Hurricane Katrina and the Redefinition of Landscape

Hurricane Katrina and the Redefinition of Landscape discusses the ways in which Hurricane Katrina and other such disasters that follow in the wake of large-scale natural phenomena have the ability to alter the physical and social landscapes of an area. Miller and Rivera emphasize the importance of the physical landscape and explore the ways in which any alteration to the landscape affects the economic, cultural, and political lives of the survivors. Through the example of Hurricane Katrina and the resulting devastation to New Orleans, Miller and Rivera suggest that economic and political policies should be more reflective of each unique physical location, thereby aiding in the development and sustainability of different cultures, economies, and political landscapes.

Miller and Rivera link scholarship on landscapes and disaster in innovative and insightful ways, demonstrating the cultural, economic, and ecological characteristics of 'disaster landscapes.' Hurricane Katrina and the Redefinition of Landscape presents the ecologic-symbolic theoretical framework in a manner that highlights the social significance of place and how place and meaning are shaped by disasters. In this groundbreaking book, Miller and Rivera work at the intersection of disaster-induced environmental and social change. In a world of ever-increasing risks, their insights are likely to influence future scholarship on the connections between disaster and development.

DeMond Shondell Miller is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology and the director of the Liberal Arts and Sciences Institute for Research and Community Service at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. Jason David Rivera is a research associate at Rowan University in the Liberal Arts and Sciences Institute for Research and Community Service.