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Spotlights Laura Wilkinson '91 University of Dayton Quarterly, Winter 2004-05 The 1998 bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, helped Laura Wilkinson realize how much she loved her job. Wilkinson, at the time with the U.S. Agency for International Development’s office of foreign disaster assistance, worked through that night mobilizing a search and rescue team and getting medical supplies. “Although I was young, I was helping make all kinds of critical decisions and plans,” she said. “This was when I first recognized the significance of what I was doing.” Indeed, Wilkinson has been no stranger to disaster since graduating from UD with a degree in international studies/global development: She’s helped hurricane and earthquake victims and families who lost loved ones in transportation disasters. She began her career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Honduras and has worked for the American Red Cross as a regional coordinator for disaster preparedness and response in Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. Wilkinson also has assisted organizations in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and Africa with disasters and other emergencies. It’s an adventurous life for Wilkinson, who earned a master’s in humanitarian assistance from Tufts University. Like her time in Turkey, where an earthquake struck within her first two weeks there. She conducted disaster assessment while living in a tent community, working outside until 2 a.m. in sub-zero weather, drinking chai tea and planning the response huddled around a heater. Or her time in Ethiopia, where she now is investigating what might happen during a disaster to a drought-affected region. She recently traveled to a remote village — an arduous trip that resulted in four flat tires but included such scenery as baboons and a lion. The villagers had never seen a white person, she said, and her compass fascinated local tribesmen for hours. “In this type of work, you really appreciate your life circumstances,” Wilkinson said. “I feel fortunate to be able to try and explain to people how the rest of world lives.” —Kristen Wicker

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