UW students in China start earthquake relief organization

A small group of University of Washington undergraduates studying at Sichuan University are in the process of founding their own organization to help earthquake victims in Sichuan province, China. The organization, which they plan to register as a nonprofit, is called China Earthquake Aid (CEA).

The students want to provide immediate disaster relief and aid in rural reconstruction, said Stevan Harrell, a professor of anthropology at the UW and the program director of the UW Worldwide Sichuan University Exchange.

The effort has been spearheaded by Steve Margitan, a junior international studies major, Geoffrey Morgan, a third-year student in civil and environmental engineering and international studies, and David Johnsrud, a junior geography major, Harrell said. The involvement of two other students in the organization remains unclear.

Ten UW students were studying at Sichuan University in Chengdu, a city approximately 55 miles from the epicenter of last Monday’s quake. The students are all safe, secure and doing well, said Cameron Frisch, the interim director of the UW’s International Programs and Exchanges.

UW officials decided last Tuesday to give the students the option to evacuate while still receiving full credit for the academic year, Frisch said.

“It’s important to stress that remaining was voluntary,” Harrell said. “This was a courageous thing for them to do because the UW was very willing to facilitate leaving.”

Five students did evacuate and are expected to return to Chengdu within two weeks after staying in Shanghai, Harrell said.

Margitan and Morgan were studying in Starbucks with another student when the earthquake hit, Margitan wrote in an e-mail Saturday.

“On my way home was when I started to see the true extent of the damage and what had really happened,” Morgan wrote to family and friends shortly after the quake.

“Everywhere I went people were milling about the streets afraid to go back into their buildings, crying out to try and find friends and loved ones, cursing their cell phones for not being able to call anyone.”

The goal of CEA is to act as a middleman between potential donors and domestic non-governmental organizations, Johnsrud wrote in his blog. Donations will be made through a Web site, and CEA will purchase supplies based on requests from domestic groups.

Getting direct foreign financial aid to China can be complicated, Harrell said, so CEA will be able to donate material aid to organizations already working in China.

The donation Web site, chinaearthquakeaid.org, was expected to be up and running by 5 p.m. yesterday, Harrell said. As of press time, the Web site is not yet live. The UW Combined Fund Drive will also accept donations designated to CEA through checks or payroll deductions.

Money donated through the fund drive will not be released until July, but Harrell said there will still be a lot to do in July.

The students plan to contact other universities in Washington state to get them involved with the project. They are also working with Joe Parker, an engineer and grad student at Portland State University, to involve Oregon universities.

Meanwhile, the UW students in Chengdu have resumed their regular studies in addition to working on earthquake relief. They are working with Eddie Schmitt, a UW site manager who has lived in Chengdu for three years.

Chengdu was not affected in the same way as many other communities in Sichuan province, Frisch said.

“I think that actually this is a fantastic learning experience,” he said. “Obviously it’s under difficult circumstances, but they’ve really been inspired to start this relief effort.”