Life-saving Diplomacy: The Volcano Disaster Assistance Program at Thirty

Alexandria, VA - In November 1985, the eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz volcano in Colombia resulted in the death of more than 23,000 people. Geoscientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, WA, moved to action. Having studied the warning signs and responded to the eruption of Mount St. Helens five years earlier, they knew that the Nevado del Ruiz disaster could have been prevented. Their advocacy paved the way for the formation of the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP) in 1986. VDAP is the world’s first and only international volcano response team.

In the January issue of EARTH Magazine, VDAP’s growth and evolution over 30 years are chronicled, highlighting the team’s past successes and goals for the future. VDAP deploys people and equipment, as well as building scientific capacity in countries all over the world. Since its inception, VDAP has responded to more than 30 major volcanic crises and strengthened capacity through partnerships in 12 countries, including Mexico, Tanzania, and Indonesia. The work, however, is changing. VDAP has always been training international partners to become self-sufficient, but as that local capacity has grown, VDAP scientists are increasingly serving in remote advisory roles, rather than traveling to eruption sites.

The January issue of EARTH Magazine is now available online at www.earthmagazine.org. It includes stories about how and when the first humans arrived in America — casting a skeptical eye on the popular land-bridge theory — and about an unexpected disruption in Earth’s largest jet stream, with the potential for such disruptions to increase in a changing climate. To explore more about the science of our planet visit www.earthmagazine.org.