Our Challenge

This challenge invites students to explore how projected climate change and weather phenomena, such as increasing heavy rainfall, heatwaves, cold cycles, geological changes, and others, may affect Lithuania’s railway infrastructure assets, their operation, and maintenance. Your task is to identify the most climate-vulnerable locations in Lithuania’s railway infrastructure and develop practical, economically and technically sound measures that would help prepare for future climate scenarios and minimize or avoid negative impacts on railway operations. During the challenge, participants will: • identify methods for determining railway infrastructure locations vulnerable to climate-related impacts, based on meteorological and topological factors such as precipitation, temperature, soil, terrain, water bodies, etc.; • assess the projected impact of climate change on infrastructure, operations, and maintenance; • evaluate significant risks and propose practical, economically and technically sound solutions, such as improved drainage, increased rail resilience, monitoring systems, climate risk management models, or other adaptation measures; • where possible, conduct a cost–benefit analysis assessing the investments required for climate resilience measures and the value they generate. Participants are encouraged to assess global climate trends as well as climate change models specific to Lithuania, EU and national targets, and international best practices. Based on this analysis, they will develop concrete measures ranging from infrastructure and rolling stock to maintenance processes and operational planning. By participating in the challenge, students will develop analytical, systems-thinking, and sustainability competencies, work with real data, and contribute to solutions with a long-term impact on the resilience of national infrastructure to climate change.