James H. Lambert

James H. Lambert is the Chair of the Faculty Senate at the University of Virginia (2024-25) and holds the Janet Scott Hamilton & John Downman Hamilton Professorship. He is a dual professor in Systems & Information Engineering and Civil & Environmental Engineering, and directs the Center for Risk Management of Engineering Systems and the NSF-funded Center for Hardware and Embedded Systems Security & Trust (NSFCHEST). His leadership roles include General Co-Chair of the 2025 IEEE International Conference on Control, Decision and Information Technologies and past President of the Society for Risk Analysis (2015-2016).

Dr. Lambert’s education includes a Ph.D. (1994), M.S. (1990), and B.S.E. (1988) from the University of Virginia and Princeton University respectively. His research focuses on risk management, smart infrastructure, human-machine interfaces, environmental engineering, and transportation resilience. He has pioneered systems analysis for wildfire mitigation, water scarcity in transboundary regions, and cybersecurity of embedded hardware supply chains.

He has received prestigious recognitions including the 2025 Aspen Institute Italia Award, 2024 Distinguished Educator Award (SRA), and Fellowships from AAAS, IEEE, ASCE, and SRA. His work integrates multi-disciplinary approaches to address global systemic risks, climate resilience, and infrastructure sustainability.

Lambert serves as Editor-in-Chief of Environment Systems & Decisions and editorial roles in Risk Analysis and IEEE journals. He leads national initiatives such as the National Academy of Medicine’s Standing Committee on Health Threats Resilience and the World Roads Association (PIARC) through AASHTO.

His recent publications emphasize AI ethics in medical diagnosis, reinforcement learning for port resilience, and geospatial modeling of climate impacts. His research bridges technical systems engineering with policy decisions for environmental justice and disaster preparedness.