On Risk and Disaster

Named one of Planetizen's Top 10 Books of 2006Hurricane Katrina not only devastated a large area of the nation's Gulf coast, it also raised fundamental questions about ways the nation can, and should, deal with the inevitable problems of economic risk and social responsibility. This volume gathers leading experts to examine lessons that Hurricane Katrina teaches us about better assessing, perceiving, and managing risks from future disasters.In the years ahead we will inevitably face more problems like those caused by Katrina, from fire, earthquake, or even a flu pandemic. America remains in the cross hairs of terrorists, while policy makers continue to grapple with important environmental and health risks. Each of these scenarios might, in itself, be relatively unlikely to occur. But it is statistically certain that we will confront such catastrophes, or perhaps one we have never imagined, and the nation and its citizenry must be prepared to act. That is the fundamental lesson of Katrina.The 20 contributors to this volume address questions of public and private roles in assessing, managing, and dealing with risk in American society and suggest strategies for moving ahead in rebuilding the Gulf coast.Contributors: Matthew Adler, Vicki Bier, Baruch Fischhoff, Kenneth R. Foster, Robert Giegengack, Peter Gosselin, Scott E. Harrington, Carolyn Kousky, Robert Meyer, Harvey G. Ryland, Brian L. Strom, Kathleen Tierney, Michael J. Trebilcock, Detlof von Winterfeldt, Jonathan Walters, Richard J. Zeckhauser.

Named one of Planetizen's Top 10 Books of 2006Hurricane Katrina not only devastated a large area of the nation's Gulf coast, it also raised fundamental questions about ways the nation can, and should, deal with the inevitable problems of economic risk and social responsibility. This volume gathers leading experts to examine lessons that Hurricane Katrina teaches us about better assessing, perceiving, and managing risks from future disasters.In the years ahead we will inevitably face more problems like those caused by Katrina, from fire, earthquake, or even a flu pandemic. America remains in the cross hairs of terrorists, while policy makers continue to grapple with important environmental and health risks. Each of these scenarios might, in itself, be relatively unlikely to occur. But it is statistically certain that we will confront such catastrophes, or perhaps one we have never imagined, and the nation and its citizenry must be prepared to act. That is the fundamental lesson of Katrina.The 20 contributors to this volume address questions of public and private roles in assessing, managing, and dealing with risk in American society and suggest strategies for moving ahead in rebuilding the Gulf coast.Contributors: Matthew Adler, Vicki Bier, Baruch Fischhoff, Kenneth R. Foster, Robert Giegengack, Peter Gosselin, Scott E. Harrington, Carolyn Kousky, Robert Meyer, Harvey G. Ryland, Brian L. Strom, Kathleen Tierney, Michael J. Trebilcock, Detlof von Winterfeldt, Jonathan Walters, Richard J. Zeckhauser.

Foreword-Amy Gutmann

Introduction
-Ronald J. Daniels, Donald F. Kettl, and Howard Kunreuther

PART ONE: THE CHALLENGE OF THE GULF
On Their Own in Battered New Orleans
-Peter G. Gosselin
Using Risk and Decision Analysis to Protect New Orleans against Future Hurricanes
-Detlof von Winterfeldt
Planning for a City on the Brink
-Kenneth R. Foster and Robert Giegengack
JARring Actions that Fuel the Floods
-Carolyn Kousky and Richard Zeckhauser

PART TWO: THINKING ABOUT RISK
Behaviorally Realistic Risk Management
-Baruch Fischhoff
Rationales and Instruments for Government Intervention in Natural Disasters
-Michael J. Trebilcock, and Ronald J. Daniels
Social Inequality, Hazards, and Disasters
-Kathleen Tierney
Equity Analysis and Natural Hazards Policy
-Matthew D. Adler

PART THREE: PRIVATE SECTOR STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING RISK
Why We Under-Prepare for Hazards
-Robert J. Meyer
Has the Time Come for Comprehensive Natural Disaster Insurance?
-Howard Kunreuther
Rethinking Disaster Policy After Hurricane Katrina
-Scott E. Harrington
Providing Economic Incentives to Build Disaster-Resistant Structures
-Harvey Ryland

PART FOUR: THE GOVERNMENT'S ROLE IN DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE
Role of Public Health and Clinical Medicine in Preparing for Disasters
-Brian Strom
Hurricane Katrina as a Bureaucratic Nightmare
-Vicki Bier
The Katrina Breakdown
-Jonathan Walters and Donald F. Kettl

Acknowledgments
Contributors