Published: Oct. 17, 2005

An interdisciplinary panel of experts at the University of Colorado at Boulder will discuss issues and research projects related to Hurricane Katrina on Friday, Oct. 21.

Several of the speakers will discuss initial findings from "Quick Response" studies carried out immediately after the hurricane. The discussion will be held from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the CIRES auditorium on the CU-Boulder campus.

The event is free and open to the public.

Speakers will include Professor Ross Corotis of civil engineering, Professors Leslie Irvine and Hillary Potter of sociology, graduate student Michelle Miles of journalism and graduate student Joel Gratz of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences.

Kathleen Tierney, professor of sociology and director of CU-Boulder's Natural Hazards Center, will present an introduction and Jennifer Kirschke of the College of Architecture and Planning will provide a visual presentation.

The event is sponsored by the Natural Hazards Center in CU-Boulder's Institute of Behavioral Science. The center is the nation's leading repository for knowledge on the societal dimensions of hazards, disasters and risk.

The Natural Hazards Center provided 25 Quick Response grants to CU-Boulder researchers and investigators from other universities across the country in the immediate aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The center's Quick Response research program is funded by the National Science Foundation.

The CIRES auditorium is located in the Ekeley Sciences Building, just south of Norlin Library. For more information on the symposium visit the Natural Hazards Center's Web site at or call (303) 492-6818.