Disaster management is rapidly becoming a constant factor in environmental conditions. This class will include research and analysis of the physical, historical, cultural and political contexts of disasters. Relationships between climate and storm events, global and local management systems, and public capacity to cope with disasters will be examined. Specific disaster events such as Hurricane Sandy, the Gulf oil spill, Chehalis River flooding events, and the potential of earthquake, tsunami, and volcano events it the Pacific Northwest will be highlighted. Students will be asked to read public documents, critical examinations, and personal accounts of disasters. Finally, students will be asked to research a specific disaster and highlight management issues. All students will have the opportunity to become certified by the State of Washington as Community Emergency Response Teammembers at the end of the course. This three day training covers disaster identification, immediate response at the community level, triage, and medical assistance preparations. A fee of $95 covers the training.

Faculty Biography:
Martha L. Henderson, Ph.D., is a geographer interested in social aspects of environmental conditions  and transformation of Earth by humans over time.  She is currently the Director of the Graduate Program on the Environment.  Her primary research and teaching interests are in ethnic identities as revealed in cultural landscapes.  Her teaching areas and research interests include Greek landscapes of wildland fire, Native American reservation landscapes, and Western American public lands and landscapes.