Emergency represents the extreme case of contingency. Despite the enforcement (and continuous improvement) of a preparedness cycle, our infrastructures - or even more complex system of systems, such as urban areas, nations or even continental areas - are facing undesired and possibly unexpected conditions. Available resources need to be optimally organized and allocated to mitigate the negative consequences on humans, manufacts, artistic heritage and the environment.

Managing such situations requires special capabilities, trainings and promptness. Only very rarely one may rely on contingency plans: emergency management requires to solve hard problems (such as residual resources optimal allocation) in real time.

In this respect, policy makers, operators, authorities and rescue teams need to cooperate. Contributions on all these aspects are welcome. Which laws to enforce; which redundancies to implement; how to decide who is in charge; how to coordinate efforts for different rescue teams or volunteers; how to recover a specific critical infrastructure; which are the priorities; all these are example of possible questions to pose and possible to solve in this session.