Protecting People and Places
Developing new ways to protect environments.

Natural and man-made hazards present challenges to the built and natural environment. Our research develops new ways to better measure, model and manage these challenges and explores how to protect these environments and the societies that rely upon them.

Focus areas

Sea level rise
Working with island and coastal communities to develop solutions for the impacts of sea level rise.
Storm impacts on coastlines
Working with local councils to monitor the response of coastlines to extreme and prolonged hazard events.
Protecting delicate ecosystems
Exploring methods to stabilise damaged coral to minimise the impact of future cyclones and encourage regeneration.
Fire at the interface
Undertaking research to better understand the health and safety implications of fires at the wildland-urban interface.
Safety in settlements
Our research into the behaviour of fires in informal settlements seeks to raise the issue of fire safety to that of a fundamental human right.
Fire safe building materials
Working with industry and government to improve the safety of building materials, products and paints when exposed to fire.
Learning from disasters
Post-event damage and impact assessment fieldwork is used to learn lessons from disasters and propose measures to mitigate future impacts.
Disaster risk
Catastrophe risk models are developed and used to help manage and mitigate disaster risk in current and future climates.
Dams for the future
Exploring the needs of new and existing dams to meet future demand in a changing climate and ensure they are safe, sustainable, and reliable.
Natural hazards in the lab
Novel techniques for laboratory simulation of tsunamis, ocean waves, extreme winds and surges in hydraulic systems and their loading of structures.
Capturing the extremes
Fieldwork during extreme events such as cyclones and floods enable us to better understand the hazards they pose to buildings and communities.
Volcanic explosions
Monitoring ocean conditions during underwater volcanic explosions.

Researchers

Adjunct Associate Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Associate Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Honorary Associate Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Head of School, Civil Engineering
School of Civil Engineering
Associate Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Senior Lecturer
School of Civil Engineering
Adjunct Senior Lecturer
School of Civil Engineering
Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Associate Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Director, Engagement
Senior Lecturer
School of Civil Engineering
Senior Lecturer
School of Civil Engineering
Professor
School of Civil Engineering
Professor, TMR Chair in Structural Engineering
School of Civil Engineering