Rebuilding with Resiliency: The Los Angeles Urban Wildfires

Join us for this in person event in Santa Monica, CA

In January 2025 two large urban wildfires swept through Los Angeles County simultaneously.  This type of natural disaster is unprecedented based on both location and time of year.

Thousands of homes, businesses, schools, houses of worship, and other structures were destroyed. Emergency response in infrastructure was strained and in some cases sub-standard. Countless people’s lives have been disrupted either directly or indirectly by the fires.

Along with other forms of philanthropy, companies step in with general relief support, and companies also stepped in to help their own employees impacted by the fires.

Complicating this disaster, and different from so many wildfires, is that it occurred in a densely populated severely housing constrained region, the largest County and the 2^nd. largest City in the United States by population. While debris removal is happening, utilities repaired or rebuilt, and some rebuilding has begun to take place, this is a complex situation with many stakeholders coming together, some with opposing thoughts on what the future should be in the rebuilt areas. 

What will be both the near term and long-term economic impact to the region? 

With more frequent and stronger natural disasters, how can companies best help Los Angeles and also better prepare for large scale urban disasters?