Hurricane Katrina - Gulf Coast Recovery

Research

Polycentricity in Disaster Relief Christopher Coyne, Jayme Lemke \| Dec 2011 This paper explores some of the implications of polycentricity in disaster relief.	Regulatory Flexibility Bruce Yandle, Mark Adams \| Sep 2010 This policy comment discusses the importance of reducing regulatory barriers to recovery in the wake of a disaster.
Can Decentralized Bottom-Up Post-Disaster Recovery Be Effective? Virgil Storr, Stefanie Haeffele-Balch \| Apr 05, 2010 Using data from interviews with affected residents and community leaders in New Orleans after Katrina, this article explores the effectiveness of private disaster recovery efforts and whether or not…	The Political Economy of FEMA: Did Reorganization Matter? Peter Leeson, Christopher Coyne, \| Dec 2009 This paper investigates the political economy of FEMA’s post-9/11 merger with the Department of Homeland…
The Role of Social Entrepreneurship in Post-Disaster Recovery Virgil Storr, Emily Chamlee-Wright \| Dec 2009 This paper examines the role of the social entrepreneur in post-Katrina recovery and presents implications for…	"There's No Place Like New Orleans" Emily Chamlee-Wright, Virgil Storr \| Dec 2009 This study contributes to the literature on the strength of place attachment, identity and dependence in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. It also engages the literature concerning the role of…

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Testimony & Comments

Written Testimony on Reforming the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association

Daniel Sutter | Feb 24, 2009

This written testimony was delivered to the Texas House of Representatives Insurance Committee as part of the February 24, 2009 hearing on Texas Windstorm Insurance Assocation.

Written Testimony on Rebuilding New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina

Daniel M. Rothschild, Emily Chamlee-Wright, Mario Villarreal-Diaz | Jun 26, 2007

This written testimony was delivered to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform's Subcommittee on Domestic Policy as part of the June 26, 2007 hearing on labor law enforcement and…

Expert Commentary

FEMA Doesn't Have Local Knowledge Needed for Effective Relief

U.S. News and World Report Debate Club

By Steven Horwitz |

Nov 01, 2012

The mistakes made by FEMA during its response to Hurricane Katrina are the stuff of legend. It failed to get to the worst hit areas for days, it was unprepared for the scope of the disaster, and many of the trailers it provided for temporary housing were later found to be toxic. It is hard to identify anything it did right in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Local politicians were merciless in their criticisms, even to the point of—rightly—praising the job done by Walmart in getting supplies to the New Orleans area and crediting Walmart's response with preventing looting and other problems in their towns.

Experts

Peter J. Boettke

Peter Boettke is a University Professor of Economics and Philosophy at George Mason University, the BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism, and the Director of the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center at GMU.

Emily Chamlee-Wright

Emily Chamlee-Wright is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Her primary research interests include development economics, cultural economics, and indigenous markets in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Steven Horwitz

Steven Horwitz is a Mercatus Center Affiliated Senior Scholar, the Charles A. Dana Professor of Economics and department chair at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. He completed his MA and PhD in economics at George Mason University and received his A.B. in economics and philosophy from The University of Michigan.

Virgil Storr

Virgil Storr is a senior research fellow and director of graduate student programs at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He is a research associate professor of economics and the Don C. Lavoie research fellow in the program in philosophy, politics, and economics at the department of economics of George Mason University.

Daniel Sutter

Daniel Sutter is an affiliated senior scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. His primary research interests include the economics of the weather.

Videos

Podcasts

Post-Disaster Recovery: An Institutional and Cultural Perspective on the Reconstruction of the Gulf Coast

Emily Chamlee-Wright, Nona Martin | September 01, 2010

Dr. Chamlee-Wright discusses her recent work on both the nature of post-disaster recovery and the nature of the social order itself – how societies are able to achieve a level of complex social

Download the MP3

Recent Events

Post-Disaster Recovery: An Institutional and Cultural Perspective on the Reconstruction of the Gulf Coast

The Social Change Project at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University presents a lecture by Emily Chamlee-Wright, Senior Scholar at the Mercatus Center and Nona Martin, Affiliated Senior…

Books

Political Economy of Hurricane Katrina and Community Rebound

Emily Chamlee-Wright, Virgil Storr | Nov 30, 2010

This volume lends critical insight into the nature of the social coordination problems disasters present, the potential for public policy to play a positive role, and the inherent limitations policymakers face in overcoming the myriad challenges that are a product of catastrophic disaster.

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Media Clippings

Texas Windstorm Program Problems Remain After Reforms

Daniel Sutter

Polycentricity in Disaster Relief Christopher Coyne, Jayme Lemke \| Dec 2011 This paper explores some of the implications of polycentricity in disaster relief.	Regulatory Flexibility Bruce Yandle, Mark Adams \| Sep 2010 This policy comment discusses the importance of reducing regulatory barriers to recovery in the wake of a disaster.
Can Decentralized Bottom-Up Post-Disaster Recovery Be Effective? Virgil Storr, Stefanie Haeffele-Balch \| Apr 05, 2010 Using data from interviews with affected residents and community leaders in New Orleans after Katrina, this article explores the effectiveness of private disaster recovery efforts and whether or not…	The Political Economy of FEMA: Did Reorganization Matter? Peter Leeson, Christopher Coyne, \| Dec 2009 This paper investigates the political economy of FEMA’s post-9/11 merger with the Department of Homeland…
The Role of Social Entrepreneurship in Post-Disaster Recovery Virgil Storr, Emily Chamlee-Wright \| Dec 2009 This paper examines the role of the social entrepreneur in post-Katrina recovery and presents implications for…	"There's No Place Like New Orleans" Emily Chamlee-Wright, Virgil Storr \| Dec 2009 This study contributes to the literature on the strength of place attachment, identity and dependence in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. It also engages the literature concerning the role of…