Overview

In light of inevitable climate change, engineers must design infrastructure that doesn’t just meet today’s needs but also adapts to future risks. These principles—developed by the UNDRR in collaboration with ICE and others—aim to embed resilience into every stage of infrastructure development.

1. Adaptive Transformation

Objective: Ensure infrastructure can change and evolve under stress.

Actions:

  • Design for safe failure.
  • Allow infrastructure to serve alternative functions when needed.
  • Enable flexibility for unforeseen human uses.
  • Prepare for unpredictable environmental changes.

Implications:

  • Encourages long-term thinking in design.
  • Supports infrastructure that evolves with societal and environmental needs.

2. Environmental Integration

Objective: Avoid infrastructure that harms the environment while aiming to solve climate issues.

Actions:

  • Use nature-based solutions.
  • Integrate ecosystem data into project planning.
  • Actively protect the surrounding environment.

Implications:

  • Supports sustainability and biodiversity.
  • Ensures resilience and environmental responsibility go hand-in-hand.

3. Protection by Design

Objective: Embed risk mitigation from the start.

Actions:

  • Consider wide-ranging hazards: natural disasters, cyber threats, pandemics.
  • Exceed minimum safety standards for critical components.
  • Assess interconnected systems to prevent cascading failures.
  • Pre-plan emergency responses.

Implications:

  • Reduces vulnerability to compound risks.
  • Saves lives and reduces downtime in crises.

4. Social Engagement

Objective: Empower communities to engage with and sustain infrastructure.

Actions:

  • Communicate disruptions and changes clearly.
  • Foster community ownership and understanding.
  • Minimize social risks like vandalism through engagement.

Implications:

  • Builds trust and cooperation.
  • Enhances public resilience and infrastructure longevity.

5. Shared Responsibility

Objective: Foster collaboration and shared knowledge.

Actions:

  • Adopt common standards.
  • Promote collaborative infrastructure management.
  • Share risk data and resilience goals securely.

Implications:

  • Creates collective accountability and faster recovery.
  • Encourages interdisciplinary solutions and transparency.

6. Continuous Learning

Objective: Keep improving infrastructure strategies based on new knowledge.

Actions:

  • Regularly test assumptions through scenario analysis.
  • Monitor infrastructure performance in real time.
  • Perform frequent stress tests.

Implications:

  • Ensures infrastructure keeps pace with changing threats.
  • Cultivates a proactive rather than reactive engineering culture.

Global Significance

  • These principles may form the basis of a global resilience standard.
  • A potential rating system could emerge, making it easier for investors and policymakers to assess infrastructure resilience.

The Engineer’s Role

Engineers must:

  • Lead by example with resilient, climate-conscious projects.
  • Champion resilience alongside decarbonization.
  • Think long-term, community-wide, and globally.