The Natural Hazards Center is excited to announce that we’ve named two students as the winners of our annual Hazards and Disasters Student Paper Competition. Nyla Howell and Nahuel Arenas will be recognized for their outstanding scholarship at this year’s Natural Hazards Workshop.
Nyla Howell
Howell’s paper, The Impact of Corporeal Markers on Natural Hazard Preparedness During Hurricane Katrina, was chosen as this year’s undergraduate winner. Her work focused on the ways that outward presentations of race and disability impacted the ability to evacuate during Hurricane Katrina. She found that those who displayed physical qualities attributed to racial minorities or those with disability had a more difficult time evacuating. Based on these findings, Howell’s paper recommends that disaster professionals use such markers to promote social equity.
Nahuel Arenas
Arenas paper, Slow Action as a Moral Wrong: The Abolition of Slavery and the Fight Against Climate Change, considers the glacial pace of climate change action in the context of British slavery, arguing that the same sort of drawn out solutions to both issues inflicts harm, even as they ostensibly seem to address the problem. He concludes that not taking timely action can ultimately be as harmful as not taking action at all and calls for states to be held accountable for protracted climate approaches.
Papers were judged on originality, writing quality, and knowledge of the topic. Howell and Arenas will each receive $100, publication on the Natural Hazards Center website, and free registration to the Natural Hazards Workshop.
The competition was established in 2004 as a way to recognize and promote the next generation of hazards and disaster researchers. Learn more about this year’s winners, competition eligibility, and read previous winning papers on the competition web page.