The cultural and political economy of recovery

the long version

Beyond the physical destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans and the Gulf Coast came the destruction of social systems that underpinned normal life. In the aftermath of the hurricane different communities demonstrated varying success in rebuilding those systems. In this work, Chamlee-Wright (economics, Beloit College) presents the results of research into this variability of resilience that approached the issue from the perspectives of political economy, entrepreneurial response, and civil society. She proposes the concepts of "social learning"--The processes by which societies achieve complex social coordination that goes beyond the possibilities of intentional design--and "cultural economy"--investigation into social learning within non-priced contexts--in order to explore the topic, and then presents case studies examining the role of socially embedded resources such as collective narratives, social networks, generalized norms, and cultural tools in the recovery processes of various communities in and around New Orleans. She concludes with a discussion of the interaction of public policy and programs with the potential of civil society to foster recovery.