Crafting the Future of Durability and Adaptability
Lehigh University's Center for Catastrophe Modeling and Resilience Advances Disaster Preparedness
Lehigh University's Center for Catastrophe Modeling and Resilience (CCMR) is leading the way in bridging the gap between academic research and real-world catastrophe modeling. The center, established under Lehigh's Inspiring the Future Makers strategy, is a training ground for the next generation of resilience experts, integrating students into active research efforts.
The CCMR's unique role is marked by its interdisciplinary and collaborative research, focusing on advanced engineering, natural sciences, behavioral research, and big data modeling. Under the leadership of Dr. Paolo Bocchini, the center enhances algorithms to incorporate physical reconstruction, enabling more accurate simulations of disaster response and losses.
One of the key achievements of the CCMR is its role in the Consortium for Enhanced Resilience and Catastrophe Modeling (CERCAT), a partnership with Rice University and various member companies from insurance, utilities, and asset ownership sectors. This consortium actively involves faculty and students working side-by-side with industry partners to ensure scientific rigor aligns with immediate practical applicability.
The CCMR addresses a significant challenge where academic catastrophe risk research and industry applications have progressed largely independently. By enabling direct collaboration, it reduces duplicated efforts and facilitates rapid transfer of innovations into underwriting tools and regulatory frameworks.
The center produces not just theoretical knowledge but tangible outputs such as tools, software code, and processes designed to integrate seamlessly into existing industry workflows, improving resilience planning and operational decision-making. The CCMR's work responds to urgent questions from communities, companies, and governments about reducing risks related to natural disasters.
In addition to natural disasters, the CCMR transfers computational models and tools to other threats to society, such as epidemics. The center aims to predict human behavior in the face of risk, helping the private sector predict the impact of natural disasters and prepare for, withstand, and recover from them.
Lehigh University believes that research is a public good, building knowledge that meets the moment and shapes the future. As an R1 research university, Lehigh is among the nation's top 187 research institutions. The University has established three new University Research Centers (URCs) under its Future Makers strategy, including the Center for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies (CDAT) and the Center for Advancing Community Electrification Solutions (ACES).
CDAT explores innovative ways to improve the lives of people with disabilities through user-informed design and technology. ACES tackles the urgent need for self-sustaining, equitable, and efficient energy systems to serve diverse communities.
Urinrin Otite '25G '27 Ph.D. is the first student to earn a master's degree in catastrophe modeling and resilience at Lehigh, focusing on steel transmission monopoles and hurricane-force winds. The Center for Catastrophe Modeling and Resilience hosts a workshop with experts from industry, government, and academia to discuss shared goals and plan concrete actions. The center collaborates with organizations in the public and private sectors to ensure immediate application of research results.
In summary, Lehigh’s CCMR stands out for its innovative partnership model, its leadership in scientific integration with impactful industry applications, and its role in fostering collaboration that enhances both the resilience of communities and the effectiveness of catastrophe risk management frameworks.
- Lehigh University's Center for Catastrophe Modeling and Resilience (CCMR) is bridging the gap between academic research and real-world catastrophe modeling, aiding disaster preparedness.
- The CCMR focuses on interdisciplinary research, integrating advanced engineering, natural sciences, behavioral research, and big data modeling.
- The center, under Dr. Paolo Bocchini, enhances algorithms to incorporate physical reconstruction, offering more accurate simulations of disaster response and losses.
- The CCMR is a member of the Consortium for Enhanced Resilience and Catastrophe Modeling (CERCAT), collaborating with Rice University and industry partners in insurance, utilities, and asset ownership sectors.
- The center aims to reduce duplicated efforts and facilitate rapid transfer of innovations into underwriting tools and regulatory frameworks.
- Beyond natural disasters, the CCMR also transfers computational models and tools to address other societal threats, such as epidemics, predicting human behavior in the face of risk.
- Lehigh University, acknowledging research as a public good, introduces three new University Research Centers (URCs) under its Future Makers strategy, including the Center for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies (CDAT) and the Center for Advancing Community Electrification Solutions (ACES).
- Urinrin Otite '25G '27 Ph.D., the first student to earn a master's degree in catastrophe modeling and resilience at Lehigh, is examining steel transmission monopoles and hurricane-force winds.
