Hurricane Isaac Recovery: Smith Experts Available to Discuss Disaster Management

As Hurricane Isaac cleanup is underway, experts in the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business are available to comment on topics related to disaster management.

Smith faculty and administrators can discuss recent developments in grassroots- and IT-related applications to management and recovery efforts, plus supply chain disruption, including oil and gas production and pricing.

The Smith School has an in-house broadcast facility for live or taped interviews via fiber-optic line for television or multimedia content.

Sandy Boyson: Supply Chain Shock Response and Preparedness

Boyson, a research professor in technology planning and director of Smith’s Supply Chain Management Center, can comment broadly on this topic. He helped manage Puerto Rico’s response to Hurricane Hugo in 1989 as technology advisor to the governor. He also has served as a senior information technology consultant for such international organizations as the World Bank and designed and implemented a six-course environmental management track, the first in the Washington-Baltimore area. Contact him at 301-405-2205 or sboyson@rhsmith.umd.edu.

Charles Olson, Oil-Gas Production, Pricing

Olson, professor of the practice in the Department of Logistics, Business and Public Policy, specializes in the economics and strategy behind the energy industry and has consulted for more than 100 utilities, as well as industrial companies, state agencies, trade associations and environmental groups. Contact him at 301-405-8666 or colson@rhsmith.umd.edu.

Louiqa Raschid – IT as a Disaster Management Tool

Raschid, professor of information systems and computer science and an expert in "Humanitarian IT," played a key role in developing Sahana FOSS (free open source software) for disaster information management. An outgrowth of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, this global leading product for managing disaster related information has the capability to manage organizations, people (both victims and volunteers), projects, assets and inventory critical for effective disaster management. Sahana can be used to aggregate information, perform assessments, exchange messages, and to provide situational awareness. The platform also supports a number of open protocols and standards for information exchange and has been deployed for several large-scale disasters, including the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

“One of the problems with widespread disaster management is that many different agencies must share information, each with their proprietary software. Interoperability based on open standards is key for successful disaster management. FOSS provides the community and expertise to develop products that may be uniquely suited for disaster management." Contact her at 301-405-2228 or lraschid@rhsmith.umd.edu.

Guillermo Olivos – Grassroots Relief Organizing

Olivos, assistant director of Smith’s Center for Social Value Creation, can discuss this topic from his perspective as a founding director of Evacuteer.org, a New Orleans-based operation incorporated by the State of Louisiana. The organization recruits, trains and manages evacuation volunteers, and has been active in the response to Isaac. Among his duties at Smith, Olivos manages ChangeTheWorld.org, a social venture consulting program serving universities across the country. Contact him at 301-405-9506 orgolivos@rhsmith.umd.edu.