Role of Business in Disaster Response

There is an increasing focus on the issue of long-term recovery following disasters and urgent humanitarian crises. This is a good thing. The lessons of Katrina and other major disasters inform us that much work still needs to be done to coordinate effective strategies to help communities recover and thrive after a major humanitarian crisis.

By Mark Cooper, Senior Director of Global Emergency Management, Walmart Stores, Inc.

Hurricane Katrina changed everything in emergency management, especially the role of the private sector in disaster response. Walmart was singled out at the time for its leadership in helping communities respond. It’s a perspective I personally observed as a first responder to the disaster. Now, as head of the company’s emergency management department, that perspective helps shape our public-private collaboration at the state and federal levels every day.

By: Kathy Snyder, President/CEO, Maryland Chamber of Commerce
Patrick Donoho, President, Maryland Retailers Association
Jock Menzies, President, American Logistics Aid Network
Oliver R. Davidson, Senior Advisor, Business Civic Leadership Center

Many heartwarming stories start with an urgent late night call asking for help. A personal connection combined with the ability and desire to help our neighbors can produce positive results even in unfortunate circumstances.

By Frazier Wilson, Vice President Shell Oil Company Foundation, and Manager, Social Investment Shell Oil Company

By Jay Collins, Vice Chairman of Corporate and Investment Banking, Citi

Over the past decade, the Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) has issued a series of reports on the role of businesses in disaster response, primarily focusing on the philanthropic and social contributions that businesses make throughout the various stages of the disaster response process. This report looks at a different issue—what are businesses doing as innovators and developers of products and services to make communities more disaster resilient?