Collaborative Research: IRES Track I: Flood Resilience Program - Integrated research experiences to foster understanding on how to increase resilience in flood-prone communities

Impacts from flooding continue to be the most frequent, disruptive, and costly natural hazard worldwide. These impacts continue to mount, especially in rapidly developing coastal areas most influenced by the adverse effects of climate change. A new generation of graduates is needed that have the training and skillsets to address this problem that has already been causing catastrophic episodes of flooding and its associated hardship every year in the United States alone.

The International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) Flood Resilience Program (FRP) between the U.S. and the Netherlands will fill this critical need by implementing a place-based integrative research and educational program in science and engineering to help produce a diverse generation of researchers and practitioners equipped to solve complex problems related to flood risk reduction in the U.S. and around the world. Each year of the program, eight U.S. students (4 undergrad and 4 grad) will engage in an immersive, six-week problem-and place-based research experience in the Netherlands, a world leader in flood risk mitigation and management.

Existing partnerships established among multiple institutions, researchers, and students in both countries will be leveraged to provide students with international research experiences under the guidance of faculty and researchers from multiple disciplines in both countries. Key U.S. partners include Texas A&M University at Galveston (TAMUG) and College Station (TAMU) campuses, Jackson State University (JSU), and University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez (UPRM).

Dutch partners include Delft University of Technology (main host), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Rijkswaterstaat. Students will conduct research projects covering both surge-based and precipitation-driven flood problems in both urban and coastal areas. The effectiveness of structural and non-structural strategies will be investigated, leading to a better understanding of when to pursue strategies for mitigating adverse impacts from flood events.

U.S. researchers and students will be able to leverage Dutch data, methods, and facilities associated with flood management. The IRES FRP will prepare the next generation of engineers and scientists that will have to tackle the societal problem of widespread flooding in an innovative fashion. Furthermore, the program will create quantitative data on specific educational techniques and methods to improve student learning outcomes as part of place-based research settings.

Problem-and place-based case studies involving the Houston-Galveston and Rotterdam-The Hague Metropolitan areas, respectively, will integrate researchers and faculty with expertise in engineering (TAMU/JSU/UPRM/TUD), coastal structures (TUD/RWS), architecture (TUD), economics (VU) and planning (TAMUG) to guide student projects addressing the following overarching research questions: 1) what are the underlying characteristics of physical flood resilience and the differences between the two countries; 2) why are urban communities and the associated built environment so vulnerable to flood impacts; and 3) which mitigation techniques, both structural and non-structural are being implemented in the Netherlands and what can be applied in the U.S.? Students will select research projects covering both surge-based and precipitation-driven flood problems.

The effectiveness of both structural and non-structural strategies will be investigated, leading to a better understanding of when to pursue avoidance or resistance strategies for mitigating adverse impacts from flood events. U.S. researchers and students will be able to leverage Dutch data, methods, facilities, and expertise, associated with flood management.

The primary goal of the program will be to provide participating students with interdisciplinary problem- and place-based international research experiences by creating “authentic transformative learning environments”. Participating students will learn “how to conduct research” in general and “how to approach a problem through different disciplinary lenses.” The program will prepare the next generation of engineers and scientists in academia and practice that will have to tackle the societal problem of flooding in an innovative fashion.

Furthermore, the program will create quantitative data on specific educational techniques and methods to improve student learning outcomes as part of place-based research settings. These findings will lead to improved future international research exchange programs and be incorporated into teaching strategies at all partner institutions. Emphasis will be placed on actively recruiting students from underrepresented groups to participate in the program at all collaborating institutions.

Broad representation across society is particularly important for effective strategies to flood-related problems since the impacts of floods are disproportionate to vulnerable populations and flood-related lived experiences of underrepresented groups may provide the spark to pursue related higher STEM education. PIs at TAMU, UPRM and JSU, a designated HBCU, have experience with recruitment of underrepresented groups that will be brought to bear for this proposal.

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.