The Multi-Hazards Podcast

Can young people have impact when entrenched and powerful old men run the world? In this episode, youth climate activist Akhilesh AnilKumar discusses how he was awakened by the floods in Kerala, India, established the Bring Back Green Foundation and has embarked on a journey to change the world with other youth. Be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program! Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/youth-climate-activism-and-sustainable-futures-interview-with-akhilesh-anilkumar

Akhilesh AnilKumar's Bio

Akhilesh AnilKumar is a college-aged student at the University of Wollongong majoring in Cyber Security (Computer Science). He is Director and co-founder of the Bring Back Green Foundation and co-founder of the Swap The Straw Campaign. He is from Kerala State in the southernmost region of India but is currently studying in Australia. He is one of many young people who are not wasting any time working to bring change to this world with others.

Can we actually use artificial intelligence (AI) to improve flood mapping and with other tools for geohazards? In this episode, geological engineer Dave Bigelow discusses how geology and AI contribute to public safety. Be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program! Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/flood-mapping-glacier-hazards-and-artificial-intelligence-interview-with-dave-bigelow

Dave Bigelow's Bio

Dave Bigelow is a Geological Engineer (EIT), specialising in the fields of hydrology, geohazards and AI. He is at Minerva Intelligence, a Vancouver, Canada-based company. There, Dave is leading the development of an application that leverages semantic Artificial Intelligence (AI) and numerical modelling to produce explainable urban flood risk assessments.

Dave Bigelow received a Bachelor of Applied Science from the University of British Columbia in Geological Engineering with a minor in Commerce, and an Master of Science in Geological Engineering from Simon Fraser University, investigating glacial lake outburst flood hazards. Results from his research have been presented at international conferences and published in scientific journals. Before joining Minerva, Dave worked in consulting engineering, gaining hands-on experience in geotechnical and hydrotechnical hazard assessments.

Can we actually adapt to a changing climate that seems like a runaway train? As the world heats up and nature quickly readjusts itself, how can we survive? In this episode, Dr. Stewart J. Cohen discusses how we predict where the climate is headed and how we can reduce its impacts on society. He discusses how the adaptation process works and how to involve stakeholders. If you want to dive deep into climate change adaptation, here's your chance! Be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program! Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/adapting-to-our-changing-climate-interview-with-dr-stewart-j-cohen

Also, check out Dr. Cohen's popular blog, Doctor Climate Change: https://doctorclimatechange.com

Dr. Stewart J. Cohen's Bio

Dr. Stewart J. Cohen is an author and educator on human-caused climate change. Dr. Cohen is currently a part-time instructor on climate change adaptation at Royal Roads University, and is writing posts on his blog mentioned above. His university education was in geography, obtaining degrees from McGill University, the University of Alberta, and the University of Illinois. Dr. Cohen has recently retired from a 35-year research career with Environment and Climate Change Canada. He began his career in Toronto where he created and led studies on the impacts of projected climate change throughout Canada, including the Great Lakes, Saskatchewan River and the Mackenzie Basin. In 1995, as part of a research partnership agreement with the University of British Columbia (UBC), he moved to Vancouver and began developing collaborative projects with the UBC community.

He led several climate change impact and adaptation studies of the Okanagan region, and contributed to studies on forests in central and northern British Columbia, and on projected climate impacts and adaptation actions in the Vancouver area. He also created and taught a graduate course, “Climate Change in the 21st Century”. This led to him publishing a textbook with that title in 2009 (McGill-Queen’s University Press).

He has been a member of author teams for national assessments of climate change in Canada and the United States, as well as several publications of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group II – Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability.

Photos: Flood: Photo by Chris Gallagher on Unsplash Okanagan Vineyard: Photo by Kelowna09 on Wikimedia Seaside: Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Kaboom Pics Busy Street Scene: Photo by Anubhav Saxena on Unsplash Wave: Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash Smoke Stack: Photo by Mohri UN-CECAR on Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66770481@N02/6741179149) California Wildfires: Photo by Bjorgialt on Wikimedia Drought: Photo by redcharlie on Unsplash

Can climate change become so bad that only an all-powerful world government can deal with it? Dr. Joel Wainwright, co-author of Climate Leviathan with Dr. Geoff Mann, explains how different scenarios may emerge in the coming years: global government of a capitalist or anti-capitalist nature, nationalistic capitalist states vying for dominance or a grassroots democratic effort to face off against climate change. Tune in as we explore how potential futures could play out.

Be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program! Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/climate-leviathan-potential-global-futures-interview-with-dr-joel-wainwright

Dr. Wainwright's Bio

Currently, Dr. Joel Wainwright is a Professor in the Department of Geography at The Ohio State University in Columbus, OH. This has been since 2017. Before this, he was Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University, 2015-2016.

His education is as follows: a PhD, Geography (minor in sustainable agriculture), University of Minnesota, 1998-2003; MA, Geography, University of Minnesota, 1996-1998 and BA (Honors), Environmental Studies, Bucknell University, 1991-1995. He has received many honors, most recently the Sussex Prize for International Theory, 2019, for this Climate Leviathan book. For publications, his books include the one we're featuring, as well as the 2012 Geopiracy: Oaxaca, Militant Empiricism, and Geographical Thought, the 2008 Decolonizing Development: Colonial Power and the Maya and many, many journal articles on a diverse range of topics.

This episode is an interview with Dr. Edris Alam, an expert in Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) from Bangladesh. He discusses how Bangladesh has been dealing with pandemics, cyclones, earthquakes, landslides, etc.  He shows how the people of Bangladesh are becoming better prepared for disasters and bringing in sustainable development despite the challenges they face.  Join us as we learn about this important part of the world and how Dr. Alam has directed his career to protect communities.   Be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program!  Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date!  https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/bangladeshs-disaster-risk-reduction-drr-interview-with-dr-edris-alam   Dr. Alam's Bio   Currently, Dr. Edris Alam is working in the United Arab Emirates, where he's interviewing from.  His specialities are Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Climate Change Adaptation (CCA).  Prior to this, he was the Associate Professor and Chairman of the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at the Chittagong University (CU), Bangladesh. Dr. Alam has been active in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation research since 2000. Dr Alam studied and worked at universities in Bangladesh, the UK and Australia.   His Master's of Science thesis entitled ‘post tropical cyclone disaster management’ in the Department of Geography and Environment, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh was where he started. He has another specialised Masters Degree in Disaster Management and Sustainable Development from the Northumbria University, UK. Additionally, Professor Alam  received his PhD in Disaster Risk Reduction in Bangladesh from the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia.    Dr. Alam is an honorary Chief Executive of Disaster Action and Development Organisation (DADO). Professor Alam succeeded securing research funding from Governmental Organisations (GOs), NGOs, INGOs and universities in Bangladesh, Australia and the United Kingdom. Dr Alam worked as a consultant with NGOs, the Government of Bangladesh, INGOs and UN (the United Nations) agencies. He has a significant track record of high quality research outputs by publishing in the science of natural hazards, vulnerability and disaster management, publishing 20+ research papers in major international journals (e.g. Disasters, Earth-Science Reviews, Natural Hazards, Progress in Disaster Science and International Journal of Climatology).    In 2018, Professor Alam written and published a book entitled ‘Coping and Adaptation: Coastal Communities with Disasters’. His Google Scholar page has stated that Dr. Alam has had extensive citations of his work worldwide.   Over the last nineteen years, Professor Alam has been working on climatic hazards, early warning, disaster risk reduction, resilient livelihoods and climate change adaptation. His expertise is specifically in theoretical and behavioural approaches to disaster risk reduction and sustainable development. He gained this by working with local communities, the Government of Bangladesh, NGOs and UN agencies, and delivering teaching and conducting academic research on responses to climate and disaster management. Whilst working as a lead international consultant on climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction cluster of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) country program (2017-2020) evaluation in Bangladesh, Professor Alam identified appalling strategic gap in program document development and implementation of agendas on climate change and disaster risk reduction. Advocating for the mainstreaming of environment, climate and disaster risk reduction considerations throughout all sectors is the utmost thrust of his work.

The 2nd part of an interview with terrorism specialist Phil Gurski on religions that become hazardous. This episode discusses Judaism, Zionism, anti-Semitism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, atheism, Marxism, the role of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), etc.

As Phil Gurski says, most people, religious or not, are kind and helpful. A very small percentage go down the "dark path" to inflict heavenly "wrath" on unbelievers, to the point of engaging in terrorism. We discuss who they are and how national security intelligence services can keep their population safe.

Be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program! Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/

Phil Gurski's Bio in Brief:

President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. and Programme Director for the Security, Economics and Technology (SET) hub at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute (PDI). He worked at CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service), the Communications Security Establishment (CSE – Canada’s signals intelligence agency), senior special advisor in the National Security Directorate at Public Safety Canada, as consultant for the Ontario Provincial Police’s Anti-Terrorism Section (PATS) and the Director of Security and Intelligence at the SecDev Group. He gives frequent presentations, has written some excellent books, writes articles for Ottawa's The Hill news and other Canadian and international media. He regularly blogs and podcasts on terrorism at his website: www.borealisthreatandrisk.com and tweets at @borealissaves.

In this episode, Dr. John Clague opens a discussion about multi-hazards in our modern world.  As a geo-hazard specialist, he explores earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, etc. in the context of growing populations.  He explains how physical science needs to add to the conversation about society, how and where we live and how we respond to risks.  In a limited global environment, with resources threatened by climate change, biodiversity loss, as well as poor governance and human decisions, Dr. Clague maps out what are some possible solutions.  He reflects on lessons from the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918-1919 and our recent COVID-19 challenges.  Dealing with complex issues of racism, inequity, globalisation and geohazard careers, he offers some ideas for the way forward.   Join us at Multi-Hazards as we explore how we all can work together to build better communities.  Also, be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program!  Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/multi-hazards-in-a-risky-world-interview-with-dr-john-clague   Dr. John Clague's Bio

Dr. John Clague is Emeritus Professor at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, in the province of British Columbia in Canada. He was educated at Occidental College (BA), the University of California Berkeley (MA), and the University of British Columbia (PhD). He worked as a Research Scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada from 1975 until 1998. In 1998 he accepted a faculty position in Department of Earth Sciences at Simon Fraser University. Dr. Clague is a Quaternary geologist with research specialisations in glacial geology, geomorphology, natural hazards and climate change.

Dr. Clague is former Director of the Centre for Natural Hazard Research at Simon Fraser University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, former President of the Geological Association of Canada, and Past-President of the International Union for Quaternary Research and the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (APEGBC). He is recipient of the Geological Society of America Burwell Award, the Royal Society of Canada Bancroft Award, APEGBC’s Innovation Editorial Board Award, the Geological Association of Canada’s (GAC) E.R.W Neale Medal, GAC’s Logan Medal and Ambrose Medal, and Geoscientists Canada 2019 Professional Geoscientist Award. He received an Honorary PhD from the University of Waterloo in 2017 and was inducted into the Order of Canada in 2020.

Dr. Clague is a leading authority in natural hazards and risk and in Quaternary and environmental earth sciences. A major focus of his research, over the 50-year period since he published his first paper on large slumps in the Monterey Formation in Point Reyes National Seashore in California, is natural hazards, with emphasis on landslides. He is noted for local national, and international research collaboration with other geologists, engineers, geographers, biologists, and physicists. He and his students have conducted research on landslides, earthquakes, tsunamis and floods in Canada, the USA, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, Austria, Italy and New Zealand.

How do cities and regions adapt to climate change? Registered Professional Planner (RPP) Christine Callihoo from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada answers where climate change and adaptation are headed in the realm of city planning. She explains how asset planning can help communities with tools and frameworks for adaptation. She also answers how our attitude about taxes should change in the face of decaying infrastructure and climate change and discusses role models from Europe, Australia and elsewhere. In addition, she addresses how professionals in the fields of Emergency Management (EM) and Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) can collaborate more effectively.

Join us at Multi-Hazards as we explore how we all can work together to build better communities.

Also, be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program!  Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date! https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/city-planning-climate-risk-interview-with-christine-callihoo

Christine Callihoo's Bio

Christine Callihoo (MSc, RPP, MCIP) is a Senior Land Use and Community Planner.  As a Registered Professional Planner (RPP) with 25 years of experience, she has worked in a diverse range of areas including land use and community planning, community‐based climate change mitigation and adaptation planning, asset management planning, and community safety planning. Focusing on engagement and policy development, she brings a climate lens to all project endeavours to increase community resiliency and adaptive capacity.

Her recent certifications earned include a ISO 31000 Provisional Risk Manager Certificate and a Professional Certificate in Asset Mgmt Planning (IPWEA). Her areas of specialization are integrated asset management planning, climate change adaptation and community resiliency planning and community safety planning.

This episode focuses on religion and ideology. Often we're taught to avoid two topics: religion and politics. However, can we discuss religion and ideology, at the right time and place, with civility and respect? In this episode, terrorism specialist Phil Gurski discusses this sensitive topic of religion with tact and diplomacy. 

As Phil Gurski says, most people, religious or not, are kind and helpful. A very small percentage go down the "dark path" to inflict heavenly "wrath" on unbelievers, to the point of engaging in terrorism.

Religion often has moderates and sometimes extremists. Conservative and liberals. People who view their sacred writings metaphorically or literally. Groups and individuals who try to spread their religion as much as possible, others who don't. We live in a world of multiple religions and beliefs. Somehow, some way, we have to get along . . .

Join us at Multi-Hazards as we explore religion, how it affects society, and how we all can work together.

Also, be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program!  Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date!  https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/can-religion-sometimes-be-a-hazard-interview-with-phil-gurski

Phil Gurski's Bio

Phil Gurski is the President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. and Programme Director for the Security, Economics and Technology (SET) hub at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute (PDI). He worked as a senior strategic analyst at CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) from 2001-2015, specialising in violent Islamist-inspired homegrown terrorism and radicalisation.

From 1983 to 2001 he was employed as a senior multilingual analyst at Communications Security Establishment (CSE – Canada’s signals intelligence agency), specialising in the Middle East. He also served as senior special advisor in the National Security Directorate at Public Safety Canada from 2013, focusing on community outreach and training on radicalisation to violence, until his retirement from the civil service in May 2015, and as consultant for the Ontario Provincial Police’s Anti-Terrorism Section (PATS) from May to October 2015. He was the Director of Security and Intelligence at the SecDev Group from June 2018 to July 2019.

Mr. Gurski has presented on violent Islamist-inspired and other forms of terrorism and radicalisation across Canada and around the world. He is the author of “The Threat from Within: Recognizing Al Qaeda-inspired Radicalization and Terrorism in the West” (Rowman and Littlefield 2015) “Western Foreign Fighters: the threat to homeland and international security” (Rowman and Littlefield 2017), "The Lesser Jihads: taking the Islamist fight to the world" (Rowman and Littlefield 2017), "An End to the ‘War on Terrorism’" and When Religion Kills: how extremist justify violence through faith (Lynne Rienner 2019).

Mr. Gurski regularly blogs and podcasts on terrorism ("An Intelligent Look at Terrorism" – available on his website: www.borealisthreatandrisk.com) and tweets on the subject at the Twitter handle @borealissaves.

He is an associate fellow at the International Centre for Counter Terrorism (ICCT) in the Netherlands, a digital fellow at the Montreal Institute for Genocide Studies at Concordia University, a member of the board at the National Capital Branch of the CIC (Canadian International Council) and an affiliate of the Canadian network for research on Terrorism Security and Society (TSAS). Mr. Gurski is a regular commentator on terrorism and radicalisation for a wide variety of Canadian and international media. He is fluently trilingual in English, French and Spanish.

This episode highlights Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), specifically tornadoes and communicating disaster risk to communities. Multi-Hazards host Vin Nelsen interviews Dr. Justin Sharpe, Research Scientist and Social Science Coordinator for the VORTEX-SE project and member of the Behavioural Insights Unit at the Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies (CIMMS), a research organisation of both the University of Oklahoma and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), in Norman, Oklahoma, USA.

Join us at Multi-Hazards as we explore how communities can better prepare for extreme weather events such as tornadoes.

Also, be sure to check out the Study Guide for the program!  Click on the top left where it says "Pdf" above the date!  https://multi-hazards.libsyn.com/tornadoes-communicating-disaster-risk-interview-with-dr-justin-sharpe

Dr. Justin Sharpe's Bio

Dr. Justin Sharpe is currently researching tornado epidemiology, risks and vulnerability to inform wider research parameters. At the heart of this research, grounded theory, action research and co-production of knowledge and learning focus to allow community participation in identifying and closing value action gaps in protective actions when tornadoes occur.

His education includes a PhD in Geography, King’s College London, 2018, a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in Geography from the Institute of Education, 2003, and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Environmental Studies from the University of Sunderland, 1994.

In his career, Dr. Sharpe has been a Post-Doctoral Researcher, at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), in London, Brussels, Rome from 2018 to 2019. He was a Lecturer of Geography in Environmental Management and Climate Change, at London Southbank University, London UK from 2018 to 2019, a Graduate Teaching Assistant, King’s College London from 2014 to 2019, and a Graduate Research Assistant, King’s College London in 2015.

His website is called www.edu4drr.org. It covers Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) education and can assist instructors in educating their students to prepare for disasters and become resilient, that is, to be tougher in the face of disasters and more capable of "bouncing back".