Insights for what's next

Explore practical perspectives that turn complex challenges and emerging trends into real-world outcomes.

466 items
shipping port
Q&A

A view on the future of ports & maritime: A Q&A with Chris Best

Ports are vital infrastructure links in the global logistics chain – facilitating trade and commerce, providing connectivity between people and businesses, supplying our nations with goods and energy resources, and generally underpinning our economies and livelihoods. In this Q&A, Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Ports & Maritime Chris Best talks about trends making a splash in ports & maritime today, what clients are focusing on, and how we’re co-creating the world to come.

Chris Best
abstract grid
Q&A

A view on the future of strategic consulting & advisory: A Q&A with Andrew Tingay

As clients and communities face global challenges and opportunities related to digitization/automation, climate change, decarbonization and aging infrastructure, Jacobs Global Director of Strategic Consulting & Advisory Solutions Andrew Tingay and his team deliver tangible strategies and results. In this Q&A, Andrew discusses how our consulting and advisory solutions fulfill a unique niche and how we’re helping clients achieve their organizational goals and objectives worldwide.

pipes
Q&A

A view on the future of conveyance and storage: A Q&A with Dr. Adel Aboujaoude

From aging water infrastructure, regulatory requirements and climate change, our clients face unprecedented challenges. Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Conveyance and Storage Dr. Adel Aboujaoude and his team are shaping how we deliver safe and reliable water to communities worldwide. Through adopting available technology and creating new technologies, he ensures we’re providing tailored solutions to our clients. In this Q&A, Adel discusses the imortance of water conveyance, particularly in locations where access to clean and potable water is a challenge and highlights the importance of having the right people and technology to tackle the problem of water scarcity in a changing world.

Adel AbouJaoude
aviation
Q&A

A view on the future of airports: A Q&A with Cheryl McNall

Airports are the gateway to one of the fastest modes of commercial transport, helping to carry people and packages to almost anywhere in the world and fueling trillions of dollars in economic activity annually. With traffic growth forecast to outstrip airport capacity, the industry faces opportunities as well as challenges. Supporting our airport clients’ ambitions without letting a passenger or shipment miss a beat is where we excel. Our leading (according to  Engineering News-Record) aviation team has nearly seven decades of experience at brownfield and greenfield commercial service, general aviation and military, delivering airport planning, architecture, engineering, program and construction management, advisory consulting and specialty services such as  Operational Readiness and Airport Transition (ORAT) and asset management worldwide. Some of the most successful projects we work on are the ones which go unnoticed because our teams have integrated it so meticulously. We’ve held contracts on more than 500 airport projects, including most of the busiest airports in the U.S., U.K., India, and the Middle East, and many of the largest greenfield airports. Whether we’re upgrading aging facilities, expanding capacity or improving connectivity, we do it all through the lens of sustainable airport development and the help of our teammates like Cheryl McNall, our aviation global solutions director. In this Q&A, we connect with Cheryl to get her thoughts on the trends and technologies requiring airports to think differently for tomorrow. Tell us a bit about what a day in the life is like as Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Aviation, and what we offer

Cheryl McNall
Molecular Structure
Q&A

A view on the future of health systems governance: A Q&A with Nino Kharaishvili

Health systems today face complex challenges—from evolving science and technology trends to global pandemics and growing population. In this Q&A, Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Health Systems Governance Dr. Nino Kharaishvili talks about the link between climate change and health, how data is shaping policy, and highlights trends co-creating the world to come.

tunnel motion blur
Q&A

A view on the future of rail & transit: A Q&A with Gavin Fraser

Public transportation systems, valued as some of the most equitable and sustainable modes of transportation, connect communities and help stimulate economic development. In this Q&A, Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Rail & Transit Gavin Fraser talks about trends keeping rail & transit on track for the future, what clients are focusing on, and how we’re co-creating the world to come.

Gavin Fraser
city traffic
Q&A

A view on the future of Cities & Places: A Q&A with Monte Wilson

From vibrant urban districts and connected campuses to parks and open space that offer a breath of fresh air, cities are a testament to human ingenuity and adaptability. In this Q&A, Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Cities Monte Wilson talks about trends shaping the cities of tomorrow, what clients are focusing on, and how we’re co-creating the world to come.

Monte Wilson
Eco-friendly building in the modern city
Q&A

A view on the future of decarbonizing energy and power: A Q&A with Andy Solberg

The future of our world hinges on the evolution of energy systems, power networks and supporting infrastructure across all sectors and geographies. In this Q&A, Jacobs Global Solutions Director for Decarbonization, Andy Solberg, discusses energy transition and how we’re turning the energy challenge into a growth opportunity for both our clients and Jacobs - laying the foundation for a more prosperous, sustainable future.

Andy Solberg
water droplets on leaf
Q&A

A view on the future of environmental health and safety operational excellence: A Q&A with Kim Watkins

Compliance with the changing regulatory and sustainability landscape calls for greater adaptability, something Global Solutions Director of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Operational Excellence Kim Watkins and her team help our clients deliver. Whether helping clients adapt to reach their climate action goals or innovating to deliver data solutions, Kim is always looking at how we can support our clients reach their environmental compliance and sustainability goals. In this Q&A, she discusses her role and how she looks at compliance, sustainability and environmental stewardship to drive results.

Kim Watkins
Australia high speed rail corridor
Thought Leadership

The ABC of Australia’s high-speed rail

High‑speed rail is more than a transport project — it reshapes nations, unlocks new housing and industry, and drives low‑carbon mobility for generations. The question for Australia is no longer whether it needs faster, higher-capacity intercity rail, but whether it can define, design and deliver it with confidence. Jacobs draws on experience from major rail and tunneling programs worldwide to inform the pathway forward. From the approvals that build public confidence, to the complex tunneling that pushes engineering boundaries and disciplined project governance that keeps mega‑programs on track — Jacobs brings global insight and local certainty to every stage of high‑speed rail development. Because when nations move faster, communities thrive. When complexity is greatest, certainty matters most. A for approvals — defining the vision and securing buy-in High-speed rail projects fail when approvals precede clarity High-speed rail programs rarely falter because engineering solutions are unavailable — they struggle when scheme definition is unstable at the point of approval. Governments are often asked to commit substantial resources before objectives, benefits and affordable costs are fully aligned. International experience on major programs shows that when benefits, staging and requirements are not clearly defined upfront, cost pressure and political risk quickly follow. Approvals should build confidence by locking in purpose, pathway and end-state early. Avoid commitment to “headlines” like maximum speed or shortest journey time and focus on economic drivers like capacity, connectivity, housing, employment and regeneration. B for boring — tackling tunneling challenges head-on In constrained corridors, tunnel design determines performance, cost

Lake George Diversion Dam
Thought Leadership

Advancing nature-based solutions for resilient infrastructure

As the infrastructure sector responds to escalating climate, biodiversity and flood risks, nature positive solutions are becoming central to how resilient systems are planned, designed and delivered. Moving from theory to widespread implementation, however, requires clear pathways that integrate ecological principles with engineering practice. Jacobs is playing an active role in advancing this shift, working alongside government, academia and industry to help translate nature-based concepts into scalable, deliverable infrastructure solutions. By contributing technical expertise and applied experience, we’re strengthening consistency and quality of — and, consequently, confidence in — how natural infrastructure is designed and implemented across river banks and coastal systems. One example is the growing adoption of floodplain benching — reshaping riverbanks to reconnect rivers with their floodplains — as a solution for inland river systems where historical development has constrained natural floodplain function. Well-designed floodplain benches can reduce flood risk while restoring natural processes, improving ecosystem health and enhancing resilience to changing flow and sediment regimes. Integrating these approaches into mainstream engineering practice is critical to addressing long-standing flood and environmental challenges. “The need for progress is enormous as our systems are out of kilter,” says Dr. Todd Bridges, professor of practice at the University of Georgia, founder of Engineering with Nature® and leader of the International Guidelines on Natural and Nature-based Features for Flood Risk Management. “Restoring balance and improving long-term performance requires integrating conventional and nature-based engineering — and accelerating that shift by equipping all stakeholders to deliver 21st-century solutions.” Beyond floodplain restoration, Jacobs’ work

  • Future Foundations

    Co-creating the world to come

    From developing climate resilience and transitioning to a low-carbon future, to modernizing and transforming infrastructure, governments and businesses face critical challenges. How they respond will define our future.

    As our clients navigate these challenges, we help them think differently – working together to pioneer tomorrow's infrastructure solutions and build the foundations for a prosperous, secure future. 

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