April 19, 2012

Research Roundtable: Energy Infrastructure Attack Database

Global security expert Jennifer Giroux will be on campus in April to discuss the approach and initial findings of the Energy Infrastructure Attack Database (EIAD), a comprehensive open-source dataset that will systematically organize information on reported attacks to energy infrastructure that have been carried out by non-state actors.

The Research Round Table is set for 3:15 p.m. Thursday, April 19, in Symons Hall Rm. 3121. In it, Giroux will explain the EIAD, its coding and the initial findings from the database, which contains information spanning more than 30 years.

According to Giroux, the EIAD will lay the empirical foundation for performing future analysis on threats by non-state actors to global energy supply chains. It does not code for motivation, but rather for method of delivery.

Giroux is currently working with the Risk & Resilience Research Group at the Center for Security Studies (CSS) at ETH Zürich in Switzerland. The current focus of her research examines how violent non-state actors are influenced by modern terrain dynamics. For her project, she is currently carrying out a case study that examines global trends in the targeting of energy infrastructure (TEI), which weaves together elements related to terrorism, criminality and energy security. This study has included field work in Nigeria (Niger Delta), the development of the Energy Infrastructure Attack Database, and international talks in places such as Singapore, USA, Jordan, UAE, and throughout Europe. Her other research interests include resilience, critical infrastructure protection, African political and economic development, and the role of information communication technology in society - particularly in emergency/crisis planning and response.

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