Bringing together excellence in research and teaching
Preparing for the emergency front line
Conflict and disasters afflict some of the most vulnerable populations on earth, and wreak havoc on societies. Prevention, and timely and effective responses are necessary to save lives and preserve infrastructure, and to promote socio-economic recovery and build resilience.
Our research focuses on drivers of these risks, whilst our education activities prepare professionals and organisations to better respond and promote resilience, seeking solutions with governmental and non-governmental organisations, and with commercial and military collaborators. The scale of disaster response frequently requires the coordination of military and civil expertise.
Within the synergistic fields of defence, risk and resilience the University of Portsmouth has a world class profile, with research expertise in key areas such as global governance, geopolitical conflicts, risk mapping and monitoring, peace, security and deterrence, AI and autonomy, ethics, risk management, disaster response, and organisational and community resilience. CEDRR incorporates our expertise in these fields into one Centre of Excellence, providing a focal point, coordination, and an incubator for future initiatives.
We have a long track record in providing relevant education services, we welcome applications from a variety of backgrounds, including those from the military, first responders and resilience practitioners. We offer degrees, short courses and bespoke executive education, either on campus in discrete blocks of teaching, online at your convenience, or via distance learning or Learning at Work. Many of our programmes are also accredited.
Recognition of Prior Learning
At Portsmouth, our students can receive academic credit for Recognised Prior Learning on most of our courses, including those serving and former services personnel. RPL can be acquired in previous study, employment, voluntary work and training courses, reducing the total length of studies. We are also an accredited MOD education provider accepting ELCAS credits which greatly reduce the cost to individual students.
Partnerships
- Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum
- South Central Regional Defence and Security Cluster(DASA-sponsored)
- SimEx: our annual disaster response simulation exercise
- UN World Food Programme
- Royal Air Force
- Royal Navy
- Defence College of Logistics, Policing and Administration
- Defence School of Electronic and Mechanical Engineering
- London Fire Brigade
- Oil Spill Response Ltd
- Technical Rescue International Ltd
- Helyx Secure Information Systems Ltd
- Institute of Search and Technical Rescue
- ServeOn Search and Rescue
Impact
Explore the impact our research is having on defence, risk and resilience. From using satellite imagery to fight crime and using drones in disaster responses.
Recent funded projects
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ASIS Foundation
Guiding readers to a greater understanding of autonomous vehicles, including those that operate in the air, on land, on the water, and underwater.
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ATRACT: A Trustworthy Robotic Autonomous system to support Casualty Triage
Creating a Trustworthy Robotic Autonomous Drone System to support Battlefield Casualty Triage.
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DEFRA/Darwin Initiative for biodiversity
A soil mapping project that informs environmental management and climate change mitigation in the British Virgin Islands.
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Global Challenges Research Fund
Exploring the impact of Covid19 in developing countries and good practice guidelines for disaster risk reduction.
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Horizon 2020 – AI-ARC
Developed the Virtual Control Room (VCR), a novel and robust system using AI that can provide a situational picture in the Arctic Ocean region.
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Horizon 2020 – ArcSAR: Arctic Search and Rescue
Helping the the Arctic and North-Atlantic (ANA) region cope with security and safety threats as a result of increased commercial activity in the region.
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Space Research and Innovation Network for Technology (SPRINT)
A satellite enabled digital insurance ecosystem for small-hold farmers in Colombia.
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Taigh Mor Foundation
Understanding Mental Health and Moral Injury in UK Military Chaplains.
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UK Space Agency, International Partnership Programme
Using satellite data to assist climate change resilience in Pacific Small Island Developing States.
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UK Space Agency, Training Programme
Providing data and AI training to military and first responders.
Project highlights
Our members
Media ready expert
Dr Sara Hadleigh-Dunn
Professor Peter Lee
Professor Richard Teeuw
Media ready expert
Dr Tom Smith
Dr Michelle Juchau
Dr Fionnuala Rose
- Research and Innovation Development Manager
- fionnuala.rose@port.ac.uk
- Innovation Space
- Research and Innovation Services
PhD research students
- Toby Meredith (2023-2027) – SOS! Investigating the use of drones for sea border surveillance of migratory routes to post-Brexit UK: Frameworks, experiences and policies. - funded by the ESRC South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership. (Supervisors: Siklodi, Lee & Greatbatch).
- Mykyta Saveliev (2023-2026) – Enterprise Risk Management in SMEs in Ukraine: Utilising High Reliability Theory to Improve Crisis Resilience (supervisors: Hadleigh-Dunn, Labib and Niekrasova/Odessa National Polytechnic University).
- Andy Webb: (2023-2026) – Preparing aviators for their robotic future: assessing organisational change to accommodate human factors when introducing AI and autonomous systems (supervisors: Shakir, Lee and Labib).
- Harold Chadwick (2022-2025) – Measuring the potential Impact of an Integrated CANZUK Whole of Government Disaster Response (supervisors: Teeuw, Solana and Morris).
- Rozene Smith – Lethal autonomous weapon systems and the violation of human dignity.
Recent publications
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Autonomous Vehicles, Opportunities, Threats and Challenges
Bhila, I., Lee, P., and Wakefield, A. (2024) "Autonomous Vehicles, Opportunities, Threats and Challenges" ASIS Foundation.
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Effects of disaster education on children's risk perception and preparedness: a quasi‐experimental longitudinal study
Yildiz, A., Dickinson, J., Priego-Hernandez, J., Teeuw, R., and Shaw, R. (2023) "Effects of disaster education on children's risk perception and preparedness: a quasi‐experimental longitudinal study" Geographical Journal. Advance online publication.
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Evidence-based models to support humanitarian operations and crisis management
Labib, A., Abdi, M. R., Hadleigh-Dunn, S., and Yazdani, M. (2022) "Evidence-based models to support humanitarian operations and crisis management" Decision Making: Applications in Management and Engineering, 5(1), 113-134.
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Geoinformatics for Caribbean hurricane risk management and improved community resilience
Teeuw, R., Cannata, M., Argyriou, A. V., and Lieberman, O. (2023) "Geoinformatics for Caribbean hurricane risk management and improved community resilience" In 2023 Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (JURSE) Proceedings (2023 Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (JURSE)). Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
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How we can protect the protectors: learning from police officers and staff involved in child sexual abuse and exploitation investigations
Redmond, T., Conway, P., Bailey, S., Lee, P., and Lundigran, S. (2023) "How we can protect the protectors: learning from police officers and staff involved in child sexual abuse and exploitation investigations" Frontiers in Psychology , 14, Article 1152446.
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Impacts of organisational role and environmental factors on moral injury and trauma amongst police investigators in internet child abuse teams
Lee, P., Tapson, C., Doyle, M., & Karagiannopoulos, V. (2023). Impacts of organisational role and environmental factors on moral injury and trauma amongst police investigators in internet child abuse teams. The Police Journal, 96(1), 153–171.
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Learning and unlearning from disasters: an analysis of the Virginia Tech shooting and the Lion Air 610 Airline crash
Shmidt, B., Labib, A., and Hadleigh-Dunn, S. (2020) "Learning and unlearning from disasters: an analysis of the Virginia Tech shooting and the Lion Air 610 Airline crash" Journal of Surveillance, Security and Safety, 1, 1-15.
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Learning how to learn from disasters through a comparative dichotomy analysis: Grenfell Tower and Hurricane Katrina case studies
Iglesias-Mendoza, M., Yunusa-Kaltungo, A., Hadleigh-Dunn, S., and Labib, A. (2021) "Learning how to learn from disasters through a comparative dichotomy analysis: Grenfell Tower and Hurricane Katrina case studies" Sustainability, 13(4), 1-18. Article 2030.
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Low-cost UAV surveys of hurricane damage in Dominica: automated processing with co-registration of pre-hurricane imagery for change analysis
Schaefer, M., Teeuw, R., Day, S., Zekkos, D., Weber, P., Meredith, T., and Van Westen, C. J. (2020) "Low-cost UAV surveys of hurricane damage in Dominica: automated processing with co-registration of pre-hurricane imagery for change analysis" Natural Hazards, 101(3), 755-784.
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Quantifying the impact of educational methods for disaster risk reduction: a longitudinal study assessing the impact of teaching methods on student hazard perceptions
Parham, M., Teeuw, R., Solana, C., and Day, S. (2021) "Quantifying the impact of educational methods for disaster risk reduction: a longitudinal study assessing the impact of teaching methods on student hazard perceptions" International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 52, Article 101978.
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Sustainable geoinformatic approaches to insurance for small-scale farmers in Colombia
Abd Rabuh, A., Teeuw, R. M., Oakey, D. R., Argyriou, A. V., Foxley-Marrable, M., and Wilkins, A. (2024) "Sustainable geoinformatic approaches to insurance for small-scale farmers in Colombia" Sustainability, 16(12), Article 5104.
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The politics and ethics of threat from the air
Lee, P. (2024) "The politics and ethics of threat from the air" Digital War, 5, 134-137.
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Use of GIS and dasymetric mapping for estimating tsunami-affected population to facilitate humanitarian relief logistics: a case study from Phuket, Thailand
Wall, G., Jitt-Aer, K., Jones, D., and Teeuw, R. (2022) "Use of GIS and dasymetric mapping for estimating tsunami-affected population to facilitate humanitarian relief logistics: a case study from Phuket, Thailand" Natural Hazards, 113(1), 185-211.
Related courses
Explore our courses in defence, risk and resilience.
Crisis and Disaster Management MSc
Learn about crisis prevention, planning and management on this MSc degree course. Graduates work in the emergency planning and disaster relief in the UK or overseas.
Start date: September 2024 September 2025
Risk, Crisis and Resilience Management MSc
Learn how to guide organisations through critical situations in our full-time or part-time Master's course. Understand how to identify, assess, and manage risks and threats.
Start date: September 2024 September 2025
Professional Doctorate in Security Risk Management
The Professional Doctorate in Security Risk Management (D.SyRM) is a structured, part-time programme targeted towards security professionals in the UK and overseas, delivered through a small number of workshops in Portsmouth for the first two years and then two years of supervised research leading to a thesis.
Start date: October 2024
Leadership and Management (Top-up) MSc
Turn your practical leadership experience into an academic postgraduate qualification in 1 year, as you study management topics and target your studies to progress your career.
Start date: September 2024 January 2025 September 2025 January 2026
Cyber Security and Forensic Information Technology MSc
Study MSc Cyber Security and Forensic Information Technology at the University of Portsmouth. Further your studies at a postgraduate level, boost your employability and achieve your goals.
Start date: September 2024 January 2025 September 2025 January 2026
Risk and Security Management (Distance Learning) BSc (Hons)
If you're already working in security, or want to break into the field, this distance learning degree course gives you the skills to realise your potential.
Start date: September 2024 September 2025
Senior Leadership (Top-Up) MBA
Translate your management and leadership knowledge into practical skills and day-to-day behaviours with this postgraduate top-up course, as you build on your existing PgDip knowledge with a dissertation or work-based project.
Start date: January 2025 May 2025 September 2025 January 2026 May 2026
Counter Terrorism, Intelligence and Cybercrime (Dual Degree) BSc (Hons)
On this dual degree, you'll explore the evolving area of international terrorism and cybercrime, studying in Portsmouth and spending a year at Edith Cowan University, Western Australia.
Start date: September 2024 September 2025
Discover Portsmouth Military Education
Delivered through a bespoke combination of online material which includes, videos, podcasts and interactive packages and in-person teaching, the Portsmouth Military Education Team delivers Professional Military Education to the Royal Air Force as part of its second successive long-term contract with the RAF to design and deliver education packages.
