托德·S·布里奇斯（Todd S. Bridges）, the U.S. Army’s senior research scientist for environmental science, believes that engineering is on the brink of a new paradigm.

他是美国陆军工程兵团的自然工程领导者（EWN）倡议，他证明现代工程师需要以与过去不同的方式接触洪水控制和其他弹性和民用基础设施项目。新利18备用网址

“If I were representing 20th Century engineering as a cartoon, it might be [showing] engineering to control nature, engineering to conquer nature, to bring it under our thumb," he says. "I think, arguably, that’s never worked out so well.”

Bridges说，EWN主张研究自然系统并与自新利18备用然“合作”，而不是与之抗争。该方法不仅要建造巨大的洪水墙，还旨在结合绿色元素，例如牡蛎礁和增加湿地。支持者说，不如说，使用天然水和海滩补给周期来重建由于海平面上升和极端风暴而消失的小岛。

Although nature-based solutions have been around for centuries, Bridges has brought an energy and passion to his efforts to demonstrate to a broad audience the benefits of using natural systems and processes as part of infrastructure projects. Those efforts have begun to pay off.

For the first time, lawmakers included a line item for EWN in the Corps fiscal 2021 budget, funding the program at $12.5 million. More funding was included for nature-based projects in the infrastructure bill recently enacted into law.

这些军团在很大程度上拥护将基于自然的解决方案纳入其基础设施项目的设计中，并在全国各地建立了七个“证明基础”，这些解决方案正在帮助展示如何最好地与自然合作，而不是反对它。新利18备用网址布里奇斯说，军团地区领导人会定期见面并比较笔记。

Over the past five years, Bridges led a large international collaboration that published technical guidelines on the use of natural and nature-based features for coastal and fluvial flood risk management, and his work extends well beyond the Corps. It has been supported by programs within the US. Army, US Navy, and US Dept. of Defense; as well as at other federal agencies and in the private sector.

马里兰州大学公园的高级研究工程师埃德·林克（Ed Link）兼军团首席科学顾问埃德·林克（Ed Link）说，他已经知道桥梁数十年了。自从Bridges于2010年在Corps建立了EWN计划以来，“他一直是设计师，首席库克，瓶洗衣机和啦啦队长，” Link说。

“Todd is amazing,” adds Natalie Snider, associate vice president at the Environmental Defense Fund. “He’s an incredible ally at the Corps and incredibly dedicated and experienced about engineering with nature.”

The mission continues for Bridges. The EWN program is partnering with the Water Institute of the Gulf in Baton Rouge, La., to analyze funded Corps projects that include nature-based elements.

目的是评估项目理由（例如环境或社会影响）中通常不考虑的一些好处，因为项目优先考虑并添加到资金请求中。新利18备用网址军团计划在今年春天的某个时候从研究中发布研究结果。新利18备用