A Time for Reflection and Community: Supporting Los Angeles After the Fires

DIA Design Guild is committed to supporting the recovery and rebuilding of our communities. We hope you can join us in contributing your skills and resources.

A Time for Reflection and Community: Supporting Los Angeles After the Fires
Black and white photo of the Eaton fire Photo by Jessica Christian / Unsplash

Over the past several weeks, hundreds of thousands of people have been impacted by the fires in Southern California. Some of the DIA Design Guild community is based in Los Angeles, including staff, mentors, and apprentices. Some friends have lost their homes; one lost their life.

Our Grief and Solidarity

We are grieving with our community. We are overwhelmed by the loss and destruction caused by these fires. Our hearts go out to everyone who has been affected, whether they have lost their homes, their loved ones, or have seen their communities upended.

Our Commitment to Support and Recovery

DIA Design Guild is committed to supporting the recovery and rebuilding of our communities. Just as we support our design community, we are here to support the community in healing and in creating a better path forward.  We believe that working with intention and care will help us move forward. We hope you can join us in contributing your skills and resources.

Many organizations are on the ground providing food, shelter, and medical aid. You can support recovery efforts by donating or volunteering with the local organizations

Empower with life-saving updates: ‘If you don't know, now you know’

Timely information has helped to keep our anxieties in line and in a constant state of alert. If you live in California, you’ll know how important Watch Duty has been in keeping us informed of evacuation orders and red flag warnings. A nonprofit powered by volunteers, the free app has interactive maps allowing users to track evacuation zones, shelter locations, live camera feeds and fire perimeters, as well as information about containment on specific fires.

You can also consider donating or volunteering to support the Watch Duty platform. 

More than just recovery

Meanwhile, the impact of the Palisades, Hurst, and Eaton wildfires extends beyond evacuation zones and more than recovery efforts can mitigate. Like COVID-19, the fires have revealed urgent disparities in health, economic vulnerability and preparedness in the community. What’s going to happen to those who have lost their homes? How are people going to work? What about the culture and history that is now forever lost? 

What happens when the California fires go out? More gentrification.
Fires worsen our class divides, but how governments respond can make a difference.

Read about the impact of fires on gentrification

If you’re based in LA, the Wikimedians of Los Angeles User Group (WikiLA) is hosting a series of in-person edit-a-thons to help document and preserve the story of Los Angeles. See details at Wikipedia:Meetup/LA/Wildfire Edit-a-thon at the Ebell of Los Angeles 

The need for support will continue for a long time. Long-term support is needed to help our communities rebuild and recover. 

The destruction has been overwhelming, but we have hope in the resilience and strength of our community. DIA Design Guild is committed to supporting our local community here in Los Angeles and to our mission of helping people through design and community engagement. 

If you have any other resources or ideas to contribute to the recovery effort, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Thank you.


About the DIA Design Guild

DIA Design Guild is a volunteer nonprofit organization dedicated to providing design education and career development opportunities to people from underrepresented backgrounds. We provide a space for people to learn from each other, collaborate on projects and share their work with the community. We offer a variety of programs, including apprenticeships, workshops, and mentorships. Our goal is to help people find their way through the UX and tech industry and to create a more diverse and inclusive design community.

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