Rebuilding for resilience: How science and engineering can inform Haiti's reconstruction

The South Florida community is invited to participate in a public forum on the reconstruction of Haiti. The purpose of the forum is to provide practical recommendations for rebuilding Haiti’s communities and infrastructure with reduced vulnerability. There will be a question and answer session following the panel presentation. This event hosted by the University of Miami is free and open to the public.

Haiti’s devastating earthquake on January 12 presents unprecedented challenges to the science and engineering communities, to non-governmental organizations, governments, and other institutions providing immediate relief as well as to those involved in longer term reconstruction. The rebuilding community is challenged not only by the scale of the devastation, but also by the very real possibility that Port-au-Prince may face another devastating earthquake within the next one or two decades. This risk needs to be considered when policy makers decide where and how to rebuild, especially critical infrastructure such as hospitals and schools, power plants, and government buildings.

Speakers:
• Dr. Eric Calais, Purdue University expert on the geology of the Haiti earthquake
• Dr. Reggie DesRoches, Georgia Tech engineer working on earthquake-resistance reconstruction