Omar-Darío Cardona Arboleda

Cardona has also contributed to the first time fully probabilistic mutli-hazard assessment at global level for the UNDRR’s Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction 2013, 2015, and 2017. The classification of globe was conducted with respect to set of seismogenetic areas, and Gutenberg–Richter magnitude–frequency distribution was assumed for the regions. This study results in the computation of probabilistic seismic hazard and the coarse-grain probabilistic risk computations were also performed. The Global Assessment Report presented risk maps and rankings at global level along with the calculated average annual loss in all countries with respect also to tsunami, tropical cyclone wind, storm surge and flood risk assessment.

Cardona has extensively researched on probabilistic and holistic risk evaluation. In 2006, he proposed that a multidisciplinary approach is a pre-requisite for risk evaluation as it takes social fragility and lack of resilience in account in addition to economic losses. This evaluation approach combines a hard approach i.e., type of casualties and physical loss as well as a soft approach such as, social condition context including the capacity to absorb the effects, lack of preparedness, and political instability. It revealed that potential negative consequences of disaster are linked with the physical as well as social conditions and the latter can aggravate the impacts of former. The study also applied the proposed holistic approach for seismic risk evaluation to the cities of Bogota and Barcelona. He determined total risk level by the evaluation of seismic risk from a holistic perspective, and regarded it as useful in the decision-making process for risk reduction. Having discussed that, he examined the seismic vulnerability and risk analysis methods with regards to Spain that indicates a considerably high degree of vulnerability to earthquakes. He explored the seismic risk evaluation using the holistic approach, and presented the evidence of robustness of the said approach by considering physical exposure, social fragilities, as well as lack of resilience of urban area. In addition to that, he also conducted a research study in order to estimate the probabilistic seismic losses and the public economic resilience from a macroeconomic impact lens. The Disaster Deficit Index (DDI) was employed, and it suggested a simple way to measure the potential losses regarding the fiscal exposure of a country to assess them as contingent liabilities.

In another study, he characterized vulnerability as an essential factor in understanding disaster risk management, and addressed its significance for the effective policy making process. He designed and proposed four indicators that identify country's progress in managing the risk: Disaster Deficit Index, Local Disaster Index, Prevalent Vulnerability Index, Risk Management Index. This system of indicators aims at reducing vulnerability and losses, recovering from disasters, prepare for catastrophes and disasters. Early on in 2004, he indicated a need for rethinking the concepts of vulnerability and risk from a holistic perspective in a research review study. He regarded the absence of a comprehensive and multidisciplinary evaluation of risk to be a significant factor in the decline of risk management effectiveness. He concluded that a holistic approach of risk can assess the dynamics of social system, and advance the risk management by incorporating effective measures that will lead to adequate reduction of risk by authorities and communities. Another study showed that MOVE (Methods for the Improvement of Vulnerability Assessment in Europe) can be used as a starting point for creating and differentiating vulnerability assessment indicators and criteria. As an integrative and holistic framework, it deals with various aspects that should be tended to while evaluating vulnerability with regards to natural hazards and climate change. The study also revealed a need for a multiple thematic approach for vulnerability assessment and examined key linkages between the disaster risk management (DRM) and climate change adaptation (CCA) research.

Cardona has held administrative appointments throughout his career. He held an appointment as Academic Director for the Center of Studies on Disasters and Risks from 1997 to 2003, and concurrently held an appointment as Academic Director of Specialization in Risk Assessment and Disaster Prevention at the University of Los Andes from 1997 till 2001.

Between 1988 and 1995, Cardona was an advisor of Presidency of the Republic and the Director-General of the National Directorate for Disaster Risk Management of Colombia. He has also served as the president of the Colombian Association for Earthquake Engineering from 1990 to 2003. He promoted at that time the new legislation to update the country’s national earthquake-resistant construction requirements, including a new seismic hazard assessment and approaches for structural vulnerability assessment and seismic retrofitting, as well as special design standards for hospitals and other essential buildings. He is the co-founder and CEO of Ingeniar: Risk Intelligence.

Cardona started his academic career as a System Programmer in 1981 at the Prodatos S.A. Manizales Electronic Data Processing Center. He concurrently served as an Assistant Professor of Earthquake Resistant Design, Reinforced Concrete and Prestressing, Structural Analysis at the National University of Colombia in 1981. Followed by this appointment, he served as a Professor of Vulnerability and Seismic risk from 1990 to 2003 in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Los Andes. Between 2011 and 2018, he served as Academic Advisor in the Institute for Environmernt and Human Security at the United Nations University, and International Center of Excellence in Vulnerability and Resilience Metrics at the University of South Carolina. As of 2005, he has been a Professor of Integrated Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation at the Institute of Environment Studies at the National University of Colombia in Manizales.

Cardona received a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from the National University of Colombia in 1980. Subsequently, he specialized in Earthquake Engineering from Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology, Disaster Prevention from Oxford Polytechnic, and Risk Mitigation from the Colorado State University between 1985 and 1991. In 2000, he completed his Ph.D. in Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics at the Technical University of Catalonia.