Rodrigo Costa's Research
Biography
I am an assistant professor of Systems Design Engineering at the University of Waterloo. My research focuses on societal and environmental systems and examines how communities' physical, economic, and social systems interact to exacerbate disaster risk and further socioeconomic and racial inequalities. Rodrigo works at the interface between engineering and social sciences. Outside of my academic research, I collaborate with emergency managers, urban planners, resilience officers, and insurance companies to further understand disaster risks. My goal is to inform targeted interventions to reduce disaster impacts, accelerate recovery, and ensure that all of society participates in the benefits. I hold a Ph.D. in Earthquake Engineering from the University of British Columbia and before joining the University of Waterloo, I was a post-doctoral scholar at the Stanford Urban Resilience Initiative.
Research Interests
My seeks to understand how extreme natural events can become disasters. I learn from past events to create simulation models that provide insights into what may happen in the next ‘big one’ - an earthquake, wildfire, flood. My long-term goal is to create simulation models that will allow us to understand how all aspects of a community are impacted by and bounce back (or not) from disasters. In the meantime, I have focused on three community aspects: infrastructure, housing, and businesses.
Housing
Infrastructure
Business
Recent Events
April 2024 - Rodrigo Costa participated in the 2024 annual meeting of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute.
April 2024 - Rodrigo Costa joined Earthquake Spectra as an Associated Editor.
March 2024 - Rodrigo Costa presented on Regional Risk Assessments as a tool to Inform Disaster Planning at Texas A&M.
February 2024 - Rodrigo Costa published a new pre-print, Identifying Viable Financing Mechanisms for Post-Earthquake Housing Reconstruction in Canada.
November 2023 - The Natural Hazards Center Researchers Meeting is accepting abstract submissions. Rodrigo Costa and Alyssa Provencio will be the 2024 Chairs.
October 2023 - Rodrigo Costa, Ali Lesani, and Alireza Ahmadi attended the Multi-Hazard Risk and Resilience Worksop at Western University.
October 2023 - Rodrigo Costa and colleagues received a grant from HUD to study equitable and climate resilience housing.
September 2023: Ali Lesani joined my group as a Ph.D. student, and Alireza Ahmadi as an M.Sc. student.
September 2023—Rodrigo Costa, Edward Bolte, Colleen Sharp, and Corinne Bowers published After the Flood: How Presidential Disaster Declarations Affect Long-Term Well-Being and Recovery for Homeowners as a preprint.
August 2023 - Rodrigo Costa and Jack Baker published 'A methodology to estimate post-disaster unmet housing needs using limited data' in Risk Analysis.
July 2023 - Rodrigo Costa hosted the Natural Hazard's Center Researchers Meeting with Sara Hamideh, Sabine Loos, and Alyssa Provencio.
February 2023 - Rodrigo Costa gave the February 2023 Tukstra Talk at the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Waterloo.
February 2023 - Rodrigo Costa joined the Waterloo Climate Institute.
February 2023 - Rodrigo Costa gave a talk at the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction.
2022 Graduate Student Paper Award from the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute.
January 2023 - Rodrigo Costa gave a keynote lecture at the V-CIVIL 2023 Conference.
December 2022 - Irene Alisjahbana, Ana Moura-Cook, Rodrigo Costa, and Anne Kiremidjian received an honourable mention at the 2022 Graduate Student Paper Award from the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute.
November 2022 - Rodrigo Costa presented at the 2022 SimCenter Symposium at the Texas Advanced Computer Center in Austin.
August 2022 - Rodrigo Costa joined the Department of Systems Design Engineering at the University of Waterloo.
July 2022 - Rodrigo Costa received the 2021 Graduate Student Paper Award from the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute..
