News of the Institute

Early Bird Registration for 13NCEE Now Open!

Registration has opened for the 13th National Conference on Earthquake Engineering (13NCEE) taking place in Portland, Oregon from July 13-17, 2026! View registration rates, deadlines, and other information at the 13NCEE website. Early Bird Registration rates are available through February 28, 2026. A list of Partner-Hosted Workshops that will be held alongside the 13NCEE is available, and more information about tours and other activities will be added to the conference website soon.

Applications are also now open for 13NCEE Participation Grants. Computers and Structures, Inc. (CSI) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have generously made funds available to award participation grants to students, early career members, emergency managers and planners, state and local government representatives, and those who submit high-quality applications with demonstrated need to help defray costs of attending the 13NCEE.  Applications are due January 7, 2026. View the Participation Grant page for more information.

Don’t miss 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.

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!

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Learning From Earthquakes

Welcoming LFE’s New Co-Chairs

EERI is pleased to announce that Ayse Hortacsu (M. EERI 2000) and Robb Moss (M.EERI 2003) have been selected as the new Co-Chairs of the Learning From Earthquakes (LFE) Program.  

Ayse Hortacsu is the Director of Projects at the Applied Technology Council (ATC). She has 23 years of experience in the field of structural engineering with a primary focus on earthquake engineering and served as LFE program co-lead for post-earthquake field reconnaissance after the 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquakes. Robb Moss is a professor of Geotechnical Engineering at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. An expert in geotechnical earthquake engineering, he has participated in ten reconnaissance missions with the Geotechnical Extreme Events Reconnaissance (GEER) Association and LFE, and has served on the GEER steering committee since 2021. Read more about the new co-chairs in the news post here.

Ayse and Robb have begun to shadow outgoing Co-Chairs Eduardo Miranda (M.EERI 1987) and Mike Mieler (M.EERI 2010) and will officially begin their term in the new year.

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Webinars

San Diego Chapter Webinar: Site Characterization UsingVS30 Per the ASCE 7-22

January 14, 2026

10:30 AM-12:00 PM Pacific Time

REGISTER HERE

Starting January 1, 2026, the ASCE 7-22 standard will be effective all over the country. Among the new changes, site characterization will now be based solely on shear wave velocities, and not on shear undrained strengths or SPT N-values anymore. To provide guidance and clarification on how to make site characterization consistent with the new ASCE 7-22 standard, EERI's San Diego Regional Chapter is hosting a webinar featuring Prof. Jonathan Stewart and Prof. Brady Cox. After presentations from the two speakers, we will have a 30-minute session for questions and answers. The intended audience includes geotechnical and structural engineering practitioners, engineering geologists, building officials, architects, engineering and geology students, academicians and researchers, and other interested earthquake engineering professionals.

Speakers:

• Dr. Jonathan Stewart is a Professor in the Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles and a 2025 EERI Honorary Member. His presentation title is: "Definition, measurement, and application of VS30 in the NEHRP Provisions and ASCE 7."

• Dr. Brady Cox is a Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Utah State University (USU) and the founding director of the new Utah Earthquake Engineering Center. His presentation title is "Best Practices for Shear Wave Velocity Measurements to Support Vs30 Site Classification or Site-Specific Site Response Analyses Consistent with ASCE 7-22."

Spectra August Issue Highlights Webinar

November 19, 2025

11:00 AM-12:00 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 2025 issue: "Effectiveness of California Earthquake Scenarios in Motivating Mitigation," by Janise Rodgers, and “Rethinking resilience policy and practice,” by Mary Comerio. The lead authors will present their papers and respond to questions from participants.

Speakers:

• Dr. Janise Rodgers (PE) is an earthquake engineer whose expertise includes not only the behavior of buildings during earthquakes but also technology transfer and capacity building, experimental and computational research, technical document development, and projects to help make communities safer from multiple natural hazards. Dr. Rodgers is GeoHazards International’s Chief Operating Officer and has managed international projects for GHI since 2005.

• Dr. Mary C. Comerio, an internationally recognized expert on disaster recovery, is professor emerita in the Department of Architecture at the University of California, Berkeley. An EERI past president, honorary member, and Distinguished Lecturer, she received the Housner Medal, EERI’s highest honor, in 2022.

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Regional Chapters

EERI 2025 Distinguished Lecture at UC Berkeley

Location: 290 Hearst Mining Building, UC Berkeley

Date: Friday December 12, 2025

Time: 4:00- 6:00 PM PST

The UC Berkeley EERI Student Chapter and the EERI Northern California Regional Chapter are hosting a FREE event featuring 2025 EERI Distinguished Lecture recipient Dr. Shideh Dashti (M..EERI 2009), Professor in Geotechnical Engineering and Geomechanics at the University of Colorado Boulder. The event will be held in the beautiful Hearst Memorial Mining building (Room 290) located on the University of California, Berkeley campus. The event will include a social networking hour (food and drinks provided) from 4:00-5:00 PM, followed by a presentation of Dr. Dashti’s lecture, “Liquefaction Mitigation through Physics Informed and Data Driven Methodologies.” 

Abstract: Existing engineering methodologies for mitigation of seismic liquefaction rely on free-field triggering in uniformly layered granular soil deposits. These methods do not evaluate performance, and they routinely ignore cross-layer interactions in realistically stratified deposits as well as soil-structure interaction (SSI). In her presentation, through an experimental-numerical-statistical study, it is shown that these methods are unreliable, jeopardizing our ability to assess and mitigate liquefaction vulnerability of our sites and structures. Extensive simulations were performed using fully-coupled, 3D, dynamic finite element analyses involving free-field site response, seismic SSI, and mitigation with dense granular columns. Physics-informed machine learning was subsequently used to identify the key predictors and probabilistic models of performance with and without mitigation. This approach significantly reduced uncertainty, outperforming traditional regression techniques. Combining advanced numerical simulations and machine learning enables a new approach to liquefaction mitigation, one that accounts for seismic soil-structure interaction in realistic sites and structures.

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Spectra

Spectra Transition to Wiley

As Spectra Editor-in-Chief Jack Baker shared in his Leadership Communique in July, EERI's peer-reviewed journal Earthquake Spectra is moving to a new host at Wiley.

All new Spectra article submissions should be submitted via the new submission portal here. For more detail, please visit the updated Author Guidelines for the journal here.

More information about Spectra's new home will be coming soon!

Special Collection: Fault Displacement Hazard Initiative

The November 2025 issue of Earthquake Spectra features a new special collection of 13 articles based on the work of the Fault Displacement Hazard Initiative (FDHI), led by Yousef Bozorgnia (M.EERI 1986). The FDHI was a multi-year collaborative research program that developed a global database of surface fault displacement measurements and four new fault displacement models (FDMs). This Special Collection contains papers documenting the FDHI project, the database, supplementary studies, and the new fault displacement models.   

The FDHI Database contains systematically collected and quality-assured data from 75 surface-rupturing earthquakes (M 4.9-8.0) spanning all faulting styles. Using this database, modeling teams developed FDMs that predict either principal displacement on individual ruptures or aggregate displacement combined across principal and distributed ruptures. Two models apply to all faulting styles while two are for reverse or strike-slip faulting. The models utilize various statistical distributions and data transformations to improve upon previous predictions of fault displacement characteristics. Compared to earlier models, the FDHI FDMs produce average displacements about 40% higher for M ~7 earthquakes but predict smaller displacements at both lower and higher magnitudes. The models incorporate nonlinear magnitude scaling and improved aleatory variability treatment, with upper tail predictions showing reasonable agreement with empirical maximum displacement observations. This supports their application in probabilistic fault displacement hazard analysis at long return periods. View the papers in the November issue or at the special collection page here.

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Students

Now Accepting Student Chapter Applications for Friedman Family Visiting Professionals Campus Visits

Don’t miss the chance to apply for the Friedman Family Visiting Professionals Program for the 2025-2026 academic year! Generously funded by the Friedman family and FEMA, the program matches professionals with host universities for a workshop meant to be part lecture and part informal discussion to foster better understanding and communications between earthquake practitioners and academics.

This year, the program will include a total of 27 professionals that span disciplines including structural and geotechnical engineering, risk analysis, lifelines, industrial facilities, architecture, emergency management, and resilience. EERI Student Chapters must complete this application form to be eligible for a visit from a Friedman Family Visiting Professional. The application deadline is Monday, November 24, 2025 at 11:59pm Pacific Time. All chapters are encouraged to apply! For more information about the Friedman Family Visiting Professionals program, click here.

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Announcements

NHERI Webinar on Earthquake Resilience

The NHERI Presents webinar series will feature a talk by Diane Moug (M.EERI, 2014) on "Advancing Earthquake Resilience through Field-Scale Experimentation and Research-Industry Partnership,” on November 19 from 1:00-1:30 PM Central Time.

The Pacific Northwest is expecting a large, destructive earthquake from the Cascadia Subduction zone. However, much of the major infrastructure in the region was built on soils that are highly susceptible to earthquake liquefaction and before awareness of the seismic risk. Field-scale research is being conducted in Portland, Oregon to investigate microbially induced desaturation (MID) to reduce soil liquefaction susceptibility. MID is an innovative ground improvement method that can be applied beneath existing infrastructure, while being less disruptive and more economic than conventional methods. This field research demonstrates how academic collaborations and industry partnerships can enable advances to engineering knowledge and practice. Register here for the webinar.

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Opportunities

Assistant Professor of Structural Engineering, University of Nebraska (Lincoln)

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Structural Engineering with an anticipated start date in August 2026. Candidates for this position are expected to demonstrate a strong commitment to teaching excellence at the undergraduate and graduate levels, along with a proven research capability that will support the development of an externally funded, independent research program and publication in leading scholarly journals. The successful candidate should also be prepared to collaborate with colleagues, develop new research efforts, and contribute to ongoing research initiatives. This position offers exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration and access to advanced research infrastructure. Facilities within CEE include high-bay structural testing laboratories on both City Campus in Lincoln and Scott Campus in Omaha.

For more information about the position, requirements, and application process, view the job posting here. Applications are due by January 5, 2026.

Tenure Track Position at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in Architectural Engineering

The Architectural Engineering Department at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) invites qualified applicants to apply for a full-time, academic year, tenure-track faculty appointment at the Assistant Professor rank to begin August 17, 2026.  This is an opportunity for candidates who are passionate about undergraduate education and structural engineering. Cal Poly’s “Learn by Doing” approach provides faculty a unique opportunity to balance teaching and scholarly activities in a collaborative classroom environment. The department’s mission is to educate students to be successful in the practice of structural engineering. Appointed candidate will be expected to teach courses to undergraduate and graduate students in classroom and laboratory settings. Teaching needs in the department include both structural analysis courses and structural design courses focused on building structures. Structural earthquake engineering is emphasized throughout the curriculum with collaboration among the departments within the College of Architecture and Environmental Design. 

Review of applications will begin December 8, 2025 and will continue until the position is filled. For more information about the position and to apply, view the posting here.

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Subscribing Member Spotlight

Degenkolb Engineers

Degenkolb Engineers is a longtime EERI Platinum-Level Subscribing Member and a Sustainer-level donor of the EERI Learning from Earthquakes Endowment Fund. Founded in 1940, Degenkolb's practice reflects more than eight decades of commitment to technical expertise, exceptional client service through close collaboration, and life-long learning. The firm is committed to helping institutions and individuals recover after disaster and build resilient communities. Degenkolb pioneers first-of-its-kind engineering, including the recent first instance of viscous wall dampers in the United States at CPMC Van Ness & Geary Hospital, and the first US tsunami evacuation center in the state of Washington.

GeoVera Nova

GeoVera Nova provides earthquake protection to homeowners in California, Oregon and Washington. GeoVera Nova companies also provide specialized property insurance to families, business owners, and condominium associations, including earthquake and wind risk coverage. As natural catastrophe risk continues to escalate around the world, GeoVera Nova believes it is critically important to utilize the highest earthquake engineering standards in the design and construction of new structures.  GeoVera Nova also strongly supports proactive mitigation measures designed to strengthen older buildings—providing discounts to policyholders who have retrofitted their homes, for example, and actively supporting California’s pioneering Earthquake Brace & Bolt program.  

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News of the Profession

Links to Recent News and Views

• California mastered earthquake safety. Will it do the same for wildfires? (San Francisco Chronicle op-ed by EERI member Joseph Wartman)

• FEMA promised funds to tsunami-proof an Oregon hospital. That money is MIA

  (Oregon Public Broadcasting)

• NOAA cuts back on seismic data used for West Coast tsunami alerts (Seattle Times)

• 'It sounded kind of crazy': How ripples in the high atmosphere warned scientists of a tsunami in real time (BBC)

• Dangerous nuclear waste in aging WA pool at risk of quakes. What’s being done (Tri-City Herald)

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