Skip to main content
Our Work

National Earthquake Resilience - Research, Implementation, and Outreach

Completed

Topics

National Earthquake Resilience interprets resilience broadly to incorporate engineering/science (physical), social/economic (behavioral), and institutional (governing) dimensions. Resilience encompasses both pre-disaster preparedness activities and post-disaster response. In combination, these will enhance the robustness of communities in all earthquake-vulnerable regions of our nation so that they can function adequately following damaging earthquakes. While National Earthquake Resilience is written primarily for the NEHRP, it also speaks to a broader audience of policy makers, earth scientists, and emergency managers.

About Past Events

Description

A National Research Council committee will develop a roadmap for earthquake hazard and risk reduction in the United States. The committee will frame the road map around the goals and objectives for achieving national earthquake resilience in public safety and economic security stated in the current, publically available strategic plan of the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) submitted to Congress in 2008. This roadmap will be based on an analysis of what will be required to realize the strategic plan's major technical goals for earthquake resilience within 20 years. In particular, the committee will:o Host a national workshop focused on assessing the basic and applied research, seismic monitoring, knowledge transfer, implementation, education, and outreach activities needed to achieve national earthquake resilience over a twenty year period. o Estimate program costs, on an annual basis, that will be required to implement the roadmap. o Describe the future sustained activities, such as earthquake monitoring (both for research and for warning), education, and public outreach, which should continue following the 20 year period.The project is sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.The approximate starting date for the project is 09/29/2008.A Final Report will be issued at the end of the project in approximately 18 months.

Contributors

Committee

Chair

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Download all bios

Conflict of Interest Disclosure

Disclosure of Conflict of Interest: Thomas Jordan

In accordance with Section 15 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the "Academy shall make its best efforts to ensure that no individual appointed to serve on [a] committee has a conflict of interest that is relevant to the functions to be performed, unless such conflict is promptly and publicly disclosed and the Academy determines that the conflict is unavoidable." A conflict of interest refers to an interest, ordinarily financial, of an individual that could be directly affected by the work of the committee. As specified in the Academy's policy and procedures (http://www.nationalacademies.org/coi/index.html), an objective determination is made for each provisionally appointed committee member whether or not a conflict of interest exists given the facts of the individual's financial and other interests and the task being undertaken by the committee. A determination of a conflict of interest for an individual is not an assessment of that individual's actual behavior or character or ability to act objectively despite the conflicting interest.

We have concluded that for this committee to accomplish the tasks for which it was established its membership must include among others, at least one person who has experience and recognized leadership in managing large programs of research on earthquake science and public outreach on earthquake risks.

To meet the need for this expertise and experience, Dr. Thomas Jordan is proposed for appointment to the committee even though we have concluded that he has a conflict of interest because he directs a major center on earthquake science and communication that is funded largely from agencies that are part of the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program.

As his biographical summary makes clear, Dr. Jordan is a recognized expert in earthquake science. As Director of the Southern California Earthquake Center, he has established that center as a leader in the geophysical understanding of earthquakes as well as an important and innovative source for communicating earthquake information to the public. This combined expertise is critical for the committee in meeting its task. We believe that Dr. Jordan can serve effectively as a member of the committee and that the committee can produce an objective report, taking into account the composition of the committee, the work to be performed, and the procedures to be followed in completing the work.

After an extensive search, we have been unable to find another individual with the equivalent combination of expertise on earthquake science and experience managing programs of earthquake research and public outreach on earthquake risks as Dr. Jordan who does not have a similar conflict of interest. Therefore, we have concluded that this potential conflict is unavoidable.

Sponsors

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Staff

David Feary

Lead

More like this

Subscribe to Email from the National Academies
Keep up with all of the activities, publications, and events by subscribing to free updates by email.