Pieter van Gelder

The testing ground of Pieter van Gelder

Mathematician Pieter van Gelder (1968) is a Professor of Safety Science at TU Delft. Formerly he worked at the CEG faculty on calculating the risk/probability of floods and high water levels. 

Within the Safety Science Research Group he develops mathematical models for risk management. He also holds a number of other positions, including Director of the TU Delft Safety and Security Institute, Chairman of the ESRA Technical Committee on Natural Hazards and Programme Director of several Delft Toptech programmes. He is also on the annual ESREL Scientific Committee. Van Gelder's PhD research, completed in 2000, studied the reliability analyses of flood defences and the statistical methods used in that context. Modelling is his great passion. "I work in a great testing ground where all kinds of mathematical techniques can be applied. It is fantastic to be able to take the observations in the field, in nature, and use them to make an abstract model which can be used to reach optimal decisions. This also makes the research work rewarding."