The development of earthquake engineering and seismic safety policy is a long-term, continuing process by which California has made substantial progress in responding to the state's seismic hazard. While some of the main trends are generally known, no concerted effort has been made to capture and record information on the way the process has worked, and especially on the careers and activities of key individuals who have played leadership roles. Accordingly this project attempts to acquire and organize such information, using the established methodology of oral history interviewing, recording and indexing. The interviews focus on (1) the development and application of earthquake engineering in California, and (2) the formulation and implementation of seismic safety policy, with particular attention to California's Seismic Safety Commission. The principal objectives are collecting information on leadership development and effective problem-solving in earthquake engineering and seismic safety policy. California's experience has a potential for wider utility and application elsewhere, especially in other states that are sure to be developing future programs of earthquake engineering and seismic safety policy. This can be facilitated by a better understanding of how these processes have worked in California, and of what can be adapted from California's experience.
