Exploring the E-Suite with Dr. Shalini Vajjhala
re:focus is a design firm that specializes in developing resilient infrastructure solutions for cities and communities around the world and integrating project finance into the design process.
The danger of a $2 trillion infrastructure promise
Another Infrastructure Week (the real one) just wrapped up, and after seven years many of the core themes remain the same. Crumbling roads and bridges. Desperate calls for new investment. A high national price tag for repair and revitalization. Little progress.
Social network for ‘smart cities’ encourages idea-sharing
City officials can easily engage their residents on social networks like Facebook, Twitter or NextDoor, but they often struggle to find outlets to communicate with their peers in city governments across the country.
After Amazon: How Cities Can Use Tech to Their Benefit
AFTER AMAZON CANCELLED its plans to build a new campus in New York City, famed venture capitalist Fred Wilson told the New York Times, "To really be a success in New York, the benefits of the tech sector have to extend to every borough and every neighborhood."
Resilience Bonds: a business-model for resilient infrastructure
When natural disasters occur, governments are often considered as “insurers of last resort” and are expected to help with losses not covered by traditional insurance and to coordinate and fund reconstruction efforts.
Climate change bringing long-term credit risks to states and municipalities
While several major ballot measures targeting climate change failed during the midterm election, reality will catch up with spiraling costs, which have not been fully captured by the credit rating agencies, according to several market sources.
Better procurement tools can improve urban resilience
When governments purchase goods and services, they must often carry out a number of time-consuming steps to get anything done.
Investing in better procurement processes can enable better infrastructure outcomes
Many cities across the United States are home to legacy infrastructure systems. These older water, transportation, and communications systems are not only poorly suited to current needs, but they are also nearing (or well past) the end of their usable lives after decades of underinvestment and deferred maintenance.
Lloyd’s of London on a possible breakthrough in disaster resilience
Lloyd’s of London and the UK’s Center for Global Disaster Protection have identified financial instruments that could be used to incentivize investing in resilience.
Cities Threatened by Climate Risk Still Getting AAA Bond Ratings
Last fall, after a trio of deadly hurricanes, ratings companies warned vulnerable coastal cities to get ready for climate change -- or face higher borrowing costs on the $3.9 trillion municipal bond market.