News - Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School

Broadmoor Project, New Orleans: Looking Back and Ahead

January 2016

The Broadmoor Project: New Orleans Recovery was an effort initiated in 2006 to work with residents of New Orleans' hard-hit Broadmoor neighborhood in designing and implementing a strategy for post-Katrina neighborhood recovery. Conceptualized and led by then Center senior fellow Doug Ahlers, and hosted by the Belfer Center's Environment and Natural Resources Program, the project enabled students from Harvard Kennedy School and other Harvard graduate schools to put their governance skills into action to help rebuild one of America's great cities. It also provided an opportunity for New Orleans' neighborhood leaders to build on their leadership skills through intensive Kennedy School courses.

With its success, the Broadmoor Project officially ended in 2011. It has lived on, however, as a best practices model for disaster recovery throughout the world, including through Recupera Chile, a Harvard University initiative that assisted with recovery of villages in Chile following its devastating 2010 earthquake and tsunami. In addition, the project spurred advance recovery as a new area of study at Harvard Kennedy School. Study in this area focuses on what communities can do in advance that will accelerate recovery if a disaster hits. The city of San Francisco was one of the first to call on the Kennedy School's knowledge of recovery management to help plan for the efficient management of recovery after a future disaster.

A number of articles have been written about the Broadmoor Project and its subsequent initiatives. Many are available in the publications listed on the Broadmoor Project page of the Belfer Center website as well as on the Harvard Kennedy School website. Following are a few that provide background and updates on the Project.

Broadmoor Project Summary and Background:

5 years after Hurricane Katrina

    10 years after Hurricane Katrina

    Impact in Chile:

    Additional relevant articles include the following from the Broadmoor perspective:

    For more information on this publication: Belfer Communications Office
    For Academic Citation: “Broadmoor Project, New Orleans: Looking Back and Ahead.” News, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School, January 2016.
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