Resilience First is delighted to join the ICSI’s Board of Directors, with Tom Lewis as its representative.

ICSI is an engineering-led coalition with the aim to make resilience and sustainability a cornerstone of every decision in the infrastructure lifecycle of every community around the globe.

Resilience First and ICSI have been working together to speed up the implementation of sustainable and resilient infrastructure.

"There are clear synergies between Resilience First and ICSI’s visions and activities, and we are excited to formalise this through representation on ICSI’s board. Tom’s expertise and insight will be of tremendous value to this position and we look forward to continuing this productive and transformative partnership." Michael Rooney, Chief Executive of Resilience First

ICSI has been an important collaborator within the Resilience Rising consortium, especially regarding the establishment of the Engineering Leadership Group (ELG), a new engagement platform, aiming to capture the voice of global engineering firms, and the UNFCCC’s endorsed Race to Resilience campaign, of which ICSI and Resilience First are both Partner Initiatives.

Savina Carluccio, ICSI Executive Director commented: “We are thrilled to have Tom on board and look forward to a continued partnership with Resilience First and the ELG. ICSI and Resilience First have established a collaborative partnership to advocate for the implementation of sustainable and resilient infrastructure, working closely under the umbrella of the Resilience Rising global non-profit consortium.”

As a Resilience First advisory board member, Lewis will represent the perspective of private, engineering-inclusive organisations which are involved in bringing about more sustainable and resilient infrastructure.

Lewis has also taken on the role as Engineering Leadership Group (ELG) Vice Chair, he will work alongside the ELG Chair, helping to increase the number and global diversity of ELG members, while working with Resilience First and ICSI leadership to align annual activities to deliver on the engineering advocacy pillar of the ICSI strategic plan.

Lewis explained: “The engineering voice and perspective has been largely absent from the global climate resilience and sustainability policy and investment table for too long. That is why I am so pleased and honoured to represent the private sector and engineering perspective through Resilience First, ICSI and the ELG.”

In addition to leading WSP USA’s Climate, Resilience & Sustainability business line, which strategically includes the company’s trademarked “Future Ready” program, Tom also acts as the US lead on WSP’s industry-leading global Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) program. Tom is a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in multiple states, holds a BS and MS in Civil Engineering and a Juris Doctorate with focus on environmental law, and is a board member for multiple organisations.

Carluccio added “Resilience First’s strategic and operational leadership experience working across the private sector, combined with their subject matter expertise on resilience and sustainability issues ranging from security to climate, will be an invaluable contribution to ICSI’s future trajectory. The partnership provides an opportunity to engage the broader business community in ICSI’s work, greatly helping ICSI in achieving its vision and strategic goals.”