Social Entrepreneurs in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

The 2009 issue of Local Knowledge, published by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, looks at the role played by social entrepreneurs and nonprofits in rebuilding New Orleans. Last year Local Knowledge looked at the role of the commercial sector in the rebuilding efforts (2008 issue).

After disasters, how do social entrepreneurs and nonprofit groups affect rebuilding efforts?

That's the question the Mercatus Center at George Mason University asked four years ago, when we began a five-year project to learn from the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina.

In four years, we have interviewed over 450 people from Louisiana and Mississippi about the rebuilding process, learning what works in the nonprofit, commercial, and public sectors.

We are pleased to present Caring Communities: The Role of Nonprofits in Rebuilding the Gulf Coast which brings together scholarly analyses of work on the ground, journalists' overviews of trends in the nonprofit world, and inspiring accounts from people rebuilding their communities. Because this year's issue is available exclusively online, you can listen to these entrepreneurs tell their story in their own words through video interviews.