Liesel Ritchie has been named a NIST Disaster Resilience Fellow. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has engaged nine experts in fields ranging from transportation and water infrastructure to societal dimensions of disasters to further its ongoing effort to draft a disaster resilience framework for U.S. communities. Recognized leaders in their fields, NIST's new "disaster resilience fellows" were chosen to complement the knowledge and skill sets of agency researchers developing the framework — a guidance document to help communities prepare for hazardous events and to restore vital functions quickly if disruptive incidents occur. The fellows also will assist NIST staff in establishing a Disaster Resistance Standards Panel. With initial funding from NIST, this independent body will be responsible for updating the framework and identifying new priorities for standards development and other actions that will help communities to better prevent natural and human-caused hazards from becoming disasters. For more information on the fellows and the NIST-led community disaster resilience effort go to: http://www.nist.gov/el/building_materials/resilience/
