The transition from 2D maps to digital twins that incorporate three spatial dimensions (x, y, z) and time (t) as the fourth has marked a giant leap in data analysis and visualization. But how are digital twins being used in disaster risk reduction? In this presentation we introduce the California Hydro Twin Project, a collaboration between the UC Berkeley Center for Smart Infrastructure, industrial partners in Europe, and a flood-prone community in California. This collaborative multidisciplinary project develops a digital hydro-twin to simulate flood depth and water velocity across urbanized landscapes, accounting for hydraulic drag of buildings and other structures, and accounting for assets vulnerable to flood damage.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Anna Serra-Llobet is an environmental scientist who works at the University of California Berkeley Center for Catastrophic Risk Management. Her research concerns global approaches to flood risk management at the interface between natural and social processes. She also teaches a course on fundamentals of Flood Risk Management (LDARCH 229) and a course on Disaster Risk Resilience and Adaptation (ENVECON 7), with focus on different natural and human made hazards. Her research interests are on the use of digital twins and new technologies for environmental planning and climate adaptation, flood risk management policies and governance, residual risk of extreme floods, environmental justice, floods after fire, and nature-based solutions.