Ep 73: Reimagining Flood Risk and Insurance
“If we start thinking about flood insurance more as life insurance for a community, I call it life insurance for levees in the Central Valley, then it provides a safe space for us to have these very difficult and challenging conversations. You know, what happens to your community if that levy fails? How are you going to recover and thrive? What do you need to do now?”
A conversation with Dr. Kathleen Schaefer about flood risk and new approaches for community-based flood insurance. Released October 10, 2025.
guests on the show
Kathleen Schaefer
Dr. Kathleen Schaefer earned her Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from UC Davis in December 2024. Dr. Schaefer focuses on operationalizing flood risk and exploring innovative insurance instruments to monetize losses avoided, actively reducing risk. Her work assesses U.S. and global flood risk management frameworks employing hydraulic modeling, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), and actuarial statistics to analyze insurance affordability, mitigation value, financial viability, and vulnerability reduction indicators. Kathleen has vast professional experience, she served as a Regional Engineer for FEMA Region IX where she oversaw the National Flood Insurance Program map production for Northern and Central California. She is a registered Professional Engineer (P.E.), a Certified Floodplain Manger (CFM) and is the recipient of the Floodplain Management Association Hogg-Owen Meritorious Achievement Award. Connect with Kathleen on Linkedin or via her website.
TRANSCRIPT
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