Lessons of the Haiti and Japan Disasters

Mon. 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Centennial F

While the exact death toll from the 2010 Haiti earthquake will never be known, it's clear the loss of life made that disaster the deadliest in the Western Hemisphere during modern times. The extensive destruction can be attributed to Haiti's extreme poverty and history of weak governance, and to the built environment's lack of earthquake resistance. Recovery is a continuing struggle for a nation that has also been forced to cope with flooding and a devastating cholera epidemic. The 2011 Japan earthquake-tsunami-nuclear disaster ranks as the most costly in history, and in the aftermath of these events Japan continues to wrestle with complex recovery challenges. In this session, three U.S. researchers will discuss their studies in Japan and Haiti, focusing on how those societies are recovering in the wake of catastrophe.

James Kendra, Presenter
University of Delaware Disaster Research Center

Deborah Thomas, Presenter
University of Colorado Denver