Over the past few weeks, many people around the world joined me in celebrating my career firsts — from winning my first Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award and Independent Spirit Award to earning my first Oscar (for actress in a leading role). While I am grateful for this unforgettable moment in my professional life, I want to redirect that global spotlight to an issue that is very personal to me and warrants the world’s attention.

My life changed eight years ago when one moment shook my outlook on the world.

It was April 25, 2015, and I was in Nepal with my partner, Jean Todt, visiting local organizations. Suddenly, I felt the earth begin to tremble violently. Outside the doors of the low-rise building I was in, a deadly earthquake ravaged the country. I’ve never felt the type of fear and panic I felt that day, when the ground beneath me shook so powerfully, I couldn’t stand on my feet. I had to crawl to try to make it to the door to escape. When we emerged, we had to stay outside for hours, unsure which buildings were strong enough or safe enough to return to.