Erica Kuligowski

Dr. Erica Kuligowski is a Vice-Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow in the School of Engineering at RMIT University. With a PhD in Sociology and MS and BS degrees in Fire Engineering, she has led interdisciplinary research studies of human response to hazards and disasters to improve the safety of people in buildings and communities around the world. She joins RMIT University from the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Engineering Laboratory where her research on evacuation and sheltering behaviour and emergency communications in disaster events, including building fire, severe weather, and bushfire, has received awards from the U.S. Government (Department of Commerce) and international fire engineering organisations. Dr. Kuligowski has written seven book chapters and over 100 journal, conference, and agency articles. Her work has led to the development of new or improved building codes and community standards, decision-making tools for disaster response such as evacuation models, and emergency alert/warning creation tools and templates.