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1. Water and Energy Balance Model GOES-PRWEB: Development and Validation

   https://doi.org/10.3390/hydrology8030113  

   Harmsen, Eric W.; Mecikalski, John R.; Reventos, Victor J.; Álvarez Pérez, Estefanía; Uwakweh, Sopuruchi S.; Adorno García, Christie (September 2021, Hydrology)

   null (Ed.)

   In 2009, the University of Alabama-Huntsville configured their GOES satellited-based solar radiation product to include Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands (USVI), Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, and Cuba. The half-hourly and daily integrated data are available at 1 km resolution for Puerto Rico and the USVI and 2 km for Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Cuba. These data made it possible to implement estimates of satellite radiation-based evapotranspiration methods on all of the islands. The use of the solar radiation data in combination with estimates of other climate parameters facilitated the development of a water and energy balance algorithm for Puerto Rico. The purpose of this paper is to describe the theoretical background and technical approach for estimating the components of the daily water and energy balance. The operational water and energy balance model is the first of its kind in Puerto Rico. Model validation results are presented for reference and actual evapotranspiration, soil moisture, and streamflow. Mean errors for all analyses were less than 7%. The water and energy balance model results can benefit such diverse fields as agriculture, ecology, coastal water management, human health, renewable energy development, water resources, drought monitoring, and disaster and emergency management. This research represents a preliminary step in developing a suite of gridded hydro-climate products for the Caribbean Region. 

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2. Ingenuity for El Ingenio: Resilient and Sustainable Housing Design Concept for Displaced Communities in Puerto Rico

   González, A.; Irizarry, E. (July 2022, 20th LACCEI International Multi-Conference for Engineering, Education and Technology)

   Ingenuity for El Ingenio is a case study to address the challenges that marginalized communities in Puerto Rico suffer, mostly from natural hazards, due to settlements in high-risk areas and deteriorating infrastructure. The case study was developed by an interdisciplinary group of students from the University of Puerto Rico - Río Piedras School of Architecture and students from the Department of Civil Engineering and Surveying and the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Puerto Rico - Mayagüez, as part of the course “Design-Build Project Delivery” in the RISE-UP program. The project contemplated spaces for a family/group of four people, in the neighborhood Ingenio in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, which is a community exposed to multiple natural hazards including hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods. The design parameters for the project included a set budget of $40,000 USD for the construction of four temporary housing units, requirement to withstand the impact of multiple natural hazards, as well as being simple to build and be able to operate independent to power and water grids during an emergency. The resulting design provides 270 sq ft. of usable space and can partially function off the grid due to solar energy generation and water storage. Local materials were implemented, and a manual of components and suggested construction methods was developed. This experience showcases the benefits that an interdisciplinary-integrated approach to infrastructure design can have on producing rapid and efficient design solutions to challenges caused by natural hazards, in resilient and sustainable ways. 

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3. Principles for collaborative risk communication: Reducing landslide losses in Puerto Rico

   https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.0547  

   West, PhD Student; Davis, MS; Bendezú, BSc; Álvarez Gandía, BSc; Hughes, PhD; Godt, PhD; Peek, PhD (September 2021, Journal of Emergency Management)

   Landslides are frequent and damaging natural hazards that threaten the people and the natural and built environments of Puerto Rico. In 2017, more than 70,000 landslides were triggered across the island by heavy rainfall from Hurricane María, prompting requests by local professionals for landslide education and outreach materials. This article describes a novel collaborative risk communication framework that was developed to meet those requests and shaped the creation of a Spanish- and English-language Landslide Guide for Residents of Puerto Rico. Collaborative risk communication is defined here as an iterative process guided by a set of principles for the interdisciplinary coproduction of hazards information and communication products by local and external stakeholders. The process that supports this form of risk communication involves mapping out the risk communication stakeholders in the at-risk or disaster-affected location—in this case Puerto Rico—and collaborating over time to address a shared challenge, such as landslide hazards. The approach described in this article involved the formation of a core team of government and university partners that expanded in membership to conduct collaborative work with an informal network of hazards professionals from diverse sectors in Puerto Rico. The following principles guided this process: cultural competence, ethical engagement, listening, inclusive decision making, empathy, convergence research, nested mentoring, adaptability, and reciprocity. This article contributes to the field of risk communication and emergency management by detailing these principles and the associated process in order to motivate collaborative risk communication efforts in different geographic and cultural contexts. While the work described here focuses on addressing landslides, the principles and process are transferable to other natural, technological, and willful human-caused hazards. They may also serve as a roadmap for future partnerships among government agencies and university researchers to inform the cocreation of science education and outreach tools. 

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4. Transdisciplinary academic-NGO collaborations for the resilience of food, energy, and water: a case study on the INFEWS-ER experience in post-disaster Puerto Rico

   https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2023.1108375  

   Markazi, Daniela M.; Brunton, Ann M.; Margarit, Philip; Ojeda-Matos, Glorynel; Sulistyo, Sinta; Fernández Frey, Michael; Ramírez Berríos, Mariela; Reed, Samuel P.; Heemstra, Jill; Rodríguez, Luis F. (August 2023, Frontiers in Environmental Science)

   The communities of Puerto Rico are highly vulnerable to climate change as the archipelago has experienced a multitude of compounding crises and extreme weather events in recent years. To address these issues, the research, analysis, and design of grand challenge solutions for disaster-prone regions like Puerto Rico can utilize collaborative transdisciplinary efforts. Local non-governmental and community-based organizations have a pivotal role in the reconstruction processes and the building of community and environmental resilience in underserved communities. This paper contributes an empirical case study of an online transdisciplinary collaboration between a group of academics and a Puerto Rican non-governmental organization, Caras con Causa. From participant observation, it includes a document analysis of meeting notes with cohort members who were involved in a collaborative National Science Foundation Project, The INFEWS-ER: A Virtual Resource Center Enabling Graduate Innovations at the Nexus of Food, Energy, and Water Systems, with Caras con Causa between October 2020 and April 2021. Caras con Causa focuses on uplifting Puerto Ricans by creating and administering environmental, educational, economic, and community programs, highlighting disaster relief and resilience to help Puerto Rican food, energy, and water systems. Eight key discussion themes emerged from the document analysis: team organization, collaboration with Caras con Causa, deliverables, team contributions, context understanding, participation outcomes, technology setup, and lessons learned. We analyze each of the emerging themes to explain how academics may use transdisciplinary skill sets in addition to standard disciplinary-based approaches or techniques to enhance the institutional capacity of a non-governmental organization doing community resilience work to benefit local food, energy, and water systems. While the learned lessons in this non-governmental organization-academic collaboration may be context-specific, we provide insights that may be generalizable to collaborations in comparable transdisciplinary settings. 

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5. Addressing Post-Disaster Challenges and Fostering Social Mobility through Origami Infrastructure and Construction Trade Education

   https://doi.org/10.3390/su16083415  

   Calle_Müller, Claudia; ElZomor, Mohamed (April 2024, Sustainability)

   Natural disasters devastate property and infrastructure systems, impeding sustainable development. Low-income communities, due to economic, physical, and social disparities, face heightened exposure and vulnerability. These communities endure severe and long-lasting infrastructure damage, experiencing a fourfold increase in deaths per disaster and delayed recovery efforts. Consequently, they resort to constructing informal housing and infrastructure, worsening post-disaster challenges and vulnerabilities. This study aims to address post-disaster challenges in low-income communities by proposing two novel approaches that remain understudied despite their significant potential: (1) a short-term solution of origami temporary emergency housing for swift shelter post-disaster, enabling a return to routine activities while homes and infrastructure systems are being repaired or rebuilt; and (2) a long-term solution, including effective pedagogy, such as teaching methods and instructional tools, to educate and train low-income individuals to aid in sustainable post-disaster reconstruction while providing the added benefit of social mobility. To validate the feasibility of origami TEH and the need and effectiveness of the pedagogy, a survey among architecture, engineering, and construction experts in Puerto Rico, a region prone to natural disasters, was conducted. The results, analyzed using statistical measures including descriptive statistics and ordered probit regression analysis, emphasize the urgent need for sustainable TEH that can be quickly assembled and education for low-income individuals in construction trades. Implementing these solutions will significantly impact communities by addressing post-disaster challenges and promoting social mobility and job equity. 

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