Our last milestone edition of Disaster Research, DR 400, was sent out on January 21, 2004. The Natural Hazards Center has seen quite a bit of change in the more than four years since.
Check out these projects, products, and programs instituted or improved at the Center since 2004:
START: The National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism: The START program was designed to harness the methods and resources of the social and behavioral sciences to better understand the formation and dynamics of terrorist groups and the social and psychological impacts of terrorist attacks. The Natural Hazards Center joined this DHS Center of Excellence project in May 2005.
DRU: Collaborative Research: Warning Decisions in Extreme Weather Events: An Integrated Multi-Method Approach: This project examines the scientific and societal dimensions of warning decisions in extreme events, including how extreme weather warnings are communicated, obtained, interpreted, and used in decision making. The Center was awarded funding for this project in April 2008, and research activities will begin soon.
FRITZ: Bay Area Preparedness Initiative (BayPrep): The role of the Natural Hazards Center in the Bay Area Disaster Preparedness Initiative (BayPrep) is to conduct research and work in partnership with the Fritz Institute to address issues of disaster preparedness among community-based, faith-based and other non-profit organizations serving at-risk populations in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Center began work on the BayPrep project in April 2007.
Research Digest: Research Digest is a quarterly online publication that compiles recent research into an easily accessible format for the hazards and disasters community. Research Digest debuted in September 2007.
Website: The Center’s website is a central node of information for the hazards and disasters community. A completely redesigned site was launched in September 2006.
Learning from Catastrophe: A peer-reviewed and edited volume, Learning from Catastrophe features a collection of 18 chapters from 39 researchers who conducted social science research during or immediately after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita made landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast in September 2005. The book was published in late 2006.
Quick Response Research Program: The Quick Response program offers social scientists small grants to travel to the site of a disaster soon after it occurs to gather valuable information concerning immediate impact and response. Since 2004, the Center has sent 61 research teams into the field; 27 of those teams performed fieldwork on Hurricane Katrina and its impact.
Natural Hazards Observer: The Observer focuses on news regarding human adaptation and response to natural hazards and other catastrophic events. Currently, 16,400 people subscribe to the Observer. In September 2006, the bi-monthly publication was given a makeover, and a crisper, cleaner design was introduced.