U.S.-U.S.S.R. Joint Meeting on Earthquake Hazards Mitigation: September 9-13, 1991, Moscow, U.S.S.R. (1992)

Summary: Devastating earthquakes have occurred frequently in both the US and USSSR. When they happened, these earthquakes caused the loss of lives, the destruction of numerous buildings and structures, and resulted in severe economic losses in billions of dollars. The desire to share the lessons learned from past earthquakes and the belief that our current knowledge base, when properly implemented, can effectively reduce earthquakes’ impacts on our societies. Historically, scientists from both countries have been working together on studies of earthquake mechanisms, installation of seismic networks, and interpretation of data. However, both sides agree that effective reduction of the impact of future earthquakes needs an integrated system approach that includes the close cooperation of experts from different disciplines: seismology, engineering seismology, earthquake and geotechnical engineering, social and political sciences, economics, and emergency management. To effectively mitigate the earthquake hazards also requires a society’s ability to focus on key issues in planning, preparedness, mitigation, response, recovery, and reconstruction.