Over the next few weeks, we will analyse each chapter of the book Faith in Action: A Decade of Compassion and Resilience with CADIS.
This will be an opportunity to delve into each experience recounted directly by CADIS leaders who, over the course of a decade, have seen with their own eyes and touched with their own hands the fragility of the people they assist, in every corner of the earth.
The book is available in English, and soon in Italian, on Amazon in both paperback and ebook formats. CLICK HERE
Chapter Two - Healing Amid Ruins: The CADIS Response to the 2015 Nepal Earthquake
Written by Consuelo Santamaria Repiso, Fr. Biju Sebastian K, and Fr. Biju Mathew S, the chapter describes the most significant consequences of the earthquake that struck Nepal on April 25, 2015, and the psychosocial interventions that CADIS carried out in the country.
Nepal's striking natural beauty is inextricably linked to a profound geographical vulnerability shaped by its unique orography, monsoon climate, and intense tectonic activity. Situated between China and India, the country’s 147,515 km2 landscape is divided into three distinct ecological zones: the fertile southern lowlands, the temperate central hills, and the high-altitude Himalayas, which house Mount Everest at an elevation of 8,848 meters. This vertical diversity dictates a climate that shifts from subtropical heat to arctic cold, with a heavy monsoon season from June to September accounting for 80% of the nation's annual rainfall.
The country’s primary threat stems from its position on the Himalayan belt, where the ongoing collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates creates a massive buildup of energy. This seismic instability was tragically demonstrated by the 2015 Gorkha earthquake, a 7.8 magnitude event that resulted in nearly 9,000 deaths and catastrophic damage to the capital, Kathmandu. Beyond earthquakes, the monsoon cycle regularly triggers severe flooding and landslides, particularly in mountainous areas where homes are built on precarious slopes. The risk is further compounded by climate change, which accelerates the melting of glaciers and the formation of unstable glacial lakes, such as Imja and Tsho Rolpa.
These lakes pose a constant threat of "outburst floods" that can release devastating volumes of water in seconds, while paradoxically, irregular rainfall patterns also lead to prolonged droughts that threaten the 70% of the population dependent on agriculture.
Socio-political factors significantly magnify these natural hazards. Rapid, unplanned urbanization in cities like Kathmandu has led to high population density in buildings that rarely meet seismic safety standards, especially in marginalized neighborhoods. Structural vulnerability is matched by social inequality; the rugged topography often isolates remote communities from basic services, while widespread deforestation for firewood has stripped the land of its natural ability to absorb water, increasing the frequency of flash floods.
These risks are not distributed equally across the population. Poverty and a lack of education serve as the strongest predictors of disaster vulnerability, with marginalized ethnic groups like the Dalits and Janajati facing the highest rates of hardship due to historical discrimination. Data shows that households headed by women often experience higher poverty levels than those headed by men, a gap widened by social norms like child marriage and a preference for investing in boys' education. In rural areas, large extended families relying on traditional farming without access to modern technology remain the most exposed to the shifting environmental and economic tides of the region.
The 2015 earthquake catastrophe was so severe that CADIS intervened in many areas of psychosocial intervention, not only providing first aid but also offering training, social work to support the most vulnerable and impoverished, and providing direct assistance in rebuilding homes for people experiencing extreme social vulnerability, defenselessness, and neglect.
To learn more about this CADIS project, order a copy of the book HERE.
All proceeds from sales will support CADIS projects around the world. Thank you!
