Urban Infrastructures Workshop: Analysis and Modeling for their Optimal Management and Operation

New York Institute Of Technology, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

1762212 (Dong). The workshop on "Urban Infrastructures: Approaches for the Modeling and Study of Interdependent Systems and Processes," to be held in New York City in November 2017, will convene participants from the United States and Europe, all key actors in the study of urban interconnected critical infrastructure (ICI) systems and processes, including food, energy, and water (FEW) distribution systems and processes. The overarching goal of the workshop is to stimulate research on the optimization of interrelated urban infrastructure systems and processes for the resilient and sustainable provision of FEW. The workshop will also identify technical, socio-economic and policy obstacles for this optimization. Specific objectives are to: 1) build a research agenda that supports active engagement and joint approaches to resilient urban interdependent critical infrastructure systems and processes; 2) explore solutions for innovative urban infrastructure synergies for sustainable, green and livable cities, and the optimal provision of goods and services and 3) form a global research and education community, with links to local stakeholders, and share actionable agendas for change. The workshop's programming team is led by New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) in collaboration with City College of New York at the City University of New York, as well as University of Applied Sciences at the Hochschule fur Technik (HFT) in Stuttgart, Germany and the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT). Team members have started to collaborate on the identification of a research agenda for the study of urban systems, related data and modeling frameworks, and for improved understanding and sustainable development of evolving urban food, energy, and water systems. NYIT will be leading the effort to engage additional academic, government, and private entities in planning and participating in the workshop, including representatives from Con Edison, NYC Dept. of Environmental Protection, Mayor's Office of Sustainability, the U.S. EPA, the USDA, and other stakeholders. The workshop os targeted to enhance scientific cooperation between scholars and educators in the United States, Europe, as well as industry and government agency representatives, urban planners and policymakers. The workshop's white paper, defining scientific, engineering and information systems and data challenges for optimal urban infrastructural systems and processes, will be widely disseminated, thus broadening the impact of workshop findings.