Much of our policy process focuses on the role of physical infrastructure, that is, structures like seawalls that hope to mitigate the impact of shocks and disasters such as floods. But a growing body of evidence suggests that social infrastructure - the places and spaces that build and maintain connections, such as libraries, parks, and pubs - hold greater potential to blunt the impact of such events.
Using qualitative and quantitative evidence from cases around the world, Aldrich pushes us to appreciate how the modest and often underappreciated field of social infrastructure should be front and centre as we confront wicked problems.
Please note that doors open at 6.00pm and the event starts promptly at 6.30pm
6.00pm - 6.30pm Doors open for guest entry
6.30pm - 7.30pm Judith Neilson UTZON Lecture and audience Q&A
7.30pm - 8.30pm Networking Reception in UNSW Scientia Building foyer
Professor Daniel Aldrich
An award winning author, Aldrich has published five books including Building Resilience and Black Wave, more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, and written op-eds for the New York Times, CNN, HuffPost, and many other media outlets. He has spent more than 5 years in India, Japan, and Africa carrying out fieldwork and his work has been funded by the Fulbright Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the Abe Foundation, the Rasmussen Foundation, and the Japan Foundation, among other institutions.
In 2021 he was Klein Lecturer at Northeastern University and won the 2024 Outstanding Teaching Award there. Aldrich directs the Resilience Studies Program and co-directs the Global Resilience Institute at Northeastern.