Prince Harry welcomed MapAction to Kensington Palace yesterday for a briefing in advance of his official tour to Nepal. He met with MapAction’s Chief Executive, Liz Hughes, and three of our volunteers who played pivotal roles in our four-month long response.

MapAction volunteer, Dr Hamish Pritchard, had been working in Nepal when the first earthquake struck. He described to Prince Harry his personal reflections on experiencing this major disaster first-hand. Hamish explained how he immediately diverted to support search-and-rescue efforts from Kathmandu and outlined some of the challenges during this acute, life-saving phase of the response.

Kirsty Ferris then outlined how she and fellow MapAction volunteers quickly deployed to reinforce the team in Nepal. Kirsty briefed Prince Harry on how geospatial analysis helped responders identify the worst-affected areas, prioritise their response and establish the best routes available to reach those in greatest need. She also described how she travelled to Gorkha, one of the worst-affected areas, to support the United Nations in setting up coordination hub to facilitate an efficient and effective response.

Wai-Ming Lee (known as Ming) briefed Prince Harry on the final stages of MapAction’s emergency mission. He described how he delivered training and handed over key tools and know-how to partners to support the long-term recovery. He emphasised the importance of geospatial analysis for responders to understand the likely impact of the monsoon and the arrival of winter for communities already coping with the aftermath of the earthquakes.

Prince Harry has been MapAction’s Royal Patron since 2007.

What you’ve done for Nepal and what you do is fantastic.

Prince Harry’s reflections on our briefing