NEWS
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Rethinking Riverine Flooding: Q&A with Matt Chambers
Matt Chambers is a PhD student working under IRIS Director Dr. Brian Bledsoe. His work modeling the impacts of levee setbacks on upstream and downstream communities highlights how natural infrastructure solutions can increase community resilience. In the past, engineers attempted to prevent rivers from flooding by placing tall walls on either side of them, called
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Working with Tybee Island communities to build resilience: new interview with IRIS researcher Jill Gambill
IRIS research on Tybee Island was recently featured in Yale Climate Connections. Jill Gambill, of the University of Georgia Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant, is working closely with communities on Tybee Island to develop solutions that come from the ground up. “In doing planning, local knowledge and local experiences are so critical,” Gambill said
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Don’t Look Up! IRIS Outreach and Climate Director Marshall Shepherd Consulted for Hit Movie
While many viewers tuned into “Don’t Look Up!” for an entertaining evening of watching a disaster flick, the movie had a secret agenda: unpacking the challenges and dangers that climate change poses. IRIS Outreach and Climate Director, Marshall Shepherd, was one of a team of scientists consulted after the making of the film about the
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IRIS Affiliate Andressa Mansur Publishes On Integrating Multiple Values into Urban Management
Dr. Andressa Mansur (Post-doctoral researcher at University of Georgia) recently published a new paper titled, “Nature futures for the urban century: Integrating multiple values into urban management,” in the journal Environmental Science and Policy. The research delves into the need to balance preserving natural systems with rapid urbanization, and creates a framework for planning that
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IRIS Affiliate Jeb Byers Elected to Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
James E. (Jeb) Byers, Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor of Ecology, was recently elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, an honor given to individuals who have made significant contributions to their field. Byers received this award for his, “distinguished contributions to the field of ecology, particularly in invasion
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Report: Stream Restoration as a Best Management Practice
Stream restoration provides benefits to communities and ecosystems in the form of reduced erosion, increased uptake of pollutants, bolstered biodiversity, and recreation opportunities. In a 2022 report, IRIS researchers and collaborators provided guidance for best management practices in stream restoration, including stream stabilization, installation of riparian buffers, in-stream enhancement and flood-plain reconnection. This updated report
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N-EWN Biodiversity Retreat
This week, members of the Network for Engineering With Nature from both the Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems and USACE Engineering With Nature met at Amicalola Falls State Park for a discussion on the best ways to prioritize biodiversity in infrastructure planning. The interdisciplinary group included engineers, biologists, landscape architects, and ecologists, among others. Scroll down for pictures of
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IRIS team awarded Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grant
IRIS affiliate Scott Pippin, with the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, was recently awarded a Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grant for his proposal, “Developing New Storm Design Criteria for Natural Hazards Planning Research and Practice.” While Pippin is the primary investigator, the team also includes Brian Bledsoe (College of Engineering); Marshall Shepherd, John Knox, Pam Knox, Lynne Seymour and Thomas Mote (Franklin College of Arts
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Upcoming N-EWN Webinar: Capturing and Quantifying the Multi-Scale Benefits of Natural Infrastructure
The Network for Engineering with Nature (N-EWN) invites you to join us for The N-EWN Knowledge Series: A Continuing Education Series about Engineering with Nature. The next webinar will be held on Thursday, January 20th at 12:30 EST. Todd Swannack will discuss capturing and quantifying the multi-scale benefits of natural and nature-based features. Natural and
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Young Dawg Spotlight: Gretchen Hinger
Meet the latest Young Dawg part of the IRIS team: Gretchen Hinger. The UGA Young Dawgs program is a high school internship program designed to prepare highschool juniors and seniors for college-level research. Hinger joined the IRIS team from Clarke Central High School. During her time at UGA, she worked with Dr. Matt Bilskie, helping
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What is infrastructure?
When most of us think about infrastructure, we envision the bridges, roads and network of pipes that help our communities run. However, there are all kinds of natural systems that provide support to our society, including the forests that help purify our drinking water and absorb run off to prevent flooding to the marshes that
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Brian Bledsoe and Don Nelson Explore the Importance of Taking Cues from Nature
“Infrastructure must become more resilient as the global climate changes and also more affordable in the economic and political context of a post-COVID world. We can solve this dual challenge and drive global infrastructure investment into a more sustainable direction by taking our cues from Nature,” write Brian Bledsoe and Don Nelson, along with several
