From Heat to Multi-Hazard: Performance-Based Methods for Resilient Design

Simona Bianchi

TU Delft

Abstract

As climate-induced hazards intensify, the built environment requires resilience strategies that simultaneously address compound threats, multi-domain impacts and multi-source uncertainty. This talk presents performance-based methodologies developed through the EU-funded MULTICARE and NWO-funded RECLIMATE projects designed to meet these challenges. Progressing from loss-based performance matrices to advanced probabilistic loss modeling, these frameworks enable consistent comparison of design alternatives. They integrate extreme heat into multi-hazard risk assessments using harmonized metrics, such as expected annualized losses and probable maximum losses. Applications ranging from individual multi-story buildings to urban-scale planning demonstrate their potential to guide adaptation prioritization and drive resource-efficient investment under future extremes.

Bio

Simona Bianchi, Ph.D., P.E. is an Assistant Professor in the ReStruct Group at TU Delft. Her research focuses on climate and disaster resilience, risk assessment, multi-criteria decision-making and low-damage low-carbon building technologies. With a background in structural engineering, she specializes in performance-based design and probabilistic vulnerability modelling under natural hazards. She is a recipient of a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship and the NWO Veni 2023 grant. She currently serves as Technical Lead of the €7.5M Horizon Europe MULTICARE project on multi-hazard resilient buildings. Throughout her career, Simona has contributed to and led numerous international research projects, building collaborations with public and private institutions worldwide.