Topic
Infrastructure Resilience During the Energy Transition
Affiliation
AMPP Board of Directors 2026 Vice-Chair
Professional Engineer (P.Eng.), Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (EGBC)
P.Eng., Association of Professional Engineers
and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA)
Abstract
As the world advances toward a low-carbon future, maintaining the integrity of both existing and emerging energy infrastructure is critical to achieving reliable and sustainable decarbonization goals. This plenary talk explores the concept of resilience through two interconnected perspectives: human resilience and technical resilience.
Drawing on a personal journey, the plenary talk highlights how adaptability, curiosity, and courage shape both professional growth and engineering practice. These themes are connected to the evolution of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), including pioneering projects that generated the operational experience needed to advance large-scale CCUS and inform future infrastructure development.
The plenary talk examines how lessons learned from these projects have been translated into industry standards through AMPP's collaborative, volunteer-driven standards development process.
By illustrating how personal adaptability and technical innovation reinforce one another, this plenary presentation demonstrates the essential role corrosion, and materials professionals play in enabling resilient infrastructure, supporting informed standards development, and accelerating the energy transition.
Biography
Laura Cardenas is a registered Professional Engineer with extensive expertise in corrosion control and materials technologies across diverse sectors, including infrastructure, transportation, municipal systems, and the oil and gas industry. As Lead Materials Engineer at WSP she contributes to projects involving materials selection, durability design, failure analysis, protective coatings, and more. Laura gained invaluable experience during her studies in Germany, specializing in metallurgy, metal refining, and alloy development. She has served as a volunteer leader with AMPP for nearly two decades and currently holds the position of Vice Chair on the AMPP Board of Directors. Born in Venezuela and proud to call Canada home, she is multilingual, a passionate globetrotter, and an outdoor enthusiast.
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