Engineering the Nature of Change is an in-depth lecture series exploring ecological engineering, Engineering With Nature, nature-based solutions (NBS), and natural infrastructure (NI) with world-renowned experts from academia, industry, and government sectors. The lecture series is made possible by the University of Oklahoma’s Presidential Dream Course.

Tuesday 7 February 2023, 6:30 PM CT

The first lecture in this five-part series features Dr. Todd Bridges, National Lead for USACE Engineering With Nature_®. Dr. Bridges will speak about Innovating for a More Resilient and Sustainable Future. The lecture is open to public attendance in-person on the University of Oklahoma Campus, David L. Boren Auditorium, National Weather Center or virtually by registering below.

Innovating for a More Resilient and Sustainable Future, by Dr. Todd Bridges

The development of sustainable and resilient systems that support economies, communities, and ecosystems presents significant challenges and opportunities for institutions and practitioners. Up-scaled solutions are needed to address the climate crisis and create resilience. Equitable distribution of infrastructure investment is needed to sustain communities. The processes, services, and value to be found in nature can support these outcomes. Practical approaches are needed to integrate nature and engineering systems in a manner that achieves more socially acceptable, economically viable, and environmentally sustainable systems. The Engineering With Nature® Program is pursuing a collaborative approach to engineering that integrates science and engineering to produce operational efficiencies and make effective use of natural processes to broaden the range of services and value provided by engineered systems and infrastructure. This approach is being applied to develop navigation infrastructure, flood risk management, water resilience, among other purposes. Case example projects in the United States and around the world will be used to illustrate the use of nature-based approaches and highlight opportunities to advance collective practice.

Save the Dates

Subsequent lecture dates:

• 28 February
• 21 March
• 30 March
• 25 April