Richard Olson

Professor Olson was part of a research team to the 1972 Managua, Nicaragua earthquake and was subsequently involved in disaster response, evaluation, and research in more than 20 events, including Guatemala 1976 (earthquake); Chile 1985 (earthquake); Mexico City 1985 (earthquakes); Colombia 1985 (volcanic eruption and lahar) and 1994 (earthquake and landslide); Peru and Bolivia 1996-1998 (ENSO); the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua 1998 (hurricanes Georges and Mitch); and El Salvador 1986 and 2001 (earthquakes). Professor Olson has been lead author on The Politics of Earthquake Prediction (Princeton University Press, 1989), and Some Buildings Just Can’t Dance: Politics, Life Safety, and Disaster (Elsevier/JAI, 1999). More recent articles include “From Disaster Event to Political Crisis: A ‘5C+A’ Framework for Analysis,” International Studies Perspectives (2010); “Establishing Public Accountability, Speaking Truth to Power, and Inducing Political Will for Disaster Risk Reduction: ‘Ocho Rios+25,’” Environmental Hazards (2011); “Public Response to Disaster Response: Applying the ‘5C+A’ Framework to El Salvador 2001 and Peru 2007,” International Studies Perspectives (2012); and “Disasters as Crisis Triggers for Critical Junctures? The 1976 Guatemala Case,” Latin American Politics and Societies (2013).