News of the Institute

Leadership Communique from Heidi Tremayne

As you may have noticed, member emails from EERI now look different! EERI is now transitioning to a set of new tools for member connection and engagement, as part of our 2021-2025 Strategic Goal #1 to enhance our infrastructure, operations, and revenue model to better realize our mission. Due to member feedback about issues with missing emails, we have launched our new email format early, and look forward to following this fall with the full rollout of our new member database.

The new membership database system will improve upon the account management and directory features you are used to, as well as add new options to connect with fellow members, access EERI resources, and sign up for events like meetings, workshops, and webinars. Membership renewal for 2025 will take place in the new database, so stay tuned for more information and instructions in the coming months! The process has been a big lift for EERI staff and our contractors, which means we have had a slower turnaround with some processes lately, so thank you for your patience we manage the transition. We’re excited for the ways these upgrades will improve your member experience.

It was great to see so many of you in person at the WCEE in Milan last month and witness such a strong EERI presence in the keynote lectures and sessions at the conference. Thank you to those who came by the EERI booth to meet our leaders—I loved seeing our “proud EERI member” stickers on many badges throughout the week! We regret that EERI’s bid to host the 2028 World Conference in Los Angeles did not succeed, but I’m excited to see the conference return to North America and we’re looking forward to working with CAEES to contribute to the program and ensure EERI members make another strong showing in Montreal.

If you missed the chance to connect at the WCEE and happen to be in the Bay Area, another networking opportunity is coming soon. See the announcement here about the open house we’ll be hosting at the EERI office in Oakland as part of next month’s board meeting—I hope to see many of you there.

Speaking of conferences, planning is now underway for the 13th National Conference in Portland in 2026, and now is the time to get involved! Check out the 13NCEE volunteer form here to sign up and indicate your interest in participating in the organizing and program committees. We’ll have more announcements about 13NCEE coming this fall—keep an eye out for those on the website and in future editions of the Pulse.

Finally, we will also be seeking member input on some exciting plans for our flagship Learning From Earthquakes (LFE) program next month, so thank you in advance for sharing your feedback. Your participation and contributions are what make EERI a thriving community that works to further our mission of increasing earthquake resilience around the world.

Heidi Tremayne
Executive Director

2025 EERI Board of Directors Election Candidates

EERI is pleased to announce the candidates for Director for the 2025 Board of Directors Election. You can view the candidates' bios and vision statements here.

All eligible EERI voting members will receive an email with a link to access their secure online ballot to cast their vote starting October 1, 2024. The election will close on November 1, 2024 at 11:59 pm Pacific Time.

Director A:

Craig Davis (M. EERI, 1995)
Manager, C A Davis Engineering
Santa Clarita, California

Shahram Pezeshk (M. EERI, 1989)
Chair and Professor of Civil Engineering, The University of Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee

Director B:

Ezra Jampole (M. EERI, 2012)
Principal, Exponent
New York, New York

Lindsey Maclise (M. EERI, 2011)
Principal, Forell | Elsesser Engineers
San Francisco, California

Additional nominations may be made by the membership in accordance with Article VII of the EERI Bylaws (Section 5), upon submission of a petition with signatures. See the Bylaws for full details. Petitions must be received by September 15, 2024 at 11:59pm Pacific Time. They should be sent to eeri@eeri.org.

EERI thanks the 2024 Nominating Committee for their work this year: Erica Fischer (Chair), Nick Gregor, Laurie Johnson, John Hooper, Sarah Wichman, Janiele Maffei (ex-officio), and Heidi Tremayne (ex-officio).

EERI Networking Reception in Oakland on September 18th

Join the EERI Board of Directors and Staff as we say farewell to our downtown Oakland Office and finish our transition to a virtual staff team.  All members are invited to join us for a casual networking reception on Wednesday September 18 from 4:00 - 7:00pm at the current EERI office space, located at 499 14th Street, Suite 220, Oakland, CA 94612.  Light food and drinks will be provided.  

Members will have an opportunity to take some EERI print publications and other memorabilia with them. Come to share some memories and bring your ideas for the future! The Board of Directors welcomes your attendance. Please RSVP via this registration form if you would like to attend the reception.

Meet the 2024-2025 EERI/FEMA NEHRP Graduate Fellow in Earthquake Hazard Reduction

We’re excited to announce the 2024-2025 EERI/FEMA NEHRP Graduate Fellow, Morgan Sanger (M.EERI, 2018)! Supported by funds from FEMA, the one-year fellowship seeks to foster the participation of those working toward the goals and activities of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. Click here to learn more about the EERI/FEMA NEHRP Graduate Fellowship.

Morgan Sanger, P.E., is a Ph.D. student in geotechnical engineering at the University of Washington. With her research advisor, Professor Brett Maurer, Morgan applies the tools of data science and artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) for improved earthquake hazard modeling and risk assessments. Her preliminary doctoral work advances regional liquefaction modeling, leveraging geotechnical data (e.g., cone penetration tests), liquefaction mechanics, AI/ML, and geospatial predictor variables. The purpose of this work is to empower resilient communities and infrastructure networks through high-resolution, mechanics-informed, map-scale liquefaction predictions.

Morgan obtained her B.S. in Geological Engineering, Geology & Geophysics (2017) and M.S. in Geological Engineering (2019) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has enjoyed her involvement in EERI as the University Outreach Coordinator for the Student Leadership Council and the Student Chapter President at the University of Washington.

Honorable Mention: Mia Lochhead

EERI’s Student Awards Committee awarded an honorable mention to candidate Mia Lochhead (M.EERI, 2021). Mia Lochhead is a Ph.D. candidate in structural engineering studying with Dr. Greg Deierlein at Stanford University. Her research focuses on using high-fidelity regional-level assessments of earthquake risk to better understand how engineering decisions impact community functioning. Her doctoral research focuses on using a combination of traditional structural engineering and machine learning methods to quantify exposure and seismic retrofit impact of vulnerable wood-frame housing in California. Mia holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Notre Dame, where she worked with Dr. Kijewksi-Correa on leveraging post-hazard data to learn about the built environment. She also served as the President of Stanford’s EERI Student Chapter.

Join the 13NCEE Organizing and Technical Program Committees

Being on an event Organizing Committee is an exciting, unique opportunity to connect, learn, and lead all at the same time.

Held once every four years, the Thirteenth U.S. National Conference on Earthquake Engineering (13NCEE) is a unique opportunity for researchers and practitioners to share the latest knowledge and techniques to understand and mitigate the damaging effects of earthquakes and tsunamis. You can be a part of leading the program design, developing fun special events, coordinating a rich exhibit filled with incredible sponsors, and much more!

To express your interest in joining:

1. Read about all the positions available and the anticipated time commitment.
2. Fill out your interest form.

Please submit your interest by Tuesday, September 17, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific Time. Selected volunteers will be contacted on a rolling basis beginning fall 2024.

Thank you in advance for helping us design a 13NCEE experience and comprehensive program that will facilitate synergy between earthquake scientists, engineers, and policy professionals from the United States and around the world. We can’t wait to see everyone in Portland, Oregon in July 2026!

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Spectra

August 2024 Issue of Earthquake Spectra

The August 2024 (Volume 40, issue 3) issue of Earthquake Spectra is out! Editor-in-chief Jack Baker selected “Regional-Scale Fault-to-Structure Earthquake Simulations with the EQSIM Framework: Workflow Maturation and Computational Performance on GPU-accelerated Exascale Platforms” by David McCallen, Arben Pitarka, Houjun Tang, Ramesh Pankajakshan, N Anders Petersson, Mamun Miah, and Junfei Huang as the editor's choice paper for this issue.

Editor’s Choice Summary:

“This paper summarizes prior work on the EarthQuake SIMulation (EQSIM) framework, a high-performance computational tool for regional-scale, fault-to-structure earthquake simulations, and discusses recent advancements. The EQSIM workflow has now been optimized for performance on the latest GPU-accelerated exascale computing platforms, including efficient model initiation, distribution of workload across compute nodes, data compression, and interactive visualization of massive simulation datasets. The improvements allow high-resolution regional simulations at frequencies relevant to engineered systems, with representation of soft near-surface sediments, in reasonable compute times. Examples are provided of San Francisco Bay Area simulations, demonstrating the ability to examine intra-event and inter-event ground motion variability and corresponding building response. The exascale computing ecosystem, including GPU-accelerated systems like Frontier and data transfer via ESnet, will enable these large-scale regional simulations to transition from "heroic" to "routine" efforts. The maturation of the EQSIM computational framework on exascale platforms represents an important step forward for practical physics-based regional earthquake simulation and its application to seismic hazard and risk assessment.”

View the full August issue here.

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Webinars

Earthquake Spectra Showcase: August 2024 Issue

Wednesday, August 28, 2024
1:00 - 2:00 PM Pacific Time
REGISTER HERE

Join us for the latest in this EERI webinar series showcasing papers of interest from each new issue of Earthquake Spectra! This webinar will feature two papers from the August 2024 issue—the Editor's Choice selection "Regional-Scale Fault-to-Structure Earthquake Simulations with the EQSIM Framework: Workflow Maturation and Computational Performance on GPU-accelerated Exascale Platforms," and the research paper "Seismic Design of Concrete Structures for Damage Control."

Lead authors David McCallen (M.EERI 1990) and Eyitayo Opabola (M.EERI 2020) will present the papers and respond to questions from participants, and Spectra Associate Editor Carlos Molina Hutt (M.EERI 2011) will moderate the webinar.

M7.4 Taiwan Earthquake of April 2024 Webinar Series

Thursday, September 5, 2024 (first session)
4:00 - 5:00 PM Pacific Time
REGISTER HERE

Join EERI next month for a series of two webinars examining the M7.4 earthquake that struck Taiwan earlier this year.

The earthquake occurred on April 3 at 7:58 am local time offshore about 11 miles southwest of Hualien City, one of the largest population centers on the east coast (pop. 99,500). The rupture occurred on a northeast–southwest-striking, moderately dipping, reverse fault within the Eurasian Plate. The focal mechanism was reverse-faulting at a 15 km (9 mi) depth. It is the strongest earthquake in Taiwan since the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake (M7.7).

At least 20 people were killed and 1,100 injured predominantly due to landslides rather than structural collapses. About 110 buildings destroyed; 1,900 houses, 870 buildings and 75 roads damaged. While structural damage was reported across Taiwan's eastern and northern regions, it is remarkable that full structural collapses were rare. Widespread power and water outages occurred; and railway service partially suspended across Taiwan. Around 800 landslides occurred and a tsunami was generated with maximum wave heights of 100 cm (40 in).

The first webinar, on Thursday September 5, is a Quick Quake Briefing hosted by EERI's Northern California chapter. Two speakers from the National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering (NCREE) in Taipei will join us. Dr. Yu-Chen Ou, Director of NCREE, will present on damage to buildings and other infrastructure, and Dr. Che-Min Lin, Research Fellow of NCREE, will present on the seismology and recorded strong ground motions.

Thursday, September 19, 2024 (second session) 
Time TBD, likely 4:30 PM Pacific 

The second webinar will focus on post-earthquake recovery and will feature EERI Housner Fellows reporting on their recent reconnaissance trip to Taiwan to evaluate functional recovery, as well as additional participants from NCREE and the National Center for Disaster Reduction in Taiwan. More information about speakers and timing will be available soon.

Registering once for this series will allow you to attend both webinars.

EERI Oral History Webinar: Izzat (Ed) Idriss Interviewed By Ross Boulanger

Friday, October 18, 2024
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time
REGISTER HERE

Join us for a free webinar highlighting the most recent publication from EERI's Connections Oral History series! The webinar will feature Dr. Izzat (Ed) Idriss, a pioneer in the field of geotechnical earthquake engineering. He will share recollections from his long career as an academic and engineering practitioner, which included major contributions to understanding soil sites and structures behavior and participation in in post-earthquake reconnaissance and investigation of several major earthquakes over the last 50 years. Dr. Idriss will be joined by Dr. Ross W. Boulanger, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Davis, and a longtime colleague and friend, who conducted the interviews for the oral history.

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Regional Chapters

2024 Kenji Ishihara Colloquium Series on Earthquake Engineering and EERI Distinguished Lecture

EERI’s San Diego Regional Chapter will host the 6th annual Kenji Ishihara Colloquium Series on Earthquake Engineering at the University of California, San Diego on September 12-13, 2024.

The full-day colloquium will take place on Thursday, September 12, with two sessions: “Punctuated Resilience, Climate Change, and Bio-Geotechnics,” (featuring speakers Christopher Wills, Thomas O’Rourke, J. Carlos Santamarina, and Alejandro Martinez) and “Next-Generation Liquefaction Modeling of Liquefaction Triggering and Surface Manifestation (featuring speakers Steve Kramer, Jonathan Stewart, Scott Brandenberg, Ken Hudson, and Kristin Ulmer). View the colloquium schedule here and speaker abstracts here.

On Friday, September 13, the series will continue with a three-quarter-day short course on “USGS Software Tools for Site-Specific Ground Motion Hazard Analysis” from 8:00 AM to 2:30 PM. The course will provide an update of the 2023 USGS National Seismic Hazard Map and USGS ToolBox for ground motions, led by Nicolas Luco and Peter Powers from USGS and Jorge F. Meneses from Worley Consulting and the San Diego Chapter). View more information about the Friday course here.

Participants may register separately for the Thursday colloquium and the Friday short course. Register here soon for early-bird rates—prices will increase after August 30, 2024! 

In a special dinner event at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens on Wednesday, September 11, the night before the Ishihara Colloquium, the chapter will also host Dr. Michael Olson, Professor of Geomatics at Oregon State University, to present his 2024 EERI Distinguished Lecture, “Geospatial Technology—Saving the World's Past, Present, and Future from Natural Hazards.” Ticket prices include a buffet meal. Register for the dinner lecture event here.

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Announcements

Northridge30 Symposium Episode 5: Legacies of the Northridge Earthquake in Disaster Recovery Planning and Policy

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Infrastructure Resilience Division, the ASCE Los Angeles Section, the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) Southern California Chapter, the Structural Engineers Association of Southern California (SEOASC), and the Earthquake Country Alliance (ECA) are collaborating on a webinar series titled “The Northridge Earthquake – 30 Years Later, A Catalyst for Engineering Resilient Communities” as part of the year-long Northridge30 campaign, to recognize and remember the devastating event, commemorate the progress made over the past three decades, and identify next steps for improving the infrastructure and community resilience to earthquakes and other hazards.

Episode 5, “Legacies of the Northridge Earthquake in Disaster Recovery Planning and Policy,” will take place on August 28 from 12:00-1:00 PM Pacific Time and feature presenters Laurie Johnson (M.EERI 1990, Laurie Johnson Consulting | Research) and Robert Olshansky (M.EERI 1987, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign). Register here to attend the webinar.

Tom Hanks Memorial Symposium

Tom Hanks, leading earthquake scientist, generous mentor and life-long friend and colleague to many, passed away earlier this year. To honor Tom, his life, and his scientific legacy, the USGS Earthquake Science Center is hosting an in-person symposium at Moffet Field this October. The event will be a celebration of both his life and work. Presentations will be focused on aspects of Tom's research that continue to resonate in research work or in the community, with personal reflections interspersed with technical talks. 

Thursday October 17, 2024 (35th anniversary of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and ShakeOut day)
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Moffett Field, Mountain View, CA

Please RSVP here to attend. If you have topics or ideas to share for the symposium, see the contact info at that link. 

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Subscribing Member Spotlight

Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates Inc.

Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. is a global interdisciplinary firm of engineers, architects, and materials scientists specializing in the investigation, analysis, testing, and design of repairs for historic and contemporary buildings and structures.

Nabih Youssef & Associates

Nabih Youssef & Associates provides specialized structural and earthquake engineering consulting. NYA has engineered high-rise buildings, medical centers, educational & athletic facilities, and has conducted seismic evaluations, historical preservations and strengthening of major landmark structures. It has offices in offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Irvine and South Carolina.

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News of the Profession

Links to Recent News and Views

• Utah is due for the Big One. So why did state leaders do away with earthquake-safety commission? (The Salt Lake Tribune, quoting EERI members Divya Chandrasekhar, Jessica Chappell, and Barry Welliver).
• The Los Angeles earthquake hit a fault system that could pose a massive threat. Here’s what to know. (The Washington Post, quoting EERI member Lucy Jones)
• ‘It felt like a truck hit the building:’ Modest L.A. earthquake packs big punch (Los Angeles Times)
• Japan lifts 'megaquake' warning after one week (BBC)
• Japan's first-ever megaquake advisory brings worry and confusion. What does it mean? (ABC/Associated Press)
• Syria earthquake shakes nerves in a region already on edge (The National)
• It’s been 65 years since the Hebgen Lake earthquake erupted in Yellowstone (Buckrail)

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