Essays published in association with the National Symposium on Risk and Disasters (Dec. 2005, Washington, D.C.), organized by the University of Pennsylvania in collaboration with Congressional quarterly and the Communications Institute. Includes bibliographical references (pages 263-286).

On their own in battered New Orleans / Peter G. Gosselin -- Using risk and decision analysis to protect New Orleans against future hurricanes / Detlof von Winterfeldt -- Planning for a city on the brink / Kenneth R. Foster and Robert Giegengack -- JARring actions that fuel the floods / Carolyn Kousky and Richard Zeckhauser -- Behaviorally realistic risk management / Baruch Fischhoff -- Rationales and instruments for government intervention in natural disasters / Michael J. Trebilcock and Ronald J. Daniels -- Social inequality, hazards, and disasters / Kathleen Tierney -- Equity analysis and natural hazards policy / Matthew D. Adler -- Why we under-prepare for hazards / Robert J. Meyer -- Has the time come for comprehensive natural disaster insurance? / Howard Kunreuther -- Rethinking disaster policy after Hurricane Katrina / Scott E. Harrington -- Providing economic incentives to build disaster-resistant structures / Harvey G. Ryland -- Role of public health and clinical medicine in preparing for disasters / Brian Strom -- Hurricane Katrina as a bureaucratic nightmare / Vicki Bier -- The Katrina breakdown / Jonathan Walters and Donald F. Kettl. (Publisher-supplied data) This timely volume contains valuable lessons and insights into the critical areas of disaster prevention, mitigation, recovery, and risk financing. It is an eclectic blend of lessons born of practical experience and academic research that collectively provides valuable insights that policymakers and lawmakers, insurers and academic researchers can draw upon to help guide them through the difficult years that lie ahead.--Robert P. Hartwig, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, Insurance Information Institute An enormously important volume that comes at just the right time. In the wake of Katrina, new thinking is urgently needed on how to manage catastrophic risk most effectively--especially regarding prevention and recovery. This precious volume offers insights on both fronts, with contributions from many of the nation's leading authorities on risk and disaster. It is a must-read for scholars and policymakers alike.--David A. Moss, Harvard Business School Hurricane Katrina not only devastated a large area of the nation's Gulf coast, it also raised fundamental questions about ways the nation can, and should, deal with the inevitable problems of economic risk and social responsibility. This volume gathers leading experts to examine lessons that Hurricane Katrina teaches us about better assessing, perceiving, and managing risks from future disasters. In the years ahead we will inevitably face more problems like those caused by Katrina or by fire, earthquake, or even a flu pandemic. America remains in the cross hairs of terrorists, while policy makers continue to grapple with important environmental and health risks. Each of these scenarios might, in itself, be relatively unlikely to occur. But it is statistically certain that we will confront such catastrophes, or perhaps one we have never imagined, and the nation and its citizenry must be prepared to act. That is the fundamental lesson of Katrina. The 20 contributors to this volume address questions of public and private roles in assessing, managing, and dealing with risk in American society and suggest strategies for moving ahead in rebuilding the Gulf coast. Contributors: Matthew Adler, Vicki Bier, Baruch Fischhoff, Kenneth R. Foster, Robert Giegengack, Peter Gosselin, Scott E. Harrington, Carolyn Kousky, Robert Meyer, Harvey G. Ryland, Brian L. Strom, Kathleen Tierney, Michael J. Trebilcock, Detlof von Winterfeldt, Jonathan Walters, Richard J. Zeckhauser.