Project SHIELD Workshop
The inaugural Project SHIELD Workshop was held on May 7, 2026. The goals of this initiative are to build connections across the Earth hazard community, identify critical research gaps and challenges, and engage with stakeholders. More details summarizing this event are coming soon.
About Project SHIELD
Project SHIELD (Science for Hazards, Impact Evaluation, and Long-Term aDaptation) is part of the Jackson School Strategic Investment Plan (SIP). Its goal is to foster collaborative and interdisciplinary research tackling Earth hazards from the fundamental physics driving them to the risks they pose. The workshop will include keynote and lightning talks, breakout discussions, and a poster session.
Keynote Speakers
Sarah Kapnick
Global Head of Climate Advisory, J.P. Morgan
Dr. Sarah Kapnick is the Global Head of Climate Advisory at J.P. Morgan. In that role, Dr. Kapnick oversees J.P. Morgan’s climate thought leadership strategy and advises the bank’s clients on climate, energy, biodiversity, and sustainability topics. Prior to J.P. Morgan, Dr. Kapnick served as the Chief Scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration where she developed the agency’s strategies around emerging topics like marine biodiversity, climate macroeconomics, and climate security. Dr. Kapnick holds a Bachelor’s in Mathematics from Princeton University and a PhD in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences from UCLA. In addition to her public and private sector leadership, she is a highly cited expert on high resolution modeling of extreme storms and mountain snowpack and was a recipient of the American Geophysical Union’s Cryosphere Early Career Award in 2015. Dr. Kapnick has since been named to the 2025 TIME100 Climate and Bloomberg Green “Ones to Watch” lists in recognition of her thought leadership.
Daniel Dick
Executive Managing Director, Aon Reinsurance Solutions
Dan is an Executive Managing Director in Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions group, leading the group’s Global Property Analytics Team. Dan is responsible for group strategy and assuring best-in-industry services. He joined Aon in 1998 after 7½ years at RLI, where he oversaw catastrophe management and catastrophe underwriting processes. Prior to joining RLI, Dan was a licensed producer for the Country Companies Insurance Group.
Dan holds Bachelors of Science degrees in both Computer Science and Mathematics from Monmouth College, where he currently serves on the Board of Trustees. In 1997, Dan earned his Associates of Surplus Lines (ASLI) designation from the Insurance Institute of America. He has also been awarded a Certified Catastrophe Risk Management Professional (CCRMP) designation from the CAS Institute as well as being a three-time recipient of the Power Broker Award by Risk and Insurance magazine. Additionally, Dan is the president for the International Society of Catastrophe Managers. He is also a member of the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety’s Research Advisory Committee, a member of the Advisory Council for the University of Texas’ Jackson School of Geosciences, the chair of the Reinsurance Association of America’s annual conference and a member of their Extreme Events Committee.
Marc Coudert
Climate Resilience and Adaptation Manager, Office of Climate Action and Resilience, City of Austin
As the Climate Resilience and Adaptation Manager in the City of Austin Climate Action & Resilience, Marc Coudert works with city departments to embed climate adaptation strategies into long-term operation and asset management planning. In this role, he also supports community organizers to increase climate resilience in the Eastern Crescent.
Jennifer Charlton-Faia
Section Chief/Deputy State Hazard Mitigation Officer, Texas Division of Emergency Management
Jennifer Charlton-Faia serves as the Section Chief/Deputy State Hazard Mitigation Officer for the State of Texas, having spent over a decade with the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) in various roles. She has worked on more than 40 disasters, ranging from the 2013 West Fertilizer Plant Explosion to 2017’s Hurricane Harvey, COVID-19, and 2021 Winter Storm. During her time with TDEM, she has served in finance, compliance, audit, grants management, recovery, and hazard mitigation.
Workshop Agenda
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 8:00 | Registration & Continental Breakfast |
| 8:30 | Opening Remarks Interim Dean Daniel Stockli, Associate Dean of Research Michael Young, SHIELD Leads Yuko Okumura & James Thompson |
| 9:00 | Keynote Presentations: Science to Risk Sarah Kapnick (JP Morgan) & Dan Dick (Aon) |
| 10:00 | Coffee and Tea Break |
| 10:30 | Technical Lightning Talks Kutalmis Saylam (BEG), Edward Vizy (EPS), Zong-Liang Yang (EPS), Danielle Touma (UTIG), Ned Kleiner (Verisk), Keri Stephens (UT Moody College of Communication) |
| 11:00 | Keynote Presentations: Application Needs Marc Coudert (City of Austin Climate Action & Resilience) & Jennifer Charlton-Faia (Texas Division of Emergency Management) |
| 12:00 | Lunch |
| 13:30 | Breakout Session 1 Hazard Specific Deep Dives and Stakeholder Engagement & Integration |
| 14:30 | Report-back – Breakout Session 1 |
| 15:00 | Afternoon Break |
| 15:30 | Breakout Session 2 Building Hazard-Risk Research Hubs |
| 16:30 | Report-back – Breakout Session 2 |
| 17:00 | Key Takeaways, Closing, and Next Steps |
| 17:30 | Posters & Reception |
| 19:00 | Meeting ends |
Breakout Sessions
The Project SHIELD workshop breakout sessions aim to:
- Deepen hazard‑specific knowledge
- Integrate impact‑evaluation methods
- Link adaptation actions to outcomes
- Identify critical research gaps and cross‑hazard challenges
- Strengthen stakeholder engagement and collaborative pathways
Breakout Session 1: Hazard Specific Deep Dives and Stakeholder Engagement & Integration
SHIELD identifies five major Earth hazard categories as focal areas for research collaboration. Breakout groups in session 1 are clustered around these to explore challenges, knowledge gaps, and integration opportunities, as well as discussing connecting scientists, policymakers, industry experts, and communities. Groups include:
- Hydroclimate extremes: Floods, droughts, water resources
- Heatwaves: Extreme temperature and humidity, human health impact
- Wildfires: Fire weather, post-fire landslides, and environmental pollution
- Coastal hazards: Hurricanes, storm surges, and sea level
- Solid Earth: Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and landslides
Breakout Session 2: Building Hazard-Risk Research Hubs
The second breakout session focuses on topics that span Earth hazards to help build comprehensive hazard research hubs connecting scientists, policymakers, industry experts, and communities. Groups include:
- Cascading and Compounding Events: Emphasizes that extreme events often occur together or sequentially, amplifying impacts. This breakout examines how to model, predict, and prepare for multi hazard interactions.
- Impact Evaluation Methods and Challenges: Draws from global impact evaluation frameworks. This breakout group addresses how to measure and attribute impacts, especially when hazards are chronic, slow onset, or multi causal.
- Vulnerability, Exposure & Resilience Assessment: This breakout explores risk assessment guidelines that highlight the importance of vulnerability, exposure, and adaptive capacity evaluation.
- Linking Adaptation Actions to Outcomes: The breakout facilitates the development of stress frameworks to explore the causal chain between adaptation actions and measured outcomes.
- Identifying Knowledge Gaps & Research Needs: The breakout group explores resilience frequence to map knowledge gaps.
Event Location
The workshop is hosted by The University of Texas Jackson School of Geosciences. The main workshop will be held at The University of Texas Institute for Geophysics Seminar Room (ROC 1.603).
The University of Texas Institute for Geophysics
Research Office Complex (ROC)
10601 Exploration Way
Austin, TX 78758
Parking
Visitors to PRC can obtain a visitor parking permit from our check-in desk on the morning of the event or from the Pay and Display kiosks at 10500 Exploration Way or 2905 Read Granberry Trail. UT affiliates can use valid UT parking permits labeled “A”, “C”, or “Disabled”.
You may park in parking spots marked “Any UT Permit.”
Hotel Recommendations
Hotels near the Pickle Research Campus may be found here: https://www.beg.utexas.edu/about/hotels
Contact & Information
James Thompson
Research Assistant Professor
Bureau of Economic Geology
Yuko Okumura
Research Associate Professor
University of Texas Institute for Geophysics
Any questions? Please email SIP_Leads@jsg.utexas.edu with “[SHIELD]” in the subject line for additional information.