Keynote Speakers

This talk explores the evolution of scientific publishing and its modern challenges, with a particular focus on the field of urban drainage. Beginning with a brief historical overview, it traces the origins of scholarly communication in the discipline, and examines how early efforts shaped the foundations of current publishing practices.

Transitioning to the present day, the talk addresses pressing challenges faced by our scientific community, including the issues of over-publishing, the tension between quantity and quality, and the critical importance of research integrity. For example,  it considers the challenges posed by the misuse of AI in academic publishing. Additionally, the talk reflects on how the mantra "publish or perish" has evolved into "quality over quantity," offering insights into navigating the complexities of modern scholarly dissemination. Finally, it explores potential futures for publishing efforts in water research field, aiming to provide a forward-looking perspective for researchers and practitioners alike.

AI for Urban Drainage Systems: Recent Advances and Real-World Applications

Recent breakthroughs in artificial intelligence hold great promise for transforming how we understand, manage, and operate water systems. Yet, the rapid pace and complexity of AI developments make it increasingly challenging for water researchers to keep up—let alone translate these advances into practical solutions. In this keynote, Dr. Riccardo Taormina explores how his research group and collaborators have tried to bridge this gap, connecting cutting-edge AI techniques with real-world challenges in urban drainage systems and flood modelling. Among the examples discussed are the use of graph neural networks to accelerate hydrodynamic simulations, self-supervised learning for sewer defect detection, and the application of generative AI in operational contexts. The talk will situate these techniques in the broader context of water engineering, emphasizing how such methods can be adopted meaningfully and responsibly.

Dr. Riccardo Taormina is an Associate Professor at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), specializing in the digitalization of the water sector with a strong focus on artificial intelligence (AI) applications. He has led and contributed to numerous projects aimed at developing AI-driven solutions for water resources and infrastructure management. His research spans a wide range of topics, including AI models for water networks, spatiotemporal flood modelling, computer vision for freshwater quality assessment and sewer asset management. He is particularly interested in bridging fundamental AI advancements—such as graph neural networks, self-supervised learning, and large language models—with real-world challenges in the water domain, with the goal of building trustworthy and impactful solutions. At TU Delft, Dr. Taormina also teaches AI to MSc students in the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, helping to train the next generation of engineers in the integration of data-driven methods with domain expertise.