GeoHazards International

What GeoHazards International does

GeoHazards International (GHI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1991 and headquartered in Pleasanton, California, with a South Asia regional office in New Delhi and field teams embedded across six countries: Bhutan, Dominican Republic, Haiti, India, Nepal, and the United States. The organization works to reduce loss of life and suffering from earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, and extreme weather in vulnerable communities, with primary focus on making schools and hospitals disaster-resilient. Its portfolio spans four core program lines: the Earthquake Desk Program (proprietary shock-table-tested protective furniture now locally manufactured in Nepal and Bhutan), School and Health Facility Seismic Vulnerability Assessment services, Health Systems Resilience programs (including adapted WHO Hospital Safety Index for Nepal and Myanmar), and Disaster Scenario Development built on a Next Generation Scenario Practice methodology developed with USAID funding. Supporting the core programs is a publishing and training practice that has produced 4,500+ trained professionals and resources such as the Hospital Earthquake Safety Manual, the Non-structural Risk Reduction Handbook for Schools, and the multilingual Prepared Family Sourcebook.

GHI delivers impact entirely through a field-based, community-led model rather than commercial sales, partnering with sister organization GeoHazards Society in India, NSET-Nepal, Royal Government of Bhutan ministries, and Haiti's Health Ministry to implement programs. Its operating model depends on a diversified mix of bilateral/multilateral grants (USAID, CDRI-IRAF), corporate partnerships (Swiss Re, OYO Corporation), private foundations (Cecil and Ida Green Foundation), and individual giving (donations, legacy gifts, stock gifts, a 2024-launched GHI Endowment Fund). The organization has operated programs in more than 20 countries since 1991, with documented outcomes including 43 hospital assessments, a Haiti citywide evacuation drill with 4,200+ participants, and verified survival of all retrofitted schools through the 2015 M7.8 Nepal earthquake.

Revenue is concentrated in grants from a small number of large institutional donors, exposing the organization to material donor-cycle risk, as demonstrated by the 2021 abrupt termination of a four-year, $2.94M USAID award that represented roughly one-third of annual revenue and disrupted operations across nine countries. Leadership is led by President and CEO Veronica Cedillos and COO Janise Rodgers, with founder Brian Tucker as a continuing figure; governance is by an independent Board of Trustees. The combination of 30+ years of domain depth, deep in-country partnerships, proprietary physical and methodological IP, and ongoing grant diversification positions GHI as a specialized, mission-driven organization whose growth is tightly coupled to funder pipeline rather than commercial expansion.

Name

GeoHazards International

Legal name

GeoHazards International

Website

https://geohaz.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

GeoHazards International is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1991 that reduces disaster fatalities in vulnerable communities through earthquake-resistant school and hospital programs, seismic assessments, and disaster scenario development across 20+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services (6242)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Disaster Recovery, Reconstruction & Resilience Programs (BPAGAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) & Preparedness (BPADADAK), Natural Disaster Preparedness & Recovery (Storm/Flood/Wildfire) (BPABANAI), Climate, Environment & Natural Resource Management Aid Programs (BPADABAI)

Keywords

• Disaster risk reduction
• Earthquake preparedness
• Seismic vulnerability assessment
• School safety programs
• Hospital resilience services

Headquarters

HQ city

California City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals via credit card, PayPal, EFT, stock gifts, and mailed checks. The organization is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with Tax ID 76-0404723.
2. Legacy Giving Program: Planned gifts including wills, trusts, IRA rollovers, and beneficiary designations. Includes GHI Endowment Fund announced in 2024.
3. Stock Donations: Gifts of stock are encouraged and may provide tax benefits. Stock transfers processed through Vanguard Brokerage.
4. Institutional Grants and Corporate Partnerships: Funding from organizations like USAID, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI-IRAF), Swiss Re, OYO Corporation, Cecil and Ida Green Foundation. Corporate partners enhance nonprofit work.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

GeoHazards International delivers disaster risk reduction services to schools, hospitals, governments, and communities in earthquake- and climate-vulnerable countries. Its offerings include seismic vulnerability assessments, disaster scenario development, training and capacity building for engineers and healthcare personnel, and innovative safety products such as the Earthquake Desk. Programs are funded through donations, grants, and corporate partnerships and implemented through in-country teams and local partner organizations.

Product overview

GeoHazards International (GHI) operates as a nonprofit disaster preparedness organization offering a portfolio of educational programs, technical services, and publications focused on disaster risk reduction. The portfolio includes: the Earthquake Desk Program, which designs protective school furniture; School Seismic Vulnerability Assessment Services; Health Systems Resilience Programs for hospital disaster preparedness; and Disaster Scenario Development services. Supporting these core programs are published resources including the Hospital Earthquake Safety Manual, Non-structural Risk Reduction Handbook for Schools, School Earthquake Safety Course Materials, and the Prepared Family Sourcebook series. GHI functions as a services and knowledge organization rather than a software product company, providing consulting, training, and educational materials to at-risk communities worldwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Earthquake Desk Program A school safety initiative that designs and deploys specialized earthquake desks that protect schoolchildren from heavy debris during earthquake shaking. The desks have been tested via shock table tests and are manufactured locally in countries like Nepal and Bhutan.
• School Seismic Vulnerability Assessment Services Technical assessment services that evaluate school buildings for earthquake vulnerability, helping identify which schools are at highest risk and prioritizing strengthening efforts.
• Health Systems Resilience Program Comprehensive program to help hospitals and health facilities maintain continuous delivery of medical care during and after disasters through facility assessments, mitigation planning, emergency preparedness, and staff training.
• Disaster Scenario Development Development of science-based disaster scenarios that depict potential impacts of future earthquakes, landslides, and volcanic activity on communities to motivate risk mitigation action and inform planning processes.
• Hospital Earthquake Safety Manual A detailed manual providing guidelines for hospitals on how to reduce earthquake-related damage and losses, protect medical equipment and supplies, secure contents, architectural elements, and building utility systems.
• Non-structural Risk Reduction Handbook for Schools A guide explaining how to prepare schools before an earthquake to avoid significant injuries or blocked exits from unsecured objects falling during shaking.
• School Earthquake Safety and Preparedness Course Materials A program to reduce school earthquake risks and educate students, faculty, and parents about earthquake preparedness, developed for India schools with instructor guides and student materials.
• Prepared Family is a Safer Family Sourcebook A sourcebook for reducing family and community disaster risk, available in multiple languages (English, French, Haitian Creole, Spanish) for different countries including Haiti and Dominican Republic.

Quantifiable outcome

• 43 hospital assessments completed with technical training for local professionals
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GeoHazards Society (GHS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010Sister organization based in New Delhi, India. Regular collaboration on school safety programs, including street plays for earthquake safety education and training workshops.
• National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET) NepalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal partner organization in Nepal for school earthquake safety programs. GHI worked with NSET-Nepal to train local masons on earthquake-resistant building techniques in Sudurpashchim Province.
• Global Earthquake Model (GEM) FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on study of earthquake risk reduction activities, needs, and barriers worldwide to guide future tool and resource development.
• Royal Government of Bhutan (Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner for National Action Plan for Hospital Safety and Health Emergency and Disaster Contingency Plan development. Co-developed policies and programs.
• Haiti's Health MinistrycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner for Strengthening Haiti's Health Facilities for Disaster Resilience project, assessing health facilities and developing resilience action plans.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Mercy Corps: Large international humanitarian NGO with disaster preparedness programs in many of the same geographies (Nepal, Haiti). Operates broader humanitarian mandate but overlaps on community disaster resilience and DRR.
• Concern Worldwide: Global humanitarian organization addressing emergencies and disaster resilience across multiple developing countries. Comparable donor base, geographic focus, and disaster-preparedness programmatic verticals.
• Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI): Multi-country government-led coalition funded by major economies to promote resilient infrastructure systems, including a funder of GHI's Haiti health facilities project. Operates at significantly larger scale and is both peer and partner.

Direct peers

• Build Change: Nonprofit focused on disaster-resistant housing and school construction in developing countries. Highly comparable mission, target beneficiaries (schools and homeowners in seismic zones), and training-the-trainer approach.
• Miyamoto International: Global structural engineering firm specializing in earthquake engineering, disaster risk reduction, and post-disaster reconstruction across Asia, the Americas, and beyond. Comparable in technical assessments and school/hospital seismic retrofitting.
• GeoHazards Society (India): GHI's sister organization in India, jointly running school and hospital earthquake safety programs including street plays and training workshops. Operates as a near-clone of GHI focused on the Indian subcontinent.
• National Society for Earthquake Technology - Nepal (NSET): Direct implementation partner of GHI in Nepal. NSET performs school retrofitting, mason training, and community earthquake preparedness with very similar methodology and target populations.
• ShelterBox: International disaster relief nonprofit providing emergency shelter and essential supplies after earthquakes, tsunamis, and other disasters. Comparable in target geography and disaster response mission but focused on post-event shelter rather than pre-event resilience.

Others

• Swiss Re Foundation: Corporate foundation of Swiss Re that has funded GHI's hospital earthquake safety work in India. Comparable as a major institutional donor in the disaster resilience space and a potential strategic partner for reinsurance-linked resilience programs.

Regional players

• AIDMI (All India Disaster Mitigation Institute): India-based disaster risk reduction nonprofit working on community resilience, school and hospital safety, and climate adaptation. Closely comparable methodology and beneficiary base but primarily India-focused.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/geosafety
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@GeoHazardsInternational
• Facebookfacebook.com/geohaz.org
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/1537645
• Instagraminstagram.com/geohazards_international

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about GeoHazards International