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Some forms of engineering deal with predictable, controlled environments. deals with the kind that can change from place to place and day to day.

He is a distinguished professor emeritus of civil and environmental engineering, focusing on geotechnical earthquake engineering, a field where decisions can be shaped by the unique geologic conditions found only in the location where a dam, bridge or other project is being built.

“I always like construction,” he said. “It has a lot of uncertainty. And I find trying to make decisions in the face of uncertainty really fun.”

He has traveled around the country and world consulting on large-scale projects like his current assignments on dams and mines in California, Washington and Utah; a pair of mines in Peru; a pair of mines in Chile; a dam in Panama; and tunnels, mines and dams across his native Canada. He has provided input to the agency known then as the Earthquake Commission of New Zealand and helped analyze the sinking and tilting of the Millennium Tower in San Francisco.

Along the way he has sought to help further the understanding of how embankments, soil and other materials will behave under stress, like during earthquakes, floods or construction.

Two years ago he transitioned to emeritus status, which has given him more time and flexibility to consult on projects, ensuring they will not only be safe in cases of tremors, but also withstand other forces of the natural world.

“Nature has a way of winning,” he said. “Good infrastructure designs work with nature, rather than try to fight it.”

Boulanger said he is still learning through his consulting work.

“You serve a role trying to help make sure that they’re focused on the right questions or addressing the uncertainties, not overlooking problems that can develop,” Boulanger said of the work. He noted that problems in engineering — and, for that matter, any large project — can arise from “the human element,” like neglecting small problems until they cascade into a major issue.

“You see something behaving not the way it should, but you say, ‘Oh, it was doing that last year.’ Or, ‘It’s always done that.’ And it gets normalized,” he said.

From roadwork to research

Boulanger grew up in a small town in British Columbia, working logging and road construction jobs in high school and college — a natural evolution of his early interests.

“What kid doesn’t like moving dirt around with big, heavy, yellow equipment?” he said. 

He came to California for a fellowship as a grad student and became fascinated with earthquakes, staying for both a master’s and Ph.D. at 51�ԹϺ��� Berkeley. After stints lecturing, he joined the faculty of 51�ԹϺ��� Davis in 1992 and has stayed ever since, earning honors along the way from the National Science Foundation, the American Society of Civil Engineers and others. In 2017 he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering.

Boulanger spent 14 years as director of the Center for Geotechnical Modeling, where researchers from around the U.S. come to use centrifuges and shaking tables to understand how natural forces like earthquakes and storms will impact their projects. He praised his colleagues, staff and students, and the close ties 51�ԹϺ��� Davis has with various state and federal agencies.

“I couldn’t imagine a better environment,” Boulanger said. “When people would ask if I was interested in moving, it wasn’t even a question. Davis has always been the right spot for me.”