IDRT Global Programs

Building a Global Learning Network for Disaster Resilience

Disaster resilience is a global challenge that requires collaboration across borders, disciplines, and communities.

The Institute for a Disaster Resilient Texas (IDRT) Global Programs extends the Institute’s work beyond Texas, partnering with institutions, students and communities around the world. Together, we build global capacity for disaster resilience and train the next generation of leaders in the field.

Our Vision

A global learning network for disaster resilience.

Our Mission

Advance disaster resilience through collaborative research, hands-on education, and strategic partnerships that connect people, ideas, and institutions worldwide.

What We Do

The Foundation of Our Work

Resilience takes more than one discipline, one classroom, or one country. It takes collaborative research to uncover what’s possible, education that turns knowledge into capability, and partnerships that carry ideas across borders and into practice. This is where that work begins and where it multiplies.

Research

We team up across disciplines and countries through joint studies, comparative research and partnerships to tackle shared resilience challenges.

Focus areas:

  • Coastal resilience
  • Flood risk reduction
  • Hazard mitigation planning

Education

We give students real-world experience so they graduate ready to work on resilience challenges anywhere in the world.

Programs:

  • NSF-funded International Research Experiences
  • Undergraduate Research Internship Program
  • International workshops and seminars
  • Domestic Academic Exchange (coming soon)

Partnerships

We build lasting partnerships to strengthen global capacity for resilience research, education, and innovation.

Ways we collaborate:

  • Joint research
  • Faculty exchange
  • Student mobility
  • Institutional partnerships
  • Workforce development
Where We Work

Our Global Partnerships

Global Programs collaborates with institutions across the globe, exchanging research and expertise to advance disaster resilience.

IDRT — Our Global Partnerships
Active In development

Delft, Netherlands

Delft University of Technology

A decade-long partnership training students in flood resilience research through NSF-funded fieldwork.

Busan, South Korea

Pusan National University

NSF-funded research bringing flood resilience training to a new region and research community.

In development

Maine, USA

Colby College

A planned partnership to expand student research opportunities and interdisciplinary collaboration within the U.S.

Sathyamangalam, India

Bannari Amman Institute of Technology

Developing joint research and education initiatives in disaster resilience.

Taipei, Taiwan

National Taiwan University

A new collaboration exploring shared solutions to disaster resilience challenges.

  • Delft, Netherlands

    Delft University of Technology

    More than a decade of partnership training students in flood resilience research through NSF-funded fieldwork.

  • Busan, South Korea

    Pusan National University

    NSF-funded research bringing flood resilience training to a new region and research community.

  • In development

    Maine, USA

    Colby College

    Expanding student research opportunities and interdisciplinary collaboration within the U.S.

  • Sathyamangalam, India

    Bannari Amman Institute of Technology

    Developing joint research and education initiatives in disaster resilience.

  • Taipei, Taiwan

    National Taiwan University

    Collaboration exploring shared solutions to disaster resilience challenges.

Student Research Programs

Where Research Meets Real-World Experience

Global Programs give students the chance to work alongside leading researchers on the resilience challenges shaping our world today. From international field research to hands-on internships, each opportunity is designed to build practical skills, expand global perspective, and connect participants with a network of mentors and collaborators. These experiences don’t just teach resilience concepts—they put students at the center of the work itself.

International Research Experiences for Students (IRES)

This NSF-funded program sends students abroad to work directly with partner institutions in the Netherlands and South Korea, tackling real challenges in coastal resilience and flood risk reduction.

Participants spend their time immersed in international research teams, learning how different countries approach shared environmental threats and building the kind of cross-cultural collaboration skills that define modern resilience work. It’s a chance to see disaster resilience research in action, well beyond the classroom.

Undergraduate Research Internship Program (URIP)

Designed for students at the start of their research journey, this internship offers hands-on experience working alongside IDRT faculty and researchers on active resilience projects.

Interns gain exposure to the full research process—from data collection to analysis to real-world application—while building the foundation for a future in disaster resilience science or policy. It’s a launching point for the next generation of leaders in the field.

Join Our Global Learning Network

Student, faculty, researcher, or institution — there’s a place for you here. Let’s collaborate on research, education, and disaster resilience together.