Alysha Helmrich discuss the importance of carbon capture and explore how cities may play a role in carbon banking. In this episode, we will discuss the role that buildings and urban infrastructure will play in carbon draw-down and decarbonization through: end-to-end carbon accounting, building material innovations, and emergent alignment and coordination across critical stakeholders and agencies in the future of our urban environments.Follow the hosts on Twitter:Philip Horton (@asudesignschool)Alysha Helmrich (@AlyshaHelmrich)---Additional Resources:Build Beyond Zero https://islandpress.org/books/build-beyond-zeroCarbon Cure https://www.carboncure.com/Dr. Klaus Lackner and Mechanical Trees https://mechanicaltrees.com/our-latest-news/arizona-state-university-and-carbon-collect-announce-agreement-to-deploy-worlds-first-commercially-viable-passive-carbon-capture-technology/Center for Negative Carbon Emissions https://globalfutures.asu.edu/cnce/Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation https://sustainability-innovation.asu.edu/Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation https://asu.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/production-of-functionalized-carbon-from-synergistic-hydrothermal---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Distributive, procedural, recognitional justice are vital for nature-based solutions, but these dimensions of justice have multiple and conflicting meanings. Drs. Katinka Wijsman and Marta Berbés-Blázquez explore how political theory and philosophy help in understanding differences and conflict. They present five key justice questions for researchers and practitioners to reflect with. One major takeaway? Praxis and reflectivity are crucial to balancing the act of practicing justice.Topic paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2022.06.018Hosts & Twitter handles:Katinka Wijsman (@KatinkaWijsman)Marta Berbés-Blázquez (@MartaBerbes)@SGPL_UU and @UniUtrechtAlysha Helmrich (@AlyshaHelmrich)---NATURA RULA-IRES project Opportunity: https://natura-net.org/rula---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

Whose voice counts? Whose visualization informs the design of cities? And how do we collaborate in nurturing resilient equitable futures? Join a conversation led by Ananth Udupa between Duván López, Mathieu Feagan, Melissa Moreno, Theresa O’Neil, and Daniela Moreno. Follow the hosts on Twitter:@duvanhernan@MathieuMatt@ttttheresa@DanielaGarMo---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

This month's episode was initially published in Spanish -- the co-hosts' native language. Today, we are publishing a dubbed English version.---The episode discusses the NATURA Thematic Working Group  'Urban Informality and Innovation for Resilient Futures,' and the work strategy that has been developed in Bogotá, Colombia, so-called Local Labs, supported by @catunescosost, @ccdUPC, and @Unisalle.Initially, the differential focus of research on informality is discussed by Duván H. López (@duvanhernan) and Tony Pererina (@peregreenmx), and the relevance of approaching exploratory sites immersed in deep environmental conflicts, and strong social conditions of vulnerability, for Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) scholars and practitioners.NbS are envisioned as a stepping stone, working in informal cities to introduce the natural assets harmonizing with the urban form, facilitating social inclusion, and triggering adaptive trends. Finally, the voice of communities is amplified. @Tuarraigo calls for the international collaboration and engagement of academics into collaborative networks to encourage knowledge spillover and break the inertias of exclusion, therefore, opening transformative opportunities in marginalized areas.---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.

This month's episode is initially being published in Spanish -- the co-hosts' native language. On September 15th, we will be publishing a dubbed English version.---The episode discusses the NATURA Thematic Working Group  'Urban Informality and Innovation for Resilient Futures,' and the work strategy that has been developed in Bogotá, Colombia, so-called Local Labs, supported by @catunescosost, @ccdUPC, and @Unisalle. Initially, the differential focus of research on informality is discussed by Duván H. López (@duvanhernan) and Tony Pererina (@peregreenmx), and the relevance of approaching exploratory sites immersed in deep environmental conflicts, and strong social conditions of vulnerability, for Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) scholars and practitioners.NbS are envisioned as a stepping stone, working in informal cities to introduce the natural assets harmonizing with the urban form, facilitating social inclusion, and triggering adaptive trends. Finally, the voice of communities is amplified. @Tuarraigo calls for the international collaboration and engagement of academics into collaborative networks to encourage knowledge spillover and break the inertias of exclusion, therefore, opening transformative opportunities in marginalized areas.---If you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes, e-mail us at futurecitiespodcast@gmail.com or find us on Twitter @FutureCitiesPod. Learn more about the NATURA project at natura-net.org.