UGA Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems

08/26/2026

Between a busy highway, a U.S. Navy base, and the St. John's River lies a little stretch of shoreline that means a lot.

Known to locals of Mayport Village in Jacksonville, FL, "Little Jetties" is a favorite spot for fishing, birdwatching and taking in scenic coastal views. But the shoreline is eroding–rapidly reducing the buffer protecting the park, the marsh and the highway.

UGA researchers are working alongside Mayport residents, city leaders, the Navy and coastal restoration experts to imagine what comes next: a shoreline that can withstand powerful currents and ship wakes while still making room for the community that calls it home.

Coastal resilience relies on creating spaces that serve everyone. Read more here: https://iris.uga.edu/2026/08/26/saving-little-jetties-shoreline-stabilization-at-a-major-naval-station/

08/19/2026

We may be back to classes this week, but that doesn't mean we can't reminisce on this summer... 🏝️

This past July, PhD student Marco Garcia traded the classroom for the mangroves of Sanibel Island, Florida, joining a field campaign to better understand these coastal ecosystems.

Working alongside experts from Oregon State University, US Naval Academy, Rhode Island State University and others, Garcia and the team got well acquainted with the trees, measuring 23 mangroves, 425 roots, 410 branches, 200 leaves and one deadwood transect. 🪾📏

All those field measurements will help Garcia and his collaborators better integrate mangroves into models of wave attenuation, exploring how mangrove-forested shorelines can help reduce risks from coastal storms. 🌊

08/07/2026

Managing stormwater is a critical function of civil infrastructure, and a problem that many are working to solve through natural materials and techniques- a.k.a, green stormwater infrastructure, or GSI.

By constructing human-made wetlands and ponds, we can replicate ecosystem functions in controlled spaces, providing infrastructure services through natural ecological cycles and offering benefits to both humans and their environments.
..Or can we?

In a University of Georgia 2026 Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grant project, ecologists, conservation biologists, engineers, landscape architects and policy experts from across campus and external partners are coming together to shed some light on this mystery.

Because green infrastructure looks great on paper- but real life is a bit muddier.

🔗 https://iris.uga.edu/2026/08/07/unlocking-the-secrets-of-green-stormwater-infrastructure/

📸 Group photo of June 2026 GSI workshop participants in an event hosted by the Seed Grant project team

08/05/2026

With summer thunderstorms rolling across campus on a regular basis, the University of Georgia knows how to handle severe weather.

With the help of innovative modeling and systems engineering approaches by the UGA Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems, the campus Risk and Resiliency Division can make more informed decisions about where to focus defenses against flooding.

In the first phase of what plans to be an in-depth project to strengthen the storm resilience of the Athens campus, IRIS researchers developed enhanced maps to depict flood risks across local waterways.

Moving forward, the team is working to understand the risks of one of UGA's most central waterways, Tanyard Creek, which flows through high traffic areas of campus and directly underneath Sanford Stadium.

Because we want the Dawg Walk to continue... not the doggie paddle. ⛈️

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But with the help of innovative flood modeling and systems engineering approaches used by the University of Georgia’s Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems (IRIS), the campus’ Risk and Resiliency Division (RRD) can make more informed decisions about where to shore up defenses against fl...

07/09/2026

Who gets to design for resilience?

These UGA researchers working to address flood risks in San Juan, Puerto Rico say: everyone.

Rather than relying solely on traditional engineering approaches, the team is building a community-centered model that incorporates local knowledge at every phase of planning, design, and implementation.

“We want to learn how we can design flood mitigation solutions–culverts, rain gardens, stormwater systems, seawalls–in a way that includes local knowledge from the very beginning,” said Félix Santiago-Collazo, UGA project lead and University of Georgia College of Engineering assistant professor. “Not just at the end."

From flood mapping meetings with local representatives to sensor building workshops with high school students, the team of engineers and social scientists hopes to provide better early warning systems designed for–and by–the community.

🔗 https://iris.uga.edu/2026/07/09/flood-detection-for-communities-by-communities-in-san-juan-puerto-rico/

06/18/2026

We're learning from some of the best engineers on the planet: they use entirely natural materials, manage their structures with flexibility and collaboration, and never wear hard hats. 🦫

Historically, beavers managed water flow by building dams across North American wetlands and rivers. As beaver populations have declined in many areas, these ecosystems are struggling. Our team is using beaver dams as inspiration for freshwater restoration projects that perform the same functions: slowing water flow, raising the water table, and widening the floodplain. That translates to benefits for ecosystems and humans, including flood protection, drought mitigation, enhanced water quality and reduced wildfire risk.

Beaver dam analogs use natural materials like wood, mud and vegetation to mimic the functions of natural beaver dams. The best part? These structures can encourage beavers to return to rivers that lost their populations, restoring a keystone species and reducing the human intervention needed. Our team is partnering with the Walton Family Foundation to learn more about how to bring these nature-inspired engineering projects to life.

Talk about stick-ing the landing. 🪵

06/16/2026

When decision-makers consider whether to invest in nature-based infrastructure, they often don’t have the full picture. Researchers at the University of Georgia’s Institute for Resilient Infrastructure have partnered with the Walton Family Foundation to change that.

A major part of choosing what projects to invest in implementing is estimating what benefits they’ll return– and sometimes more importantly, if those benefits measure up to what they’ll cost.

But traditional cost-benefit analyses often take a narrow view of what those benefits are. Widening our definition of “benefits” to include things that aren’t easily measured in currency–protection from floods, water storage during droughts, wildlife habitat, recreational value, and more–can help us make more informed decisions about our infrastructure investments.

Read more about how we took a closer look at the benefits of nature-based engineering: https://iris.uga.edu/2026/06/16/working-with-nature-pays-off-uga-study-finds-natural-infrastructure-delivers-returns-of-up-to-8-to-1/

05/13/2026

As soon as the semester ends, we start preparing for the next one. For our ENVE 8330 course, the checklist goes beyond textbooks and laptops: this syllabus recommends, among other field gear, boots you don't mind sinking into muck.

Over a long weekend each semester, students trade lecture rooms for salt marshes, barrier islands and historic sites, in order to immerse themselves in the real-world ways communities on the coast are managing changing shorelines.

“They can see that these are not abstract problems,” said Dan Coleman, one of the course instructors. “These are real places, real systems and real communities.”

Read more: https://iris.uga.edu/2026/05/13/out-of-the-classroom-into-the-wild-students-gain-field-experiences-in-natural-infrastructure/

05/08/2026

Don’t mind us, just reminiscing on our time with these amazing students that are taking flight this year 🥹

Congratulations to our spring & summer 2026 grads:

Clare DeBerry, MS Engineering, Environmental Engineering
Nazife Oruc Baci, PhD Engineering, Environment and Water
Orlando Viloria Marimon, PhD Engineering, Environment and Water
Noah Cleveland, Master of Landscape Architecture
Shishir Rao, PhD Integrative Conservation & Sustainability, Ecology
Jackson Robider, MS Engineering, Environmental Engineering
Madison LePain, MS Engineering, Environmental Engineering
Katie Kahn, MS Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering

We could not be more proud of you!

04/07/2026

How does nature impact your life?

For most of us, the ways that the natural world influences our daily lives, the food we eat, the air we breathe, and more are hard to count.

Meet The Nature Record.

Over a hundred authors, including our own Todd Bridges and Brian Bledsoe, have worked together to produce 15 chapters that identify and explain the ways nature supports life and livelihoods across the United States. This holistic assessment is a work of pure dedication, and you can read (and comment on) the full draft today.

🔗: https://iris.uga.edu/2026/04/07/putting-americas-nature-on-the-record/