I am a climate risk + resilience practioner and researcher with a love for problems that are complex and pertinent. I develop solutions to reduce the impact of extreme weather and climate change.

Storm Damage Over Time

In addition to research, my other professional pursuit is bringing attention to flooding and sea-level rise issues that impact the public and local governments. Specifically, I communicate how these hazards are already and will continue to impact homeowners, the financial services industry, and urban planning.

 

Specifically…

Homeowners Price of flood insurance premiums and supporting flood risk reduction measures that can reduce flood insurance premiums or mitigate future loss of life and property, decisions to invest in coastal property, supporting risk reduction measures that appreciate property value

Financial services Credit ratings (e.g., for municpal debts), disclosures (natural hazards and physical climate risks)

Urban planning Government-led flood risk reduction projects that can create local jobs, stimulate employment growth, reduce lost days of work, bring long-term improvements in neighborhood quality of life through improved health outcomes, increases in the quickness of recovery after a flood, and improved access to green spaces and recreational amenities.

Film/ YouTube

I maintain a YouTube Channel (“FloodGeek”) where I occasionally post videos on the above topics.

Some of my films are below:

 

 

What can climate adaptation learn from what’s in Grandpa’s garage? A historical tale of two flood protection megastructures. 12 December 2020. Highwire Earth [LINK]

Eight years after Hurricane Sandy New Yorkers are still waiting for flood protection. October 2020. CPREE Blog. [LINK]

 

Presentations

Accounting for sea-level rise and other climate-related hazards in infrastructure design. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 14 December 2023, San Francisco, CA. [PDF]

Storm surge reanalysis of Hurricane Idalia using a spatial Bayesian model. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 11 December 2023, San Francisco, CA. [PDF]

A non-stationary, risk-based approach for determining design flood elevations under sea-level rise. ASCE INSPIRE, 16 November 2023, Arlington, VA. [PDF]

Coastal Defense in an Era of Sea-Level Rise: Science, Politics, and Decision-Making. UC-Irvine Department Seminar, 31 March 2021, Virtual. [PDF]

When do coastal flood megaprojects get built? A Rhode Island Perspective (1954-1966). Coastal State Discussion: The Future of Coastal Megaprojects, 9 March 2021, Virtual. [PDF] [VIDEO]

Climate scientists may misrepresent future flood risks using popular extreme sea level metrics. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 17 December 2020, Virtual. [PDF] [VIDEO]

Coastal Defense in an Era of Sea-Level Rise: Science, Politics, and Decision-Making. Dissertation Defense, 3 December 2020, Virtual. [PDF]

Designing coastal defense strategies in an era of uncertain sea-level rise. STEP PhD Student Seminar, May 2019, Princeton, NJ. [PDF]

Coastal flood implications of 1.5 °C, 2 °C and 2.5 °C global mean temperature stabilization targets. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 15 December 2017, New Orleans, LA. [PDF]

Coastal flood implications of 1.5 °C, 2 °C and 2.5 °C global mean temperature stabilization targets. STEP PhD Student Seminar, December 2017, Princeton, NJ. [PDF]

Right on the Money: Protecting Life and Property from Coastal Storms and Uncertain Sea Level Rise. STEP PhD Student Seminar, March 2017, Princeton, NJ. [KEYNOTE]

Probabilistic U.S. county-level climate projections: A new data set for local climate risk analysis. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 16 December 2015, San Francisco, CA. [PDF]

It’s Not Just the Heat, It’s the Humidity: Downscaled Wet-Bulb Temperature Projections and Implication for Future Summer Experiences from the American Climate Prospectus. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 17 December 2014, San Francisco, CA. [PDF]

Parallel Acceleration of CALPUFF. California Air Resources Board, Atmospheric Modeling and Support Section, 3 December 2012, Sacramento, CA. [PPT]

Evaluating surface ozone-temperature relationships over the eastern US in chemistry-climate models. American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, 5 December 2011, San Francisco, CA. [PPT]