Leveraging Digital Technologies to Strengthen Critical Infrastructure Resilience against Climate Change

This study aims to explore how emerging digital technologies can improve the resilience of critical infrastructure in the face of the climate change. Given the growing impact of climate crisis, it is increasingly crucial for governments and organizations to develop and implement strategic plans to enhance the resilience of critical infrastructure. Natural disasters can compromise the structural integrity and disrupt the operations of critical infrastructure. Extreme climate disasters can accelerate the aging and deterioration of infrastructure, resulting in increased maintenance costs. By reviewing existing literature, we show how these technologies support real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and more efficient disaster response, thereby enhancing infrastructure resilience at every stage of its lifecycle. However, while digital technologies offer significant benefits, challenges remain, including cybersecurity risks, human-machine interaction issues, and funding barriers. Finally, to better integrate digital technologies into critical infrastructure systems, we propose four key strategies: (1) mitigate cybersecurity risks, (2) adopt a lifecycle resilience approach, (3) promote collaborative governance, (4) reduce human-machine conflicts.