Making Progress through Partnerships

It amazes me to think about how GeoHazards International came to be. It was generous support from a partner early on that truly gave us a chance to be more than just an idea. It was OYO Corporation’s seed funding back in the early 1990s that allowed GeoHazards International to flourish into the organization that it is today.

To me, this demonstrates the incredible role that our partners have played in helping to advance our mission. Support over the years has come in many forms—from general financial support to specific funded projects to pro-bono services. Our partner Verisk is a prime example of all three—since 2015, they have provided continued generous financial support, funded multiple projects, and donated pro-bono technical services.

Example of pro-bono technical support that is helping to advance our efforts in Bhutan. Image above shows results from a co-seismic landslide hazard susceptibility mapping study in Bhutan, which is informing local planning. BGC Engineering is leveraging their relevant R&D efforts and providing pro-bono technical services that underpin this ongoing work.

More recently, I was deeply moved by several of our partners who supported us during particularly difficult times. Soon after last year’s earthquake in Haiti, CSI’s Ashraf Habibullah and Degenkolb Engineers’ Stacy Bartoletti separately reached out asking, “Is your team in Haiti okay? We want to support.” Soon after, we also received unsolicited contributions from Holmes Group that were raised by employees and matched by the firm.

In 2020 when everything felt like it was going in freefall, OYO Corporation advanced their support to earlier in the year and CSI doubled its contributions. All of these not only had a tremendous impact, but also demonstrated the deeply human side of our partners.

Local teams in Haiti who we temporarily hired to help support immediate needs following the 2021 August Haiti earthquake. In addition to meeting local needs, hiring people within the affected communities helped to infuse cash into the local economy. Corporate funds made up a large percentage of donations that supported these efforts.

We recently launched an initiative almost entirely funded by a montage of companies, which is supporting our ongoing work in western Nepal, a region overdue for a large earthquake. Their support is ensuring that local engineers and masons are trained in earthquake-resistant design and construction techniques. Trained masons will have the opportunity to apply their skills by building a new earthquake-resistant school, as a demonstration project to promote safer construction practices in the fast-growing region.

Local engineers assessing seismic vulnerability of school buildings in western Nepal. This GHI-led effort found that close to 90% of school buildings in Amargadhi Municipality need seismic retrofitting or rebuilding. As part of the initiative noted above, a new school building will be built in this municipality.

Thank you deeply to our partners over the years (those from the past year are listed below). Your generous financial, technical, and heartfelt moral support make a tremendous difference for us and for the communities that we serve.

Kindly,

Veronica Cedillos, President & CEO

GeoHazards International

Bhutan · Dominican Republic · Haiti · India · Nepal · U.S.A.

Thanks to these corporate partners, we’re working with communities to stay ahead of disasters, by taking action to protect and prepare.