CHRISTINE THOMPSON
President
Humanity Road, Inc.
Boydton, Virginia
Ms. Christine Thompson is President and co-founder of Humanity Road, Inc., a unique United States-based Public Charity global disaster response organization. Humanity Road trains volunteers on using Internet and mobile technology to educate the public before, during, and after disaster on how to survive, sustain, and reunite with loved ones. Founded in 2010, the organization provides support in social media, as well as media monitoring, crisis mapping, and disaster exercise planning. In 2011, Humanity Road volunteers contributed 17,000 volunteer hours to more than 200 events and exercises worldwide. The organization is a recognized expert in the online disaster response community. It has been mentioned in testimony to Congress, national media, and academic white papers studying the burgeoning crowd sourcing and social media disaster response communities and forums.
A member of the Virginia Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster and an affiliate member of the Broward County, Florida, Citizen Corps Council, the organization was named a Top Non-Profit for Disaster Response in 2012 by GreatNonprofits.org and has received the Guidestar Exchange Trusted Partner seal for transparency in reporting.
Ms. Thompsonis a seasoned leader and entrepreneur whose first career was in the telecommunications industry for voice, data, and video products, where she led many cutting-edge programs.For GTE, she developed and managed its largest self-directed work team. In 2003, Ms.Thompson developed a unique wireless rural broadband concept that won Verizon Avenue the distinguished Broadband Provider of the Year. In 2004, she program managed the deployment of the award-winning FiOS product for Verizon Communications. Before retiring in 2011, she was responsible for the development and management of the product deployment lifecycle process for Verizon Communications and was recognized often for excellence and teamwork in building processes and cross-functional work teams.
In 2001, Ms. Thompson joined the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) Red Cross Disaster Action Team and was an active volunteer. She was on active duty covering the DFW Airport area in Dallas, Texas, on and after 9/11 and provided support to the local office to assist with recognizing several hundred spontaneous local volunteers. After Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005, Ms. Thompson developed and implemented the first online Internet café in the Joint Resource Center in Lawrenceville, Georgia, which permitted 10,000 displaced persons to register online for aid.
In addition to her interest in global disaster response and preparedness, Ms. Thompson is active in her local community. In 2011, she assisted her Virginia community with developing a Local Emergency Planning Committee. Among her proudest moments was receiving the 2009 Volunteer of the Year Award for the Boydton Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary.
Ms. Thompson is very much looking forward to meeting and collaborating with conference attendees.
May 11, 2012