Hurricane risk/relief/rebuilding

Rebuilding to resist catastrophic events

“My goal is to achieve effective design and retrofit of buildings and bridges subjected to extreme events arising from seismic, high wind, excessive loads and progressive collapse”

Khaled Galal’s research brings together academics and professionals from the masonry industry to develop new standards that will make buildings safer and more environmentally sustainable.

Watch a simulation of walls being tested against earthquake effects in the Concordia Structures Lab.

Watch a sequence showing construction of the new reinforced masonry wall system.

Watch the performance of tall reinforced masonry walls in earthquake events.

Khaled Galal, professor and associate chair, Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Rebuilding communities

“The damage from natural disasters like hurricanes is not limited to the destruction of property and loss of life. Connections and a sense of community are also often swept away. But it can be a time for growth, if certain conditions prevail”

Rosemary Reilly is an expert on post-traumatic growth and the impact of trauma on communities. She can outline the measures communities such as those struck by the recent hurricanes Harvey and Irma need to take to heal and rebuild.

Rosemary Reilly, associate professor and graduate program director, Department of Applied Human Sciences
514-848-2424 ext. 5818
Rosemary.reilly@concordia.ca

Why so many climate disasters?

“…we’re going to have to come up with new categories… they will get more powerful as temperatures continue to increase.”

A leader in the field of climate change, Damon Matthews sees a clear link between a rise in the temperature of the earth and its oceans and the increasing frequency and severity of weather events such as hurricanes. As Concordia University Research Chair, Climate Science and Sustainability, Matthews’s research has demonstrated the impacts of carbon dioxide emissions on human and environmental systems but also how to meet the challenge of reversing current trends to limit that damage.

Damon Matthews, professor, Department of Geography, Planning and Environment
514-848-2424 ext. 2064
Damon.matthews@concordia.ca