Spotlight

Hurricane Katrina Devastated the Gulf Coast in 2005. CSUCI and the ESRM Program Have Been Lending a Hand Ever Since.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina struck just as our school year was beginning in the Fall of 2005. Immediately students from across campus organized fundraising efforts and began sending money to the Red Cross. Inspired to contribute more than money, the ESRM program began bringing students to New Orleans and the surrounding regions of coastal Louisiana the following year. Our now-annual ESRM 492 course (Service Learning in New Orleans) is open to all majors. We examine the environmental, social, and policy drivers that fostered the conditions that made the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita the greatest disaster in American History. We do this with an interdisciplinary perspective. In addition to studying, lecturing about, and discussing all things Gulf Coast, the majority of our time in Louisiana is devoted to conducting Environmental Impact Surveys for non-profits who cannot afford to hire their own environmental consulting firms and to rebuilding homes and community buildings in the area. This is an effort to help our brothers and sisters in Louisiana. This trip is not a pity trip, but rather a celebration of Louisiana culture. We not only hear from scientists and policy makers over the course of our stay, but musicians, Pulitzer Prize winning journalists, music industry executives, chefs, and everyday people as well. Students on this trip consistently report that this trip is a fantastic culmination to their CSUCI experience, bringing together everything they learned in their previous courses. Several have returned to the New Orleans area after our class to continue to volunteer with various non-profit groups.

Students interested in enrolling this course should contact Dr. Anderson in the fall or keep an eye out for information sessions in the latter half of the fall semester. Due to logistic and financial constraints, this course is of necessity of limited size.