Disaster Recovery Operations
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commentary
Disaster Recovery Creates Its Own Bubble
Shortages of workers and materials inevitably make rebuilding slower and more expensive after a natural disaster. In Maui, this is likely to be a problem for agencies like FEMA that provide public assistance. But it will also be a problem for individual households if private insurance payouts are insufficient to rebuild.
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commentary
It's Time to Take Societal Resilience Seriously
To build the societal resilience required to respond effectively to everything from climate-related emergencies to pandemics, to intentional state-on-state attacks, and disinformation, a joint approach is needed, not only across government, but across wider society.
Sep 15, 2023
The RAND Blog
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blog
Maui Wildfires, Regulating AI, Ukraine's Civilian Resistance: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on the invisible damage of Maui’s wildfires, making the artificial intelligence supply chain safer, how Ukrainian civilians resist Russia, and more.
Aug 18, 2023
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blog
Ukraine's Recovery, Mental Health First Aid, School Staffing: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on the trade-offs of Ukraine's reconstruction, the effects of a Mental Health First Aid training program, school staffing challenges, and more.
May 5, 2023
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Alternative and Renewable Energy
commentary
Puerto Rico's Food Security Must Factor in Planning Energy Security
The tragedy of disaster recovery has unlocked substantial capital for Puerto Rico to rewrite its interdependent security in energy and food. Considering food security in this context could help to ensure the population has access to both power and food.
Feb 24, 2023
The National Interest
Ismael Arciniegas Rueda, Andrew Star, et al.
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Critical Infrastructure Protection
commentary
Ohio's Train Derailment—Not Spy Balloons—Is the Real National Security Threat
The slow degradation of infrastructure and disaster response is less a spectacle than an overflying balloon, but the train derailment and chemical spill in Ohio highlights just how bizarre such a focus on perceived external national security threats has become. The far greater threat may be from within.
Feb 20, 2023
Los Angeles Times
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q&a
Earthquake in Turkey, Syria: Insights from RAND Researchers
Thousands of people have been confirmed dead in one the strongest earthquakes to hit Turkey and Syria in the past century. As search-and-rescue missions ended and recovery began, a handful of RAND researchers shared some of their initial thoughts.
Feb 14, 2023
The RAND Blog
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blog
Legalizing Cannabis, the Russian Nuclear Threat, Digital Offshoring: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on cannabis legalization, the Russian nuclear threat, the effects of digital offshoring, and more.
Oct 14, 2022
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q&a
Q&A with the Experts: Puerto Rico
When Hurricane Fiona struck Puerto Rico on September 18, electricity went out across the island. It was a reminder that recovery from 2017's Hurricane Maria is far from complete. RAND researchers discuss the difficulties Puerto Rico is still facing.
Oct 10, 2022
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blog
Putin's Latest Threats, U.S. Policy in the Middle East, Disaster Recovery: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on Russia's troop mobilization and the ongoing war in Ukraine, U.S. policy in the Middle East, building a more diverse teacher workforce, and more.
Sep 23, 2022
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commentary
The Disaster Bills Coming Due
The United States largely waits for a disaster to strike and then spends billions to repair damages. Investing in resilience today can significantly reduce the costs to recover after a disaster strikes.
Sep 20, 2022
Santa Monica Daily Press
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blog
U.S. Labor Market, 988 Hotline, Firearm Homicides: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on the U.S. economy’s uneven pandemic recovery, a new national mental health hotline, firearm homicides, and more.
Jul 22, 2022
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commentary
Rebuilding Ukraine for a Changing Climate
When the war in Ukraine ends, the country will in all likelihood undergo a massive reconstruction. Ukraine could rebuild in a way that would both lower its carbon footprint and construct infrastructure resilient to the effects of climate change.
Mark Stalczynski, Ismael Arciniegas Rueda, et al.
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essay
Citizen Science Helps Communities Participate in, Understand, and Trust Science
Good citizen science brings a community together and helps it prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. A RAND guide takes non-expert investigators from the early stages of defining their questions and setting their goals, through building their teams, to planning for action.
Jan 4, 2022
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Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
blog
RAND Commentary Highlights of 2021
Vaccine rollouts, an attack on the U.S. Capitol, massive ransomware attacks, the withdrawal from Afghanistan, record numbers of job openings and people quitting, and more. RAND researchers weighed in on all these topics and more.
Dec 21, 2021
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commentary
Hurricane Ida Is Part of a Cycle of Disasters—Mitigating Their Impact Means Building Back Better
Building back better means focusing on recovery that not only restores damage from a disaster but also reduces future risk. To meet that goal today, we need to look at the ways our disaster preparedness and response systems actually create risk themselves, by reinforcing things like wealth inequality, systemic discrimination, or access to crucial services.