Hurricane Harvey Local Academic Expertise

Ever since Hurricane Harvey barreled toward Texas, we've been gathering resources that could be helpful to those seeking further information on hurricanes and other extreme coastal weather events. The following is a collection of local research centers working in the fields related to disasters, extreme weather, planning, engineering, and other social aspects. Please also see our listings for news articles and releases and web resources and reports.

Last updated October 30, 3:30 p.m.

Topic Listings

Rice University
Sam Houston State University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M Corpus Christie
Texas Tech University
University of North Texas
University of Texas Austin
Universtiy of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
University of Texas Medical Branch
Tulane University

Rice University

Kinder Institute for Urban Research
The mission of the Kinder Institute is to advance understanding of the most important issues facing Houston and other leading urban centers through rigorous research, policy analysis, and public outreach; and collaborate with civic and political leaders to implement promising solutions to these critical urban issues.

Severe Storm Prediction, Education, and Evacuation from Disasters
The Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters (SSPEED) Center organizes leading universities, researchers, emergency managers, and private and public entities to better address severe storm prediction and its impact on the Gulf Coast area.

Sam Houston State University

Disasters and Emergency Management
SHSU's Center for the Study of Disasters and Emergency Management (CDEM) is an interdisciplinary center with more than twenty research affiliates, all working to understand the social and physical processes associated with disasters and other emergencies.

Texas A&M University

Center for Texas Beaches and Shores
The Center for Texas Beaches and Shores (CTBS) addresses beach erosion and wetlands loss throughout the state and conducts research on coastal sustainability and resiliency.

Center on Disability and Development, Project REDD
The work of the Center on Disability and Development focuses on promoting inclusive schools and communities, improving education and quality of life outcomes, and creating better lives for people with disabilities and their families through education, research, and service.

Project REDD: Research and Evaluation on Disability and Disaster conducts high-quality research and evaluation studies on how disasters effect individuals with disabilities and their families, and provides research-based training and outreach on the topic of disability and disaster for organizations, service providers, families, and individuals.

Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center
The Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center (HRRC) focuses on hazard analysis, emergency preparedness and response, disaster recovery, and hazard mitigation. Researchers study the full range of natural disasters and technological hazards.

Institute for Sustainable Communities
The Institute for Sustainable Communities (IfSC) focuses on interdisciplinary sustainable community research, engagement and high impact service learning. They support the development of sustainable communities and cities that seek balance between human and environmental needs; provide fair and equitable access to resources to improve the development of human capabilities and wellbeing; engage in civil engagement and participatory, democratic decision-making; and include adaptive capacity to survive, respond and grow in the face of expanding physical, social and economic threats.

Texas Target Communities
Texas Target Communities is a service learning outreach program of the College of Architecture and the Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning at Texas A&M University. They work to transform communities by offering technical assistance, training, and public engagement workshops, so they become part of an exemplary network of communities that aspire to make the transformation from high risk/low opportunity to equitable, resilient, and adaptive communities, and serve as living laboratories for TAMU faculty and students.

Training and Education Collaborative System Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Center
TECS-PERLC was established in 2010 as one of fourteen Preparedness and Emergency Response Learning Centers. It is a collaboration between three schools in Texas: Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health in College Station, University of North Texas Health Science Center School of Public Health in Fort Worth, and the University of Texas School of Public Health in Houston. PERLC’s goal is to enhance the public health workforce and improve capacity for community resilience by providing training and exercising at the state, local, and/or tribal level.

Texas A&M Corpus Christie

Texas One Gulf Center of Excellence, Harte Research institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies
Texas OneGulf is a partnership of nine outstanding institutions dedicated to the long-term environmental and economic health of both the state of Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.

Texas Tech University

National Wind Institute
The National Wind Institute (NWI) was established in December 2012, and is intended to serve as Texas Tech University's intellectual hub for interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research, commercialization and education related to wind science, wind energy, wind engineering, and wind hazard mitigation and serves faculty affiliates, students, and external partners.

University of North Texas

Emergency Management and Disaster Science
EMDS faculty are nationally and internationally known for their cutting-edge research on a diverse and complex range of topics related to hazards, disasters, and emergency management.

University of Texas Austin

Design Safe-CI: A Natural Hazards Engineering Community
NHERI@UTexas contributes unique, literally one-of-a-kind, large, mobile dynamic shakers and associated instrumentation to the study and development of novel, in-situ testing methods that can be used to both evaluate the needs of existing infrastructure and optimize the design of future infrastructure, such that our communities become more resilient to earthquakes and other natural hazards.

Universtiy of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health
The Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health at UT Health School of Public Health serves to promote safety, health, and well-being in the community and in the workplace.

University of Texas Medical Branch

Center for Environmental Toxicology
The University of Texas Medical Branch Center for Environmental Toxicology mission is to integrate, foster and coordinate interactions and collaborations among multidisciplinary groups of new and established investigators pursuing research pertinent to the adverse effects of environmental factors on human health.

Tulane University

Center for Gulf Coast Environmental Health
The Center for Gulf Coast Environmental Health is dedicated to public health research and the development and implementation of innovative disaster management and health promotion and disease prevention strategies to enhance the health and well-being of our Gulf Coast communities.

Center for Studies of Displaced Populations
The Center for Studies of Discplaced Populations at Tulane University strives to support research that involves individuals and families in transition.