Professor Enrico Zio, a faculty member of the Department of Energy at the Politecnico di Milano, has received the prestigious Ayyub–Wiechel Risk Analysis Award, conferred by ASME – The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, during the international IMECE 2025 conference held in Memphis, TN, USA, in mid-November.

This is the first time this distinction has been awarded in the field of Risk Analysis, marking a historic moment for the discipline and recognizing its growing importance in the design and management of complex systems.

Prof. Zio has long been an international reference in research on system reliability, safety, and resilience. His scientific impact is further evidenced by his recent inclusion among the Highly Cited Researchers 2025 by Clarivate Analytics, placing him in the top 1% of the most cited researchers worldwide according to Web of Science data, and by his ranking in the top 0.01% globally according to ScholarGPS.

These recognitions confirm the significance of the research activities carried out by the Laboratory of Analysis of Systems for the Assessment of Reliability, Risk and Resilience (LASAR3) at the Department of Energy, which is dedicated to developing innovative methods for risk assessment and decision support, based on advanced simulation techniques and artificial intelligence tools.

During the award ceremony, Prof. Zio delivered a plenary lecture entitled “Risk for the Future, and the Future of Risk Assessment and Management,” offering reflections on the role of the discipline in guiding informed decisions toward a safer and more resilient future.