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Building a Partnership to Meet the Region's Needs
The RAND Gulf States Policy Institute was created in 2005 as a collaboration among the RAND Corporation and seven Gulf states universities to support hurricane recovery and long-term economic development in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The storms and their aftermath exacerbated the region's social, economic, and human development problems. The region continues to suffer from poor schools, little economic opportunity, insufficient social services, and a dearth of cross-racial leadership. Today, RAND Gulf States provides objective analysis to federal, state, and local leaders in support of evidence-based policymaking and the well-being of individuals throughout the Gulf States region.
Recent Events
To receive updates on future events please email Marilyn_Keenan@rand.org.
Recent News and Reports
Commentary
Human Side of Katrina Recovery Still Needs Work - October 17, 2009
Four years after Hurricane Katrina, many people in the Gulf Coast region are still "just surviving," struggling with the economic devastation and the physical and psychological toll of these kinds of disasters, write Anita Chandra and Joie Acosta.
Five Questions President Obama Should Ask in His Visit to New Orleans - October 14, 2009
The federal government has spent about $140 billion responding to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and the Gulf Coast now needs more money for hurricane and flood protection and for coastal restoration. But we still haven't properly evaluated whether our money was spent wisely, writes Melissa Flournoy.
Alabama's Challenge: Better Prepared Workforce - July 14, 2009
Alabama has made significant economic progress in recent decades, attracting car manufacturers and new industrial development. The state now has an opportunity to address some systemic challenges in education, health care, and workforce development to be competitive in a global economy, writes Melissa Flournoy.
Seeking New Approaches to Old Problems - April 9, 2009
These tough times also present an opportunity for Mississippi to do more than just cope with the immediate crisis: it can work to find smart ways to address the chronic social and economic problems that have plagued the state for decades, writes Melissa Flournoy.
Obama, Congress Can Improve FEMA, Homeland Security - December 21, 2008
In his campaign, President-elect Barack Obama pledged to rebuild the Gulf Coast — one of the country's most wounded, yet economically strategic, regions. To keep this laudable promise, he will need to make a sustained commitment not only to a national disaster recovery plan, but also a comprehensive economic development strategy for the Gulf Coast, writes Melissa Flournoy.
Change Choices, Not Conversation - February 24, 2008
Too often we talk only about the ongoing challenges facing education, health care, transportation and economic development across the Gulf South — Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.... We need to determine new ways to work together across state lines to focus on solutions that will benefit the entire region, writes Melissa Flournoy.
When Students Disappear… - February 21, 2007
Fifty-three thousand students disappeared from Louisiana's public school system after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Another 10,000 enrolled temporarily after the storms and then departed. They did not return to the state's public schools for the remainder of the 2005-06 school year, writes John F. Pane.
Mississippi Comeback - August 20, 2006
Hurricane Katrina caused as much devastation and human suffering along Mississippi's Gulf Coast as it did to New Orleans. It was the worst disaster to hit the state since the Mississippi River floods of 1927 and the Great Depression that soon followed. Katrina's powerful winds and floodwaters claimed 231 lives statewide, caused more than $100 billion in damages and destroyed buildings, crops and livestock as far as 100 miles inland.
RAND Researcher's Travel Notes From New Orleans - Summer 2006
It was an overwhelming experience. I had heard that post-Katrina New Orleans was like a third world country. Even so, I was not prepared for what I saw, heard, and experienced. The physical damage to housing and infrastructure is so extensive as to almost defy imagination...
Health Costs of Katrina - October 10, 2005
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita took a devastating toll on their victims, tragically killing and injuring some and leaving many not only homeless but jobless - deprived of paychecks and employer-sponsored health insurance. Suddenly unable to pay their medical bills, these people - like many others who were poor and lacked health insurance before the hurricanes - now face a health care crisis.
Healing Storm Victims' Mental Health - October 3, 2005
Victims of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita are now faced with the task of coping with the psychological aftermath of the nightmare storms. Without a major national effort, many may not have the help they need to recover fully, write Kenneth B. Wells and Greer Sullivan.
Prepare for Disaster - September 27, 2005
The glaring lesson in the aftermath of the largest emergency response and relief effort in U.S. history following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita is that it is far less painful and expensive to prepare for disasters than to respond to them. We've seen the same lesson following earlier disasters, but have failed to learn its, write Tom LaTourrette and Ed Chan.
Get Proactive with Disasters - September 27, 2005
Imagine if the Army's main strategy for protecting soldiers was to provide more ambulances, hospital beds, and doctors to treat the wounded - instead of relying on defensive measures such as fortifications, tanks, body armor and helmets to protect soldiers from being wounded in the first place. The strategy of responding only after attacks instead of adequately preparing to defend against them sounds absurd. But it is exactly what the federal government, states and localities have done when it comes to protecting people from disasters such as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornados and volcanoes, writes Charles Meade.
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