SSPEED Center

Thank you to our speakers, sponsors and guests for making SSPEED’s 2019 Conference a success!

Available presentations can be found by clicking the hyperlinks below.

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2019

 

INTRODUCTION

Reginald DesRoches, Dean of Engineering, Rice University

Philip Bedient, Director, SSPEED Center & Professor, Rice University

 

KEYNOTE.  RESILIENT HOUSTON

Marissa Aho, Chief Resilience Officer, City of Houston

 

KEYNOTE.  GALVESTON BAY PARK: SECURITY, RESILIENCY, EQUITY

Rob Rogers, FAIA, Founder, ROGERS PARTNERS Architects + Urban Designers

 

SESSION I.  URBAN DESIGN & NEW POLICIES FOR FLOOD PROTECTION

Mitigation Strategies: Brays vs Greens Bayou

Philip Bedient, Director, SSPEED Center & Professor, Rice University​

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Toward Smart Resilience: The Case of Access and Mobility in Flood Prone Communities

Jamie Padgett, Associate Professor, Rice University

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The New Rules – What You Need to Know

Charles Penland, Senior Principal, Walter P Moore

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SESSION II.  IDENTIFYING & COMMUNICATING FLOOD RISK TO THE PUBLIC

Why is the Planning of Stormwater Infrastructure an Afterthought?

Jerry Cotter, Chief of Water Resources Management, USACE (Ft. Worth)

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Strategies for Engaging the Public around Risk, Recovery, and Resilience

Kyle Shelton, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Kinder, Rice University

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Measuring, Mapping, and Managing Flood Risk

Sam Brody, Director of CTBS & Professor, Texas A&M Galveston

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MAAPnext – A Next step to Evolving Floodplain Mapping

Ataul Hannan, Director of Planning,  Harris County Flood Control District

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KEYNOTE.  FUTURE OF THE PORT

Ric Campo, Chairman of the Port Commission, Port of Houston

 

SESSION III.  CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECTS ON FLOODING

The Worst Case Scenario

John Nielsen-Gammon, Texas State Climatologist & Professor, Texas A&M University

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Future Texas Hurricanes: More like Harvey, or More like Ike?

Pedram Hassanzadeh, Assistant Professor, Rice University

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Climate Change and the Future of Hurricanes

Dan Cohan, Associate Professor, Rice University

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SESSION IV.  COASTAL SURGE MITIGATION UPDATE

Implementing the Galveston Bay Park Plan

Jim Blackburn, Co-Director, SSPEED Center & Professor, Rice University

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Coupled Rainfall-Storm Surge Modeling in Support of Hurricane Flood Protection System Evaluation in Coastal Texas

Clint Dawson, John J. McKetta Centennial Energy Chair in Engineering, UT Austin

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Coastal Texas Protection and Restoration Feasibility Study: Project Update

Kelly Burks-Cope, Research Ecologist, USACE Galveston

Tony Williams, Environmental Review Coordinator, Texas GLO

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PANEL.  COASTAL RESILIENCY (MODERATED BY JIM BLACKBURN)

• David Batker, President and Chief Economist, Earth Economics

• Kelly Burks-Copes, Research Ecologist, USACE Galveston

• Robert Twilley, Executive Director, Louisiana Sea Grant and Professor in Oceanography & Coastal Science, LSU

• Tony Williams, Environmental Review Coordinator, Texas GLO

 

RECEPTION

Generously sponsored by AECOM, Arcadis, Geosyntec Consultants, Inc., Kinder Institute, Texas Coastal Exchange, Vieux & Associates, Inc., & Walter P Moore

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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2019

 

SESSION I.  FLOOD MITIGATION IN THE BAYOU CITY

Why Do we Keep Flooding?

Larry Dunbar, Project Manager, SSPEED Center

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Buffalo Bayou & Tributaries Resiliency Study

Andrew Weber, Project Manager, USACE

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Resiliency and Floodable Parks

Richard McNamara, Senior Program Manager, Houston Parks Board

 

SESSION II.  NON-STRUCTURAL MITIGATION

Texas Coastal Exchange: Supporting Natural Coastal Ecosystems to Reduce the Effects of Climate Change and Flooding

Azure Bevington, Science and Technical Director, Texas Coastal Exchange

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The Recreation Economy as a Strategy for Coastal Resilience

Elizabeth Winston-Jones, Board of Directors, Lone Star Coastal Alliance

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SESSION IIIA.  FLOOD WARNING SYSTEMS FOR RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Flood Alert Systems Empowered by Machine Learning Algorithms

Nick Fang, Assistant Professor, UT Arlington

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Integrating Scalable Roadway-Level Flood Warning Sensors: A Bottom-Up Approach

Jacob Torres, Principal, Torres & Associates, LLC.

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Development, Operation, and Maintenance of the HCFCD’s Flood Forecast Program

Justin Terry, Flood Forecaster, HCFCD

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Developing Integrated Floodplain Management from Scratch – Featuring the Chehalis River Basin Flood Warning System

David Curtis, Sr., Vice President, WEST Consultants

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SESSION IIIB. PANEL. HARRIS COUNTY'S NATURAL ASSETS: MAKING NATURE WORK FOR A MORE RESILIENT REGION

MODERATOR

Larry Dunbar, Project Manager, SSPEED Center

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PANELISTS

• Mary Anne Piacentini, President & Chief Executive Officer, Katy Prairie Conservancy

• Matthew Berg, CEO & Principal Scientist, Simfero Consultants

• Stephen Benigno, Ecologist, Harris County Flood Control District

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SESSION IVA.  ENVIRONMENTAL RESILIENCE IN EXTREME EVENTS

Resilience of Environmental and Industrial Infrastructure

Hanadi Rifai, Professor, University of Houston

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Sediment Transport Vulnerabilities in Extreme Hydrology and Hydrodynamics

Amin Kiaghadi, Post Doc, University of Houston & University of Texas at Austin

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Debris Vulnerabilities During Hurricanes and Severe Storms

John Pardue, Professor, Louisiana State University

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SESSION IVB.  ENGAGING THE COMMUNITY IN RESILIENCE

Community Resiliency by Design

Susan Rogers, Associate Professor & Director of the CDRC, UH

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Evaluating Neighborhood-Scale Flood Hazard and Flood Mitigation Options for Greens Bayou Watershed

Andrew Juan, Research Scientist, SSPEED

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Accelerate Recovery: Looking towards the Future for Advanced Ways to Survive Disasters

Ivory Mayhorn, Executive Director, Houston Launch Point

 

PANEL.  LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE & FINAL THOUGHTS (MODERATED BY CHARLIE PENLAND)

• John Blount, County Engineer, Harris County

• Russ Poppe, Executive Director, Harris County Flood Control District

• Carol Ellinger Haddock, Director, Houston Public Works

 

KEYNOTE.  STATE OF PRECINCT 2

Adrian Garcia, Commissioner, Harris County Precinct 2

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CLOSE.  THANK YOU FOR ATTENDING SSPEED'S ANNUAL CONFERENCE!

 

 

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