Chile Earthquake Reconstruction Fund

This is a bit off topic for our usual posts, but as bloggers we very much believe in the power of new media, especially considering the impact that it is beginning to have in our industry.  Not many people out there personify this better than our friends David Assael (@davod) and David Basulto (@dbasulto) of ArchDaily

As we all know Chile was hit hard with an 8.5 magnitude earthquake on Saturday a.m.  Since, their sister site, Plataforma Arquitectura, based out of Santiago, has been doing an incredible job at keeping people up to date (pictures, pictures, maps) on general infrastructure and building reports. Another, and probably more important initiative, is that they have turned their site into a meeting place for architects, designers, engineers, builders from all of Latin America and Spain (….and the world) to come together and offer support.  Creating a venue for people to organize.

This effort has begun to pay off in incredible ways already.  Most notably they have already connected with Architecture for Humanity which has set up a site for people inside the U.S. donate as little as $5.00 toward the effort.

One of the most basic needs is the inspection of structures post earthquake.  Inspections are critical in determining the usability of the remaining infrastructure, which will allow the government to determine who can return to their homes, and who needs to be temporarily housed. Architects from all over have volunteered for these tasks, but getting to these areas and supporting these efforts still takes resources.

Donations will go toward helping volunteer architects in Chile.  So, again, please do what you can or forward this to people you think can help.

Link to donate: Link