Restoration: Hurricane-Tsunami Community Exchange

Restoration:
Hurricane-Tsunami Community Exchange

The questions posed after the 2005 hurricanes seemed unprecedented: Should the affected areas be rebuilt? How could people return to their homes? Where do we begin the recovery process?
However, those same questions had been asked less than a year before.

Photos courtesy of ACHR.

Eight months prior to Hurricane Katrina's landfall, areas across southern Asia were devastated by massive tsunami waves that left over 2.5 million people homeless. In Indonesia alone, over 1000 villages and towns were completely destroyed.

The citizens of these affected areas have shown amazing courage in rebuilding their homes. They have collaborated with one another and with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who are assisting them in the recovery. Many areas were declared dead by their governments, but have returned to life as the people have come home to rebuild.

The parallels between the tsunami-damaged region and the Gulf South are striking. Residents of both areas are fighting for the right to return and conducting a mutual reconstruction, where NGOs and grass roots organizing support a people's-led rebuilding.
We believe that the remarkable effort of villagers and community groups in Asia can serve as a model for residents of coastal regions in the United States. In partnership with the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights, NPACH has organized a community exchange program between the Gulf South and the tsunami-ravaged areas.
"Three days after the tsunami, we went back to our own homes. Initially, we were scared, but because we are fishermen, we can't stay too long in the refugee camps. We need to continue our livelihoods, because the tsunami aid is not going to continue to sustain us for the coming year. So we took the initiative to return home together."
A fisherman from Lam Tengoh village, in Aceh Besar District.

Residents of the Aceh province in Indonesia will visit Mississippi and Louisiana, June 22-24, to tour the region and meet with community groups. In return, community leaders from some of the hardest-hit areas of New Orleans, including the Lower 9th Ward and New Orleans East, will travel to Thailand to learn firsthand about the survivors of the tsunami’s efforts to rebuild their homes and lives.
Download a press release about this

Please visit Asian Coalition for Housing Rights' website to learn about the rebuilding of coastal communities after the tsunami.
A People's Centered Perspective on Tsunami Rehabilitation

info@npach.org

Home | News | Alerts | Facts About Homelessness | Policy Briefs and Papers
Press Releases | Links | About NPACH | Support NPACH | Contact NPACH

Washington, DC Office:
1140 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 1210
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 714-5378

Southern Regional Office:
916 St. Andrew Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 524-8751

The questions posed after the 2005 hurricanes seemed unprecedented: Should the affected areas be rebuilt? How could people return to their homes? Where do we begin the recovery process? However, those same questions had been asked less than a year before. Photos courtesy of ACHR. Eight months prior to Hurricane Katrina's landfall, areas across southern Asia were devastated by massive tsunami waves that left over 2.5 million people homeless. In Indonesia alone, over 1000 villages and towns were completely destroyed. The citizens of these affected areas have shown amazing courage in rebuilding their homes. They have collaborated with one another and with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who are assisting them in the recovery. Many areas were declared dead by their governments, but have returned to life as the people have come home to rebuild.

The parallels between the tsunami-damaged region and the Gulf South are striking. Residents of both areas are fighting for the right to return and conducting a mutual reconstruction, where NGOs and grass roots organizing support a people's-led rebuilding. We believe that the remarkable effort of villagers and community groups in Asia can serve as a model for residents of coastal regions in the United States. In partnership with the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights, NPACH has organized a community exchange program between the Gulf South and the tsunami-ravaged areas.		"Three days after the tsunami, we went back to our own homes. Initially, we were scared, but because we are fishermen, we can't stay too long in the refugee camps. We need to continue our livelihoods, because the tsunami aid is not going to continue to sustain us for the coming year. So we took the initiative to return home together." A fisherman from Lam Tengoh village, in Aceh Besar District.

Residents of the Aceh province in Indonesia will visit Mississippi and Louisiana, June 22-24, to tour the region and meet with community groups. In return, community leaders from some of the hardest-hit areas of New Orleans, including the Lower 9th Ward and New Orleans East, will travel to Thailand to learn firsthand about the survivors of the tsunami’s efforts to rebuild their homes and lives. Download a press release about this Please visit Asian Coalition for Housing Rights' website to learn about the rebuilding of coastal communities after the tsunami. A People's Centered Perspective on Tsunami Rehabilitation