Development and Implementation of the SCEC Communication, Education, and Outreach Program

Mark L. Benthien, & Jill Andrews

Published 2003, SCEC Contribution #726

The Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) is a community of over 500 scientists, students, and staff from 40 academic institutions across the United States, in partnership with more than 50 other science, engineering, education, and government organizations worldwide. SCEC’s mission is to gather new information about earthquakes in Southern California, integrate this information into a comprehensive and predictive understanding of earthquake phenomena and communicate this understanding to increase earthquake awareness, reduce economic losses, and save lives. Primary funding for SCEC is provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the United States Geological Survey (USGS)

A core activity of SCEC is a Communication, Education, and Outreach (CEO) program with four long-term goals:
• Coordinate productive interactions among a diverse community of SCEC scientists and with partners in science, engineering, risk management, government, business, and education.
• Increase earthquake knowledge and science literacy at all educational levels, including students and the general public.
• Improve earthquake hazard and risk assessments
• Promote earthquake preparedness, mitigation, and planning for response and recovery.

Citation
Benthien, M. L., & Andrews, J. (2003). Development and Implementation of the SCEC Communication, Education, and Outreach Program . Seismological Research Letters, 74(5), 511-515.