GRI Faculty Affiliate explores how emotions such as gratitude, pride and compassion can make a society more resilient

What motivates people to accept sacrifice or persevere in the face of difficulty? To return a favor or to extend one? These are some of the questions Global Resilience Institute (GRI) Faculty Affiliate and Northeastern University Professor of Psychology David DeSteno puts forth in an article written for the World Economic Forum. "Moral emotions – ones like gratitude, compassion, and an authentic sense of pride (as opposed to hubris) – generate such virtuous actions," DeSteno writes. "We pay people back because we feel grateful; we offer to help them because we feel compassion; we work hard to achieve a goal because we take pride in the result and the admiration of others. What unites these behaviors and many like them is the necessity of self-control. Each requires a willingness to sacrifice time, money, effort, or even happiness in the moment in order to build and maintain stable, productive, and supportive relationships that will benefit a person for years to come."

GRI doctoral research assistants win award for ‘resilient critical infrastructure governance’ research at DHS Centers of Excellence Summit

Two Global Resilience Institute Doctoral Research Assistants took home the top prize for best graduate poster at The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Centers of Excellence (COE) Summit on Thursday. The poster, presented by Maria Robson and Lizzy Warner, explored a network science and ArcGIS approach to enhance resilient critical infrastructure governance. The research focuses on providing policymakers and infrastructure owners and operators with tools to build a comprehensive understanding of critical infrastructure interdependencies, in order to build resilience and limit disruptions in one system from cascading into another.

GRI Doctoral Research Assistants develop tool to help assess city preparedness

Thousands of people are expected to pour into Canadian, American, and Mexican cities for the 2026 World Cup—and Boston could be one of them. The security, transportation, and energy infrastructure in each host city will need to achieve peak performance to accommodate the influx, athletes, fans, and journalists. But are these critical systems up to the test? Two doctoral students at Northeastern have developed a tool that could help assess each city’s level of preparedness. Maria Robson and Lizzy Warner, who work at the university’s Global Resilience Institute, have created an interactive map that illustrates how critical infrastructure in Boston—including the MBTA, the energy grid, and the water and sewer system—are connected to each other. Their map knits together existing charts for each system to provide a comprehensive understanding of how they work together.