Sharing my master’s research: “Mapping Resilience to Compound Events in a Global Metropolis: A Case Study of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia”

After two years studying a master’s degree in Social-Ecological Resilience for Sustainable Development at the Stockholm Resilience Centre, I am pleased to share that I have officially completed the program and obtained a Master of Science degree. The master’s consisted of one year of coursework, followed by one year dedicated entirely to conceptualizing and carrying out an independent research project, culminating in a master’s thesis.

My research project, titled “Mapping Resilience to Compound Events in a Global Metropolis: A Case Study of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia” advanced knowledge of urban resilience to extreme climate events, focused on the case study of Riyadh. In particular, I analyzed Riyadh’s vulnerability to extreme heat and flash flooding, and how hazards of extreme heat, flash flooding, and their compound occurrence manifest in and around Riyadh. My methodology combined spatial analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools with meteorological analysis of climate and weather data in Python. Ultimately, my research yielded a series of vulnerability and hazard maps, analyzing single and multi-hazards in Riyadh.

Riyadh provided a fascinating case for studying conditions of rapid urbanization in a city that already faces numerous climate change risks. At the same time, my research is situated in a context of polycrisis, which recognizes that crises globally are becoming increasingly interconnected, including intensifying climate change events, among other social, economic, technological, and other crises. Cities, which already are home to more than half of the world’s population and projected to grow even more, both uniquely contribute to and are vulnerable to climate threats and other crises. At the same time, cities are spaces of innovation that can be at the forefront of climate change solutions. From this lens, the resilience of cities to polycrisis will be of increasing concern for both policymakers and urban residents worldwide.

On a personal level, I thoroughly enjoyed dedicating a year to researching a topic I found fascinating, challenging, and extremely timely. It was an incredible learning opportunity for me, having walked into this master’s never having touched GIS or Python before, to then spending a year learning the ins and outs of these tools, and particularly seeing the power of spatial analysis to understand and address sustainability challenges. And as a traveler at heart, I’m also extremely grateful that I was able to visit Riyadh as part of the thesis, and get a firsthand view of the city, meet various contacts there, and situate my research in a real context.

Although I have wrapped up my master’s thesis, I do welcome opportunities to carry this research forward. More generally, I’ve grown especially fascinated by urban sustainability and resilience as an overall theme – I’ve always wanted my work to positively impact people, and what better places to impacts lots of people than in cities? I’m looking forward to continuing to work on these topics throughout my career, whether in academia or in my work as a sustainability practitioner.

My master’s thesis has been published open-access online on DiVA – I invite anyone interested to take a look, and I welcome any discussion on the topic!

The end of the master’s program was bittersweet, but I am grateful for having had this experience. My sincerest thank you to my supervisors Drs. Louis Delannoy, Kara Pellowe, and Magnus Nyström, and for the support of Susteer in making the trip to Riyadh a reality.