The Keck Center

Yesterday, the diva attended the Disasters Roundtable Workshop on Integrating Disaster Recovery: What Should Long-Term Disaster Recovery Look Like? It was sponsored by the National Academy of Science in Washington, D.C., March 21.

The purpose of the workshop was to “examine the integration of disaster recovery across disciplines, sectors, and jurisdictions.” The objectives were to address:

1) What is integrated long-term recovery?
2) How is progress of recovery measured?
3) What gaps currently exist that need to be overcome in disaster recovery?
4) How to design and implement an integrative recovery strategy?

My view of the gaps or barriers to effective long-term recovery effort are the lack of:

• Mandate – need a National Recovery Act, changes in the Stafford Act
• Money – large amounts of multi-year funding
• Models – need a knowledge base of good examples and a useful lessons learned system

Without these the various strategies, operational plans, and workshops will not accomplish much.