US Gulf Coast research and reports

Beyond Recovery: Moving the Gulf Coast Toward a Sustainable Future

jlee — 2011-02-11T21:12:09Z

This report details the Gulf Coast’s environmental, economic and social challenges and recommends a regional ecosystem restoration plan to help coastal communities and the ecology recover their past strength and build a foundation for a new economic future – establishing the Gulf Coast as an international leader in coastal restoration and resiliency – by promoting participation from coastal communities and businesses, and prioritizing innovation and opportunity.

Impact of climate change on response providers and socially vulnerable communities in the US

nhailu — 2011-01-03T17:44:34Z

Disaster mitigation discourse rarely refers to the vulnerability of communities affected by disasters. The planning assumptions driving domestic emergency management are derived from an assessment and understanding of risk (i.e., the likelihood that a particular type of natural disaster may occur and the expected severity of its effects should it occur).

For natural disasters, this assessment of risk is based on detailed modeling and analysis of historical data on the frequency and severity of all manner of disasters. In this report, we examine how homeland security policy could be revised to accommodate climate change impacts on socially vulnerable populations in the Mississippi Delta region and the Gulf Coast, building on the 2009 Oxfam America report, "Exposed: Social vulnerability and climate change in the US Southeast."

One Gulf, resilient Gulf: A plan for coastal community recovery

jlee — 2011-01-03T17:56:50Z

The BP Deepwater Horizon drilling disaster has become the largest oil spill in the history of our country and already has resulted in the deaths of 11 men. In addition to better protecting coastal communities by improving the safety and oversight of the use of the Outer Continental Shelf and offshore drilling, the administration of President Barack Obama and Congress should move quickly to support a robust long-term recovery plan.

With the well site now capped, it is critical to address the disaster's short- and long-term challenges, as well as the historical problems it has intensified, with a plan that offers opportunity for the many people suffering economically, ensures that those affected have a voice, and recognizes the teachable moment from this disaster to catalyze a transition towards promoting investments and industries across the Gulf that build coastal community resiliency.

Resilience and determination

mborum — 2010-06-16T18:28:11Z

Since the first days after hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast in 2005, Oxfam America has endeavored to help the people of the region achieve a full and equitable recovery. In 2007, Oxfam's Gulf Coast Equity Program began its Worker and Immigrant Rights Initiative, which was created to address a growing social catastrophe: the exploitation and abuse of immigrant workers laboring in the massive reconstruction effort. Three years later, as the Worker and Immigrant Rights Initiative is ending, the program is taking stock of its accomplishments and celebrating the many local and state organizations that have achieved so much. This publication shares the strategies that drove the Worker and Immigrant Rights Initiative as well as the program's highlights and achievements.

Exposed: Social vulnerability and climate change in the US Southeast

mborum — 2011-06-09T18:34:10Z

The effects of natural disasters and climate change vary widely by state, county, and community. Although social variables such as income and age do not determine who will be hit by a natural disaster, they do determine a population's ability to prepare, respond, and recover when disaster does strike.

Historically, studies about climate hazards and social vulnerability have been conducted in separate silos. The Social Vulnerability Index (SoVI) is the first study of its kind to examine both the potential impact of natural hazards and which populations are most likely to be negatively affected. The SoVI statistically examines the underlying social and demographic characteristics of the population and how they impact certain segments of the population in disabling ways when it comes to climate change-related hazards.

This research, commissioned by Oxfam America, includes a series of layered maps that depict social and climate change-related hazard vulnerability. The maps assist in identifying hotspots in the US Southeast, which are at significant risk in the face of four particular climate change-related hazards: drought, flooding, hurricane force winds, and sea-level rise.

The specific region of focus is the 13-state region of the US Southeast: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Roughly 80 percent of all US counties that experience persistent poverty (defined as a county in which at least 20 percent of the population experiences poverty for three decades or more) lie in this region.

For more details and to view interactive maps, visit oxfamamerica.org/adapt.

A Portrait of Louisiana

mborum — 2009-09-21T15:50:58Z

Louisiana has great success stories to tell—from its maturing status as the most prepared region in the country, to the burgeoning class of solution-minded innovators and social entrepreneurs, to the renaissance of civic participation that promises to stoke long-term improvements. The state has below-average unemployment rates, in part due to significant stimulus and recovery dollars winding their way through the state, and has been recognized as Co-State of the Year by a business development group for its "vibrant economy." We must build on these successes.

However, we must also soberly assess the challenges yet before Louisiana. This report paints an often troubling picture of long-standing human disparities, some of which have been exacerbated by natural/man-allowed disaster and the global economic crisis. The report's Human Development (HD) Index is a user-friendly method of comparing the condition of communities. This analysis has great potential to guide policy-making processes and to support data-driven thinking that moves beyond the assumptions of historical parochialism.

This report was developed by the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation (LDRF) in partnership with Oxfam America and other organizations committed to fully recovering the lives of Gulf Coast citizens.

Building Common Ground

mborum — 2009-06-16T21:00:58Z

Key findings from Dr. Silas Lee & Associates' survey of African-American and Latino residents in New Orleans, commissioned by Oxfam America, September 2008.

Much has been written about the relationship between African-Americans and Latinos and the tensions that arose when they were forced to compete for the same limited resources in a post-Katrina New Orleans. But little is known about what the two groups have in common—and how those shared experiences, attitudes, and goals could bring them together to help rebuild their community.

In late 2008, Oxfam America commissioned Bright Moments, who subcontracted with Dr. Silas Lee & Associates, to conduct a survey of the racial attitudes of African-Americans and Latinos living in New Orleans. "Building Common Ground" is a summary of those findings. The purpose of the survey was to measure how African-Americans and Latinos rated the quality of their lives, race relations with each other, experiences with discrimination, perceptions of each other, support for an African-American and Latino alliance, and effective strategies for such alliances.

The results reveal that the majority of African-Americans and Latinos agreed that they face similar issues of discrimination3 and agreed that it's important for their two groups to put aside their differences and work on overcoming those issues. It is on this common ground that we seek to build.

This publication is available in English and Spanish.

A Portrait of Mississippi

mborum — 2009-06-08T15:44:06Z

The Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP, the American Human Development Project and Oxfam America released "A Portrait of Mississippi: the Mississippi Human Development Report 2009," on January 26th, the first state-specific report by the American Human Development Project. The report provides a state-wide, county-by-county assessment, broken down by race, of such indicators as lifespan, earnings, incidence of diabetes, high school completion, crime, birth weight, and more, and will help policymakers, business and non-profit leaders, the media and people around the state understand Mississippi's current circumstances in a clear and unique way.

What is most surprising is not all of Mississippi is poor, or last in every development category. There are regions in Mississippi that rank on par with the richest state in America (Connecticut), and there are regions that rank on par with the least developed countries in the world.

This study illuminates the sharp disparities in opportunity between regions and between races within the state. The report forces us to acknowledge who is thriving, and who is being shut out. It is clear that we cannot forge ahead while leaving so many people behind.

"In Mississippi, where we work with 13 state and local organizations such as the NAACP, this report clearly illustrates the conditions residents were struggling with even prior to the hurricanes of 2005—limited access to education, lower incomes, and shorter lives—and argues for a comprehensive solution for recovery," said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America.

Given the profound economic and social challenges facing Mississippi, and more broadly working families in the US today, this report comes at a crucial time to help policy makers use precious resources to ensure all Mississippians have access to the American Dream.

Open publication

Mirror on America

mborum — 2009-06-08T15:45:34Z

When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita exposed long-standing inequities in the US, President Bush vowed to "confront this poverty with bold action." But after three long years, many people on the Gulf Coast still lack homes and jobs.

Although the force of the storms was an act of nature, what the American people have since witnessed—an uneven and often incompetent recovery effort—is the result of deliberate human acts. If we refuse to address this as a nation, it will go down in history not only as a failure of leadership, but also as a failure to hold our government accountable.

Two fundamental indicators, housing and jobs, provide stark proof of the stalled recovery. Full recovery is possible only when affordable homes are coupled with secure, decent jobs. Without quality jobs and affordable housing, low- and moderate income families are unable to return to their former lives. Decent wages allow people to return home and recreate vibrant communities by providing the necessary workforce to rebuild the region.

The situation grows increasingly critical, but despite challenges, there is a way forward. We face a historic election; the next president of the US must guarantee a just, equitable, and complete recovery. America must take immediate action to ensure that people struggling to rebuild their communities get the support that their hard work and innovation demand.

Open publication