News of the Institute

Renew Your EERI Membership for 2026!

Renewal season is here, and we hope that you’ve found your EERI membership valuable this year. With your EERI membership, you’ll continue to gain opportunities to build community and connections, expand your knowledge of the earthquake risk reduction field, and grow your leadership skills. We hope you take a moment to renew your membership for 2026 so that we can do more (and even better!) together in the years ahead.  Please take a moment to renew your membership and remain a part of our passionate and dedicated community. Log in to my.eeri.org to renew your membership for 2026 today!

Renew Your EERI Membership for 2026!

Renewal season is here, and we hope that you’ve found your EERI membership valuable this year. With your EERI membership, you’ll continue to gain opportunities to build community and connections, expand your knowledge of the earthquake risk reduction field, and grow your leadership skills. We hope you take a moment to renew your membership for 2026 so that we can do more (and even better!) together in the years ahead.  Please take a moment to renew your membership and remain a part of our passionate and dedicated community. Log in to my.eeri.org to renew your membership for 2026 today!

Recent graduates: Stay connected as you explore your career and grow your professional identity. If you recently graduated, contact us at eeri@eeri.org to take advantage of your FREE first-year EERI Young Professional membership.

Welcoming New 13NCEE Sponsors!

EERI welcomes the following 13NCEE Sponsors:

• Anchor Sponsor: Computers & Structures Inc. 

• Sustainers: Degenkolb and the Oregon State University College of Engineering

• Partners: AtlasTube and Seft Consulting Group

• Supporters: Saiful Bouquet and Boise Cascade

• Industry-Sponsored Session: Kinemetrics

The 13NCEE will be the perfect venue to showcase your company among the leading firms and organizations in the earthquake engineering and mitigation communities!  Learn more about 13NCEE sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities at the conference website or contact ncee@eeri.org for more information.

Cast Your Vote: 2026 EERI Board of Directors Election

The 2026 Board of Directors Election is now open! You can view the candidate bios and vision statements here.

We sent an email to eligible voters today with a link to access your secure ballot and cast your vote. The election will close on Saturday, November 1, 2025 at 11:59 pm Pacific Time.

EERI Receives USGS Grant

EERI is pleased to announce a new cooperative agreement award from the U.S. Geological Survey’s Earthquake Hazards Program. In alignment with our Learning From Earthquakes Program and EERI’s role in post-earthquake reconnaissance after U.S. earthquakes, EERI submitted a proposal to conduct a workshop to be held in conjunction with the 13NCEE in July 2026. The full-day invitational workshop will exercise the recently updated “Plan to Coordinate Post-Earthquake Investigations Supported by the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), USGS Circular 1542,” to enhance familiarity with the plan among seismic community partner organizations who are likely to participate in future earthquake responses. Planning for the workshop will begin in October 2025, and EERI will be contacting leaders from key federal, state, non-governmental, and reconnaissance-focused organizations about participation.

13NCEE Paper Submission Grace Period

In response to widespread feedback, the 13NCEE conference organizers have decided to provide a grace period for paper submissions. The grace period will allow you to upload your paper and submit payment through October 15, 2025. Authors whose papers are accepted for the conference will have the opportunity to submit revisions in early 2026. Visit the Call for Papers page here to review requirements for paper formatting, the submission process, and paper submission fees.

Make sure your EERI membership is current in order to receive the member rate on the submission fees! If the form is not showing the correct submission fee for your EERI membership type, please contact ncee@eeri.org and wait to complete your submission and payment until you receive a response.

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Learning From Earthquakes

LFE Update on 2025 Earthquakes

The Learning From Earthquakes (LFE) Executive Committee met this week and discussed LFE’s ongoing response to several significant earthquakes that have taken place in 2025. Below are some updates on recent LFE activities and products:

• M6.9 Philippines Earthquake: LFE is currently monitoring the impacts of the M6.9 earthquake that struck the Cebu on September 30, 2025 and reaching out to colleagues in the affected region to evaluate a potential response.

• M6.0 Afghanistan Earthquake: World Housing Encyclopedia is working to update materials on local construction types to include new findings from this earthquake.

• M6.4 Colombia Earthquake: The joint reconnaissance report from the Colombian Earthquake Engineering Research (CEER) Network, StEER, and LFE is now available here.

• M7.7 Myanmar Earthquake: Recordings of the “Observations from the 2025 M7.7 Myanmar Earthquake” webinar series hosted by Geohazards International and EERI-LFE are available on YouTube: Part I: Impacts in Myanmar; Part II: Impacts in Thailand and Engineering Observations.

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Public Policy and Advocacy

Results of PPA Survey on Federal Funding Impacts

In Spring 2025, EERI’s Public Policy and Advocacy (PPA) Committee launched a public survey to better understand how EERI members and the broader earthquake community have been impacted by federal funding uncertainty and recent executive orders. The purpose of the survey is to identify ways to support our professional community and to help the PPA better target advocacy efforts.

The most common realized and anticipated impacts identified by respondents were: reduced capacity or discontinuation of federally funded projects (non-construction); reduced capacity to conduct academic research and/or fund graduate students; difficulty collecting federal funding payments already promised; and issues accessing data and information that was previously available on government websites. A key takeaway is that the impacts are not limited to the direct targets of the funding cuts—the effects of funding instability and policy uncertainty are being felt throughout the EERI community. Concern about the long-term ramifications for the field and the goal of increased earthquake resilience is widespread.

Read a more detailed summary of the survey results at the EERI website here.

Shaking Things Up on the Hill: EERI Members Advocate for Earthquake Resilience in D.C.

In September, EERI members Amanda Hertzfeld (M.EERI 2023) and Zorana Mijic (M.EERI 2019) of the Public Policy & Advocacy (PPA) Committee took the pulse of Capitol Hill as they joined fellow geoscience advocates for the annual Geoscience Congressional Visits Day (GeoCVD), hosted by the American Geophysical Union (AGU). Their mission was elevating the importance of earthquake research and resilience—and to advocate for reauthorization of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP).

The two-day event began with a full day of training, equipping participants with the tools and messaging needed to effectively communicate the value of geoscience to lawmakers. Armed with data, stories, and a passion for earthquake resilience, Amanda and Zorana spent the following day meeting with lawmakers. Amanda met with representatives from the offices of Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, and Representatives Emily Randall and Rick Larsen. She also met with staff from the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. Zorana met with representatives from the offices of Senators Chris Coons (DE), Lisa Blunt-Rochester (DE), Chris van Hollen (MD), and Angela Alsobrooks (MD), and a staffer from the office of Representative Sarah McBride (DE).

EERI member and former PPA Co-Chair, Anna Lang (M.EERI 2002), then joined Amanda for a further round of coalition building and meetings to further NEHRP’s reauthorization. Together, they met with Representatives Mullin, Zinke, and Valadao, as well as professional staff from the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, continuing to push for robust federal support of NEHRP’s essential work.

Amanda and Anna co-led a NEHRP Coalition Meeting hosted by the International Code Council (ICC). The gathering brought together key partners invested in NEHRP’s success—the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), National Council of Structural Engineers Association (NCSEA), Seismological Society of America (SSA), National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS), as well as ICC, uniting leading voices across disciplines to strategize a collective path forward in securing NEHRP reauthorization. Any organizations or companies wishing to participate in the coalition or sign on to an advocacy letter it is preparing should contact Heidi Tremayne (heidi@eeri.org).

Their efforts reflect EERI’s continued commitment to ensuring that science, safety, and structural resilience remain central to national policy conversations. The PPA intends to send at least one member per year to attend future Geo-science Congressional Visit Days. Please join the Public Policy and Advocacy Committee to learn more!

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In Memoriam

James M. Kelly (1935-2025)

Professor James Marshall Kelly (M.EERI 1982) died on September 23, 2025 at the age of 90. A faculty member at the University of California, Berkeley, from 1965 to 2004, he was probably the most influential figure in the development, design and implementation of seismic protection technologies, encompassing both seismic isolation and supplemental energy dissipation.

Brilliant, wise, and generous, Professor Kelly earned the admiration of students, his Berkeley colleagues, and collaborators worldwide. He was the EERI Distinguished Lecturer in 2001, and in 2008, he was awarded the George W. Housner Medal, EERI’s most prestigious award, for his extraordinary and lasting contributions to public earthquake safety.

On September 17th 2025, just six days before his passing, he attended a special session at the 19th World Conference on Seismic Isolation, Energy Dissipation and Active Vibration Control of Structures (19WCSI), a conference series that he initiated 36 years prior, and received the inaugural James M. Kelly award. This medal, to be awarded by the Anti-Seismic Systems International Society (ASSISi) in future years to individuals making outstanding contributions in the field of seismic isolation and seismic protective systems, will carry forward his enormous legacy and impact.

Read a detailed obituary, contributed by Ian Aiken, Amarnath Kasalanati, Dimitrios Konstantinidis, Nicos Makris, and Eduardo Miranda, at the EERI website here.

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Students

2026 SDC Interest Survey

We hope the school year is off to a great start for all EERI student members! The EERI Student Leadership Council (SLC) has opened the interest form for university student chapters that are planning to participate in the 2026 Undergraduate Seismic Design Competition (SDC), which will be held at the 13NCEE in Portland next summer.

Prospective SDC teams should fill out the form here by October 17, 2025. Only one person per chapter needs to fill out the survey. More information about the 2026 SDC will be announced soon!

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Webinars

Quick Quake Briefing: M8.8 Kamchatka Earthquake and Tsunami

October 14, 2025

12:00 PM Pacific Time

REGISTER HERE

The EERI Northern California Regional Chapter and the Learning From Earthquakes Program are hosting a FREE webinar on the earthquake that struck offshore the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia on July 2025, and the resulting tsunami.

The megathrust quake was the most powerful earthquake recorded worldwide since the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and is tied for the sixth strongest earthquake ever recorded by instruments. The earthquake triggered tsunami notices throughout the Pacific Rim. The National Tsunami Warning Center placed the entirety of the U.S. West Coast (California, Oregon, and Washington states) into different tsunami alert levels. Same is true for portions of coastal Alaska and the Aleutian Islands.  In California, the Central Coast, and San Francisco Bay Area were placed under Tsunami Advisory. A Tsunami Warning was issued covering the coast from Cape Mendocino, California, to the California border with Oregon.  Fortunately, the subsequent Pacific-wide tsunami was smaller than expected, with waves approximately 3 feet (1 m) or less in most places.

Speakers will include:

• David Snider is the Tsunami Warning Coordinator from the National Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer, Alaska.  

• Jason R. Patton, PhD, is an Engineering Geologist with the California Geological Survey (CGS) in the Seismic Hazards Tsunami Unit.  

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Oral History

Interviews by Stanley Scott: Henry D. Dewell

Don’t miss the next publication in EERI’s new oral history series, focusing on Henry D. Dewell (1881-1946). Interviews by Stanley Scott: An EERI Oral History Collection preserves and shares the valuable unfinished work of Stanley Scott (1921-2002), who conducted tape-recorded interviews with pioneers in the field of earthquake engineering in the 1980s and 1990s that formed the basis for 17 volumes in the Connections series of oral histories. This new series makes available interviews that Scott was unable to finalize and publish during his lifetime.

Henry D. Dewell was a pioneering engineer in the early development of California’s seismic codes. This volume features an interview with his son, Robert D. Dewell (1910–1995), also a consulting structural engineer. As a UC Berkeley civil engineering student, Henry experienced the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and later conducted reconnaissance after the 1925 Santa Barbara earthquake, events that inspired his focus on seismic safety. Dewell served on the California State Chamber of Commerce Committee that developed a 1939 foundational model code, work that contributed to the formation of the Structural Engineers Association of California, of which Dewell was a founding member. Over his career, he wrote extensively on earthquake damage and code development. Early on, he was Chief Structural Engineer for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition, and authored Timber Framing (1917), then the only text on the subject. The volume, edited by Thalia Anagnos (M.EERI 1982), also includes reflections from his grandson Robert H. Dewell and great-grandson Todd D. Dewell.

Download the PDF of Henry D. Dewell from the EERI Digital Library here.

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Announcements

GEM Webinar on 15 Years of the OpenQuake Engine

Join the Global Earthquake Model (GEM) Foundation as we celebrate the 15th anniversary of the OpenQuake Engine, the open-source software that has become a global standard for seismic hazard and risk assessment, with a webinar on October 13, 2025 at 1:00 PM CEST.

This 1-hour session will highlight the Engine’s enhanced capabilities, collaborative development, and global applications – from informing disaster risk reduction policies to advancing earthquake science and engineering. We’ll also share insights from an upcoming publication on the Engine’s evolution and outline how OpenQuake supports governments, researchers, NGOs, and industry worldwide. Register here to attend the webinar.

CLiP and CRESCENT Seismic Resilience Webinars

The Cascadia Lifelines Program (CLiP) conducts research that will allow lifeline providers to implement value- and cost-informed decisions to mitigate damage to Pacific Northwest infrastructure as the result of Cascadia subduction zone earthquakes.

The Cascadia Region Earthquake Science Center (CRESCENT) partners with CLiP to offer a free monthly webinar series that showcases advances in seismic hazard assessment, infrastructure design, and earthquake resilience initiatives. Find presentation topics and registration information for the 2025-26 series here.

The next webinar on October 23, 2025 from 1:00-2:00 PM PST features Kelly Missett from Oregon Hazards Lab speaking on the topic "Because Seconds Matter: ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning for Lifeline Infrastructure." Register here for the webinar.

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Subscribing Member Spotlight

Verisk

For more than 50 years, Verisk has helped property and casualty insurers make smarter decisions about risk. From AI-powered risk modeling to advanced analytics and technology solutions spanning the entire policy lifecycle, we’re your partner in addressing the industry’s most complex challenges. More than a risk management firm, Verisk’s unique position at the center of the insurance ecosystem gives us unparalleled insight into gaps insurers face within their organizations and industrywide challenges.

SOM

SOM is a collective of architects, designers, engineers, and planners working together to build a better future. Since our founding in 1936, SOM has been designing the future. From the first glass-and-steel office building in New York City to supertall towers that have redefined skylines around the world, our firm has been responsible for some of the most significant architectural and engineering achievements in modern history.

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News of the Profession

Links to Recent News and Views

• Philippine Village for Typhoon Survivors Is Hit by Deadly Quake (New York Times)

• Rescuers hunt for survivors after Philippines' deadliest quake in over a decade kills at least 69 (Reuters)

• Could your Portland-area school crumble in an earthquake? (The Oregonian)

• Afghanistan earthquake another tragic story of weak building materials, vulnerable infrastructure (Times-Standard, by EERI member Lori Dengler)

• Oregon lawmakers push for change to tsunami, earthquake preparedness (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

• 4.3 magnitude earthquake jolts the San Francisco Bay Area (PBS/AP)

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