DFI to host 51st annual conference on sea level impacts in Orlando

By AI, Created 4:56 PM UTC, May 18, 2026, /AGP/ – The Deep Foundations Institute will bring more than 1,500 professionals to Orlando Nov. 2-5 for DFI51, a global conference focused on sea level rise and coastal resilience. The event will center on engineering, policy, finance and infrastructure solutions as rising seas accelerate worldwide.

Why it matters: - Sea level rise is pushing coastal communities, infrastructure owners and engineers to coordinate faster on near-term solutions. - DFI51 is designed to connect technical, policy and financing perspectives in one forum. - The conference aims to inform decisions that affect coastal protection, critical infrastructure, economies and ecosystems.

What happened: - The Deep Foundations Institute will host its 51st Annual Conference, DFI51, Nov. 2-5, 2026, in Orlando, Florida. - The conference theme is “Sea Level Impacts: Navigating Challenges Together.” - DFI expects more than 1,500 professionals from geotechnical engineering, construction, policy, finance, insurance, flood management and related fields. - DFI published registration information at More information.

The details: - The technical program will cover industry practices, techniques and project delivery through case histories, research papers and presentations. - Program highlights include a keynote address by Major General Jason E. Kelly of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. - Sessions and panels will examine safeguarding interventions for Venice Lagoon. - Other topics include Florida coastal planning, policy and construction. - The agenda also includes San Francisco Bay Area waterfront resilience, from funding to design. - Northeastern U.S. megaprojects will also be discussed. - Additional sessions will focus on greening the foundation of future coasts. - International storm surge barriers and their construction and performance will be covered for Italy, the Mediterranean Coast, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. - The conference will also address insurance, policy and financing risks tied to coastal solutions. - DFI says the event will feature perspectives from academia, industry and government.

Between the lines: - DFI is positioning the conference as a multidisciplinary response to a problem that spans engineering, planning, groundwater, materials and community resilience. - Scientific consensus cited from the IPCC, NASA and NOAA indicates sea levels are rising faster than historical averages and that the pace is accelerating. - That backdrop raises the urgency for practical solutions that can be deployed in the near term, not just long-term concepts. - The conference framing suggests that funding and implementation may matter as much as technical design.

What’s next: - Attendees will use the November gathering to share research, emerging technologies and sustainable practices. - DFI51 is expected to create new connections across disciplines and sectors. - The conference outcomes will likely shape planning for coastal projects, resilience strategies and infrastructure investment.

The bottom line: - DFI51 is setting up Orlando as a hub for global sea level rise planning, with the goal of turning research and cross-sector coordination into real-world coastal solutions.