Sometimes research just can’t wait. Neither can some actions. So when Natural Hazards Center Assistant Research Director Leisel Ritchie had a chance to collect data and help build shelters for Haitians displaced by the January 12 earthquake, she headed to Haiti.
Since then, Ritchie has returned to the earthquake-ravaged country several times, collecting perishable data while working with organizations that provide temporary shelters with an eye toward long-term rebuilding.
Ritchie’s experience as one of the first researchers in the field will be featured in a special National Science Foundation Webcast at 2 p.m. Eastern on April 27. Along with geophysicist Eric Calais and structural engineer Reginald DesRoches, Ritchie will talk about the value of rapid-response research and preliminary findings from Haiti. NSF’s Dennis Wenger will discuss how disaster research is used to save lives.
Visit the special report site, Learning from Haiti: Rapid Response Research, for researcher biographies, video and photographs, related resources, and to learn how to tune in to Tuesday’s Webcast.